Resident Evil 7: Biohazard - or was that Resident EVII? - is now definitely a thing, but it’s not exactly the thing we thought it would be. It’s first-person, it looks like it’ll actually be a survival horror game and the whole thing will be playable in VR - though thus far the goggle-friendly component has only been confirmed for the PS4 release. Those departures aside, it’s still a Resi game, so expect zombies that still really, really want to eat your brains.
Capcom announced the forthcoming Resi title at E3 2016 with a murky trailer and some gameplay torn straight from the game’s demo, which is currently playable now on PS4 for PlayStation Plus subscribers. Exact details about the game’s setting, story and gameplay remain scarce, but the 15-minute demo (one of those replayable ones that fans will be poring over for clues until release) seems to confirm this is Resident Evil going back to its roots. From what we’ve seen at E3 and the subsequent deluge of information that has followed, here’s everything we know about Resident Evil 7: Biohazard.
Resident Evil 7 release date
The best news of Capcom’s E3 reveal was a release date, which means you’ll be able to slowly creep around a derelict mansion and hide from zombies as soon as January 24, 2017. Alongside that release, the game will also be launching as a full VR experience for PlayStation VR, though support for other devices like the Oculus Rift and the HTC Vive have not been announced.
Resident Evil 7 gameplay
From the game’s trailer and demo you would be forgiven for thinking you were watching a reveal for one of Frictional’s Amnesia titles or the now cancelled Silent Hills game. All the key bits are there: a helpless protagonist, rummaging through a creaky abandoned building, a dim and blinking flashlight. Judging by the demo, the gameplay is certainly horror, but we’ve yet to see anything of the survival sort - its nothing like what we'd expected.
The first-person perspective is a big shift for the franchise too, and it’s bound to have a significant impact on the game. For starter’s that first-person perspective means we’re definitely going to have some jump-scares coming our way, but it might also fix some of Resi’s most persistent problems where playability, camera control and movement are concerned.
In an interview with Masachika Kawata, producer at Capcom Japan, we were told that the demo was only a “tonal preview” of the final game and that “you will definitely feel you’ve had a Resident Evil experience” after playing the final release. Here’s hoping that means guns and herbs aplenty come January.
Resident Evil 7 setting
A dilapidated plantation mansion in America’s deep south - it’s an interesting new setting for the franchise, but by far its biggest draw is the notion that players will be restricted to just that area. The likely result of that confinement is a game that’s a whole lot more concise than previous Resi titles. With a small, intricately constructed single setting we’re also hoping for subtle hidden messages littered throughout to discover while exploring the plantation.
Thematically, the deep south setting also allows for plenty of horror fun to be had, especially seeing as the crumbling mansion looks like Leatherface himself would feel right at home there. How far Capcom Japan will go into the plantation mansion’s presumed past of slavery is also still unknown.
Capcom have also confirmed on Sony’s PlayStation blog that the events of Resident Evil 7 will be taking place after those of Resident Evil 6, “a horror story is only as frightening as its setting, and Resident Evil 7 pays tribute to the franchise’s origins on this front as well. Resident Evil 7 is set after the events of Resident Evil 6, taking place in modern day and revolving around a foreboding, derelict plantation mansion in rural America. Players must explore and survive the horrors within the mysterious, sprawling estate.”
Resident Evil 7 Trailer
Capcom gave us one wonderful splicing of gameplay and cinematic footage to drool over after the E3 2016 announcement - it’s spooky, maggoty and you can watch it below.
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