TOEM
Toemmay beas prescriptivein
its quest checklist as any
adventure game, but it lets you
get silly and personalise the
details. Solving problems for
the residents of its cute,
colourless world always
requires pulling out your
instant camera, but there’s a
playfulness in deciding howto
set up each requested shot
after you puzzle out what’s
being asked for.Do youtake a
selfie witha dog? Whip out
your foam finger?Lauren MortonNIER REPLICANT
I playedNier Replicantbecause
I didn’t likeNier: Automata.
The latter game felt
overwrought fora familiar
story about robotswith
feelings. This year, I discovered
that Nier Replicantwas always
the better game, blending a
tragic, andsometimes
comedic story with a beloved
main cast. It’sa game that digs
into people andtheir desires
instead of simply suggesting it.
It’sdevastatingly honest,and I
needed that this year.Tyler ColpJacob Ridley: Resident Evil Village is a
much more fast-paced game than you
might expect off the back of Resident Evil
7 : Biohazard. For that, it’s the Resident Evil game
I’d recommend to those who haven’t tried a Resi
game before, as in between all the body horror
there’s a whole lot of running and gunning.
It also blends so many excellent horror game
staples into a single, fluent game. Each primary
‘area’ of the map feels like a
discrete experience, some more
action focused and others more
downright haunting. And each
one home to a well-written, and
well-acted, paranormal mob boss
figure. Resident Evil Village feels
like a horror game built to cater to
most horror fans, and while
usually that might appear
overreaching, Capcom manages to thread the
needle exceptionally well.
Harry Shepherd, guides editor: I skipped Resident
Evil 7 , but totally not because I was too scared.
And I can prove it: I played Resident Evil Village.
But it means my last experience of the series was
the terminally bloated action movie, (^) Resident Evil
6 , and Ethan’s terrifying jaunt through Castle
Dimitrescu could hardly be more different. In the
best way possible. It also reasserted to me how
useful it is to have fully-functioning hands.
Anyway, where Resident Evil 6 was overlong,
over the top, and needed the reset of 7 to get back
to what the series is best at: scares. Village takes
that a step further: It’s tighter, more focused, and,
most importantly, blood-curdling. As Jacob says,
each area feels distinct. They’re a series of neat,
horrifying episodes that feel fresh
enough that, while Lady D is sent
packing quicker than you might
expect, you don’t really mind.
Village boasts plenty of
fearsome moments, even when
you’re armed to the teeth. In
what feels like no time at all after
admiring the reveal of the Gothic
castle, you’re surrounded by
werewolves, left scrapping for survival with a
mixture of bullets, red barrels, and dumb luck. I
was at my most afraid in these moments.
That said, for all the gratifying guns, the section
in which they’re all taken away will always live
longest in the memory. The tall vampire that stole
the show ahead of release may cast a long shadow,
but hidden behind her was one of the scariest
horror sequences I’ve ever played.
RESIDENT EVIL VILLAGE
IT’S TIGHTER,
MORE FOCUSED,
AND BLOOD-
CURDLING
BEST
HORROR
2021