The following are the highlights of the company’s first 20 years. Resident Evil seriesThe instructions were easy to follow. I don’t mean in terms of its convoluted, lore-packed narrative. It was more straightforward to identify what it was trying achieve. Resident Evil games were pulp horror. It leaned on B-movie influences for cheesy zombie film thrills and a commentary on corporate greed. Even its most hated games (lDo not ook at me Resident Evil 6That core philosophy was followed by )
This changed with the 2017 release Resident Evil 7. Something of a soft reboot, the game went back to the series’ survival horror roots by placing new hero Ethan Winters in a puzzle box house filled with jump scares. Although the gameplay was very similar to Resident Evil, it featured a first-person viewpoint shift. However, the game was a departure from the original. The series’ big picture story of a greedy pharmaceutical company creating bioweapons took a back seat to Winters’ more personal family drama, as he searched for his missing wife. It was followed by a sequel. Resident Evil VillageYou could shuffle even further and go full-on supernatural.
After VillageI was left wondering about the direction of Resident Evil’s new version. I was left wondering what the themes were that would eventually tie it all together. Resident Evil Village: Winters’ ExpansionThis new tool answers this question. Shadows of Rose DLC. Like the Fast and the Furious series, it’s all about family … and superpowers.
Mold breaker
Shadows of RoseThis gives you more context Village’s intriguing epilogue, which flashed forward in time to show Ethan’s daughter Rose all grown up. Rose appeared to have some special abilities and was now working for a shadowy organization. How did we get here? These questions are partially answered by the DLC, but not completely.
The three-hour story carries Resident Evil’s goofiest story to date. Rose is called a freak by her strange mold powers and other children bully her. In an attempt to become normal, she enters Mother Miranda’s consciousness (who is basically a brain in a jar at this point) to try and find purifying crystals that will rid her of her powers. It’s a psychological journey through Rose’s subconscious as her emotional baggage turns into effective horror imagery, like doppelganger versions of her having their faces slurped up by monsters.
This premise allows Capcom reuse Village locations, but alter them slightly. Rose takes over a large portion of the expansion. Castle DimitrescuFor instance, she must complete a puzzle hunt for three masks in order to grab a crystal. It is a mini version of Resident Evil. Later sequences expand on that concept while adding to the surreal horror. It’s a bit of a victory lap for Village’s best moments, but it works thanks to Rose, whose “sick of this crap” angst makes her a fun hero.
Rose has special abilities that enable her to freeze enemies or remove mold barriers. Resident Evil has always been a supernatural series. It was fully realized in Village. But this series is pushing the limits in that direction. Rose is essentially a superpowered, adding an additional layer to the combat. The freezing ability is basically a more effective and fun version of the arbitrary blocking system used in the base game.
A personal story
While it’s all very silly, even by Resident Evil standards, it does crystallize what Capcom is really going for in its new iteration of the series. Like 7And Village, Shadows of RoseIt’s a personal story about a family. Rose’s powers aren’t just for show; they’re a physical reminder of her deceased father. The DLC is largely about Rose working through her identity as a daughter of Ethan Winters, grappling with the genetic curse (or gift) that’s been handed down from someone she never got a chance to meet. It’s a simple story about closure, told via over-the-top horror tropes.
It’s a small story, but one that retroactively snaps the series’ current trajectory into place. Capcom isn’t so much creating zombie B-movies ripe with heady social commentary anymore; it’s making supernatural soap operas about family trauma. You could even see that in the series’ Recent Netflix adaptations, which dealt with Albert Wesker’s relationship with his kids.
Fans can decide if this direction is as thrilling as Resident Evil. Shadows of Rose at least gives a sense of how the horror game’s formula will continue to evolve. Expect to Resident Evil 9To feature more superpowers, melodrama, or daddy issues.
Resident Evil Village: Winters’ ExpansionLaunches October 28th for Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S and PlayStation 4, PS5 and PC
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