Summary
With the end of Ethan Winters’ story inResident Evil Village, and the successful launch ofResident Evil 4’s remake,Resident Evilis in a good spot. There’s no sign of the next entry yet, and fans aren’t sure whether it’s going to beResident Evil 9, another remake, or a larger spin-off, but it isn’t a concern yet.Resident Evil 9is a reasonable assumption given the release pattern so far, but with Capcom’s packed release schedule, the nextREtitle can take its time getting ready.
Until then, fans are left to speculate what exactly the nextResident Evilwill be like. In the franchise’s past five years alone, it has experimented with survival-horror, action-horror, and everything in between. Even the protagonist is up for debate, withChris Redfield possibly returning likeResident Evil Villageimplied, another veteran like Claire or Jill taking the stage, or someone entirely new like Ethan appearing. Whatever the case may be, fans will be especially attentive to where the camera is placed, as using first-person or third-person angles will determine Evil 9than one might think.
Resident Evil 9 Could Easily Bring Back A First-Person Perspective
First-person is great for bringing out the horror inResident Evil. While it isn’t the same as the fixed camera angles used by titles before the originalRE4, first-person can effectively hide threats from players. Situations with as few as two enemies in a cluttered environment can become much more stressful in first-person, forcing players to manage their perspective while defending themselves. There’s a good reason whyResident Evil 7’s VR mode is famous for being one of the most terrifying VR experiences, and itself a greatargument for VR returning inResident Evil 9.
A First-Person Resident Evil 9 Could Benefit From The Ideas Its Predecessors Pioneered
On that note,Resident Evil 9could use a first-person viewpoint for all the same reasons it worked so well inResident Evil 7andVillage. It literally places the player in their character’s shoes, seeing everything that they see up-close and permitting design decisions that would be rougher in third-person.Environments inResident Evil 9can be more cluttered, likeRE7’s Baker House, with players equipped to sift through them for hidden items.RE7andVillagealso demonstrate that animations concerning arms and legs have the most impact in first-person. Throw in the aforementioned VR compatibility, andResident Evil 9could be the next immersive AAA horror sensation.
There Are Reasons For Resident Evil To Move Away From First-Person Gameplay
With all of that said, going first-person in the nextResident Evilwould feel dangerously close to retreadingRE7andVillageagain. Dating back to its fixed camera days,Resident Evilhas traditionally been a third-person franchise, and theREremakes have proven that over-the-shoulder viewpoints still work for action-horror and survival-horror. First-person can be kept in the series’ back pocket to bring out occasionally, but it would be nice to see anothernumberedResident Evilhave third-personat launch again after defaulting to first-person since 2017.
First-Person Is The Signature of Resident Evil’s Ethan Winters
CheapeningRE7andRE Village’s use of first-person perspectives isn’t an unwarranted concern, either. The Winters duology was built around the concept of the faceless Ethan Winters self-insert character. Even when third-person cutscenes occurred and the third-person mode was added toRE Village, Ethan’s obscured face remained a firm element of his design. Using anyother pre-established protagonist inResident Evil 9would be better suited to third-person cameras that allow players to see their character, emphasizing more kinetic fighters like the roundhouse-kicking Leon in the process. The topic of first or third-person perspectives could go either way inResident Evil 9, but just because the game can work from both angles doesn’t mean that designing around one first won’t have far-reaching consequences.
