Resident Evil: Lost Connections

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Resident Evil Characters

Intro

Resident Evil is a survival horror game series with a long and successful history that began in 1996. For 23 years, it has kept fans entertained with it’s scary graphics, interesting puzzles, and mysterious plots. The game series has veered off course in some of their recent games. As a fan of the series since the first game, I think it comes down to a lost connection with the audience. Sometimes in trying to appeal to a new audience, a product can disappoint their base audience. Everyone can’t be satisfied, but trying to please too many people can be disastrous. Game designers, like web designers, are trying to create a memorable experience for the audience and there’s always a list of things to consider. 

Early Resident Evil Games

Resident Evil
Resident Evil 2

The first 2 titles Resident Evil (1996) and Resident Evil 2 (1998) take place mainly in the same location. The characters go back and forth between the same areas as you find a key or solve a puzzle that was needed to move forward. Though you have weapons to protect yourself, you might at times opt for avoiding a monster to conserve ammo and life. All of this laid the groundwork for the franchise. Resident Evil brought in $467 million and Resident Evil 2 brought in $655 million.

dent Evil 3: Nemesis

Resident Evil 3: Nemesis (1999) is very similar in design and gameplay to the first 2 games. It steered the game more in a combat direction and the character goes to several locations. Some fans consider this a negative in the franchise because it takes out some of the survival struggle. Not only are you loaded with weapons, you don’t stay in an area long enough to feel trapped. The series began to change from survival horror to action, shooter. Maybe that’s why this game didn’t do as well compared to the first 2 games since it only brought in $259 million.

Resident Evil 0

Resident Evil 0 (2002) is a prequel to the series. It’s unique in that the player can switch between the 2 protagonists. The 2nd character was controlled by the AI when the player wasn’t using them. Some people see that as a negative for the franchise because having a partner removes some of the horror aspects. This was the first game where you did not have a case to store your items. It only brought in $142 million.

The games mentioned so far have been remade or remastered for the latest game systems. Key elements about the series up to this point was the tension, puzzles, and fixed camera angles. All of these elements and more helped to create a survival horror atmosphere. Though critics had high ratings for the franchise, the sales weren’t the best. The list below shows how much money was brought in by each game across different systems:

  • Resident Evil (1996)                                        $467 million
  • Resident Evil 2 (1998)                                     $655 million
  • Resident Evil 3: Nemesis (1999)                   $259 million
  • Resident Evil 0 (2002)                                    $142 million 

Resident Evil’s New Direction

In an effort to bring sales up, the future titles in the franchise have a new direction. Lately, the franchise’s new direction seems to be more of an action, shooter game. Those games tend not to be as scary. Some fans think that the past installments of the franchise are scarier than the newer games. 

Resident Evil 4

Resident Evil 4 (2005) was the game that launched the franchise in a new direction. It returned the franchise to its days of glory. Besides the graphics, some major improvement in this game was the third-person (over the shoulder) view, quicker pace compared to past games, better control of the character, and smarter enemies. Even though this game isn’t like its predecessors, it is considered to be a good combination between the older and newer game styles. It still brought in $474 million which was almost as much as the original Resident Evil.

Resident Evil 5

Resident Evil 5 (2009) carried over the improvements from Resident Evil 4 and added many firsts for the franchise. This was the first game in the franchise to have cooperative gameplay, you don’t have a case to store your items, and most of the game takes place during the day. I personally enjoyed the new aspects of the game and felt that it made playing really fun. However, this can be seen as a negative since you won’t be as horrified with a companion and in the daylight. Despite it all, this game has brought in the most money at $790 million.

Resident Evil 4 and 5 are different from the earlier games but they still retain many of the core elements: suspension, tension, puzzle solving, and in-game documentation that helps drive the story. It’s the games after this point that begin to deviate from the franchise’s main elements.

Resident Evil’s Decline

Resident Evil 6

Resident Evil 6 (2012) was the game that tried to please everyone. There were 3 different scenarios for you to play through. Each scenario was short and represented a style of play that had developed in different games throughout the franchise. It was a good effort but I personally felt disappointed. The changes they made affected the direction of the content. One example of this is they focused more on the action rather than the story. It felt like Call of Duty at times to me. Despite how I feel about the game, it actually brought in $683 million.

Resident Evil 7: Biohazard

I didn’t think I could be more disappointed but I was wrong. Resident Evil 7: Biohazard (2017). The creators changed the view from 3rd person to 1st person. Since this supports Virtual Reality, I understand why the change was implemented. First person is supposed to make you feel more in the game. I associate this viewpoint with action, shooter games like Call of Duty which means that the atmosphere of the game has changed. Again though, this game did bring in 7.9 million which is very close to Resident Evil 5. The chart below will help you see where all the main games are.

Resident Evil Graph of Copies Sold

Conclusion

Design is a form of communication. In a series that’s been going for over 20 years, making changes is a big decision. Change affects the direction of the content. It has made some mistakes that lead many players to feel disappointed in a franchise that they held high expectations for. However, Resident Evil is making a comeback and hopefully a return to what made them a high stakes contender in the survival horror game genre. After some recent remakes (Resident Evil 2 and 3) and an all-new game (Resident Evil 8: Village) in development, audiences hope for a balance between what they love about the series and the new ideas being incorporated into it.

Works Cited

Published by ngreer