“Resident Evil Requiem” is a full-blown masterpiece and unlike anything the franchise has done before. Over 31 years, I find it completely remarkable how Capcom has been able to reinvent this franchise. Combining the first-person horror of “Resident Evil 7” with the pulse-pounding action of “Resident Evil 4” is one of the best things this franchise has done.
The game opens with franchise newcomer Grace Ashcroft. Her gameplay is much more like the newer games, very tense, very scary and while you can play it in third person, I played it in first. I found it to be completely immersive and just incredible. Every jumpscare worked, especially in the first part with the care center. I found that part of the game was the best; they balanced Grace and Leon’s playtime so well there, and it was easily the most interesting and fun location in the game.
Speaking of Leon, his gameplay is just as fun as Grace’s. At the same time, her gameplay is horror-based and focused on solving puzzles. Leon’s is all about combat. It is like a breath of fresh air coming off of Grace’s sections, filled to the brim with tension. With Leon, you can just gun down anything that moves, and it is the ultimate relief. I think this works so well because after sneaking around the care center as Grace, carefully avoiding zombies, you can switch to Leon and kill all the zombies that you had to run away from. It is such a great idea and so satisfying to finally blast through all the enemies.
In “Resident Evil,” I find that the gameplay does most of the heavy lifting, while the story is usually second to the scares and puzzles. However, in “Requiem,” I found the story to be really good. I think a lot of that rests on Grace’s shoulders. She is such an immediately likable character, and the way she reacts to her insane circumstances makes you instantly like and care for her. This game also has a really good mystery for the first half. I think the villain, Victor Gideon, is pretty well done, being both intimidating and scary.
The second half of the game is when the dynamics completely switch, however, with Leon taking over and being the main character, and you getting much less of Grace. This switch was jarring at first, given how much I had really enjoyed Grace, but more Leon is never a bad thing.
Going from the intricately designed care center to the wide-open streets of Raccoon City was one of the reasons this was so jarring. This area was boring and dragged a bit. The gameplay is still very fun — shooting and kicking zombies will literally never get old — but I just found the area itself to be bland. Luckily, after this, the game quickly picks up steam again as you go to the Raccoon City Police Department and then to the game’s final location, which I do not want to spoil. Still, I feel it’s a great way to tie together all the previous games while setting up the next games.
The way that Grace and Leon’s gameplay contrasts with each other is what makes this game so special. I think it is absolutely incredible that they were able to pull off the complete tonal differences between the two. You run around terrified as Grace, and then switch to blasting off every zombie’s head with Leon while he is cracking jokes. The best part of these stories is always how they balance the ridiculous lore and camp with genuine scares and characters that you cannot help but cheer for, and Capcom delivers that in spades here. The way they have given love to these series favorites while still reinventing the formula and introducing new, likeable characters is an accomplishment that makes the “Resident Evil” series something I will always return to.
10/10
