It Takes Some Clear Inspiration from Resident Evil 4
While Resident Evil Village may be a direct sequel to Resident Evil 7, it’s heavily inspired by Resident Evil 4, according to director Morimasa Sato.
Speaking in an interview with IGN, Sato explained “If Resident Evil 7 was like a reboot that inherited the DNA of the original Resident Evil, then you could say that this time we’re doing the same for Resident Evil 4. We’ve designed the game and its structure with Resident Evil 4’s essence in mind, so I think that you’ll be able to find a lot of elements that remind you of that game.”
Some of this inspiration is clear, such as the environments. In both Resident Evil 4 and Village, players will be exploring a village (if that somehow wasn’t abundantly clear) and also a castle, similar to the one resided in by Ramon Salazar when Leon Kennedy visited all those years ago.
Then there’s The Duke, a traveling merchant who has weapons and other handy items up for sale. He’s a little chonkier than the highly quotable merchant of Resident Evil 4, but they serve the same purpose. Add on to that the return of the Mercenaries mode, a larger emphasis on combat, and the return of the Tetris-esque inventory management, and there’s a lot of Resi 4 DNA pumping through the mutated veins of Resident Evil Village.
“In the history of the series, I believe that Resident Evil 4 is where the action and combat evolved the most. Interestingly, Resident Evil 4 was also set in a village. For Resident Evil Village, we’re bringing the essence of Resident Evil 4, while Resident Evil 7 functions as the base for the game. It’s not a reboot of Resident Evil 4, but the offspring of both Resident Evil 7 and Resident Evil 4,” Sato said.
