While next two Resident Evil remakes coming down the road, but it's the Resident Evil 9 leaks that caught my attention.
The past two Resident Evil trilogies have featured consistent approaches to the camera. Resident Evil 1 through 3 are played from fixed camera angles, while RE 4 through 6 are played from a third-person perspective. Resident Evil 7 and Village are played in first-person, but according to leaks, RE9 will return as a third-person game. I think this is a big mistake, but while I hope these leaks prove to be false, I'm not holding my breath.
Why First-Person Works Great For Resident Evil
Third-Person Plays Better, But Makes It Less Scary
Resident Evil 7: Biohazard revived the series for a reason, and a big part of that was the new first-person perspective. The first-person perspective was actually planned during the early stages of RE1, but Capcom decided to use fixed-camera angles instead. This new viewpoint was refreshing, placing enemies right up in the player's face and making the game scarier than any RE prior. The tension is debatably worse than the actual scares, as you'll always be on the lookout for Molded. Even the brutal Madhouse mode doesn't let up because the game remixes enemy spawns.
10 Hardest Resident Evil Boss Fights Of All Time, Ranked
Resident Evil started nearly 30 years ago, and in that time, there's been a ton of grotesque and brutally difficult boss fights to take down.
To put things in perspective, I've never beaten the Nightmare or Night Terror DLC modes because I can't stand the tension of bunkering down in that one room, waiting for enemies to come in two separate directions. It's just too much for me, and I wouldn't have the same feeling if the game were in third-person. That fear is what makes these first-person RE titles some of the best horror games you can play right now.
I haven't played RE7 or Village in VR, but I've heard it's one of the most terrifying VR experiences out there, and it would be a shame if RE9 lacked a VR option. Resident Evil Village, while having more of an RE4 feel, still benefited greatly from a first-person mode, making the ambushes much more intense and the House Beneviento section much scarier. I will it that I prefer third-person RE in regards to controls, as I think it plays much smoother, but in of horror, first-person is better in every respect.
Capcom Should Make RE9 A First-Person Game
An Inconsistent Trilogy
With Resident Evil 7 and Village excelling due to their first-person perspective, it makes sense for RE9 to follow suit, but that doesn't appear to be the case. Dusk Golem, a reputable Resident Evil leaker, detailed the following Resident Evil 9 leaks via X.
Resident Evil 9 appears to be going third-person, an odd choice considering the track record of all previous Resident Evil trilogies. It feels weird to have Resident Evil 7 and Village be in first-person, but not the concluding chapter of this new saga. Apparently, RE9 won't be the ending to this current trilogy, but rather Leon's trilogy, due to the recent remakes of Resident Evil 2 and 4. Those are some of the best Resident Evil remakes, but it's more of a quadrilogy due to Resident Evil 6, which is absent from Dusk Golem's post.
Resident Evil Is A “Nah”, But RE2 Director Hideki Kamiya Wants To Make Three Other Capcom Games
The iconic director behind Resident Evil 2 isn't interested in returning to the series, but he has his sights set on other Capcom classics.
Regardless, I feel that switching to third-person is the wrong call, as first-person RE is what made me fall in love with the series again. Resident Evil 7 is still the scariest title in the franchise, and I'm worried that RE9 won't have nearly the same impact. Third-person RE games can still be scary, like Resident Evil 2 Remake, but RE7 is on a different level. Hopefully, Resident Evil 9 stays a first-person game or at least provides a first-person option.
Source: AestheticGamer aka Dusk Golem/X
