Resident Evil 7

[P.I.M.P.]

how are the sales for this game?

[Guest]

65% or so.

[P.I.M.P.]

65% or so.

Out of what? 2 mill?

[GuardhouseMusic]

After playing through this game the first time, I would not at all mind if REmake 2 was in first person. Considering 2 is my favorite and my attitude went "fixed angles/pre-rendered or NOTHING" before this came out, phew.

I am still in appreciative awe in regards to Capcom pulling this off.

[Mikhail]

Not all that bad imo, kinda like Kenneth camera mode.

[Rombie]

Found an easter egg that most people except hardcore Re fans would miss. When playing the "Happy Birthday" tape in the beginning Lucas begins to drag someone then stops to input a code on the keypad. If you listen carefully the sound it makes when it's being inputted and confirmed is the inventory sound effects from RE2. Sorry if it's a mild spoiler.

What's funny about this to me is I downloaded the free PS+ RE7 theme off the PS Store the day the game launched and the sound effects for that are ones from the early games as well, so when I got to that part in the game it wasn't as surprising to hear more old key entry sound effects.

https://store.playstation.com/#!/en-us/games/themes/resident-evil-7-biohazard-theme/cid=UP0102-CUSA03962_00-BH700000THEME002

[Guest]

I still consider this more like a spin-off rather than a sequel. So okay, yeah. It has a number in it. But I still say it's a side story.

[Snake Plissken]

Yeah I equate it with the Revelations universe.

[Jimmy_Jazz]

I'm all in favour of debating the pros and cons of RE7 against the rest of the series, but what's with all this reality warping that's been going on?

I still consider this more like a spin-off rather than a sequel. So okay, yeah. It has a number in it. But I still say it's a side story.

It's got a full number and no sub headings in its title so that makes it a full blow sequel. Not how far the narrative branch is from the wider universe's established core. I don't see the need to internally re-classify it as a 'spin-off' to satisfy your own perceptions of the series - what is wrong with appreciating it for what it is?

The declining sales over the past decade have shown people are tired of what were getting.

If you're talking about mainstream entries then you really only have 5&6 to compare over that time period, and 6 did sell a shit-tonne - 6+million and isn't far behind RE5's 7mil. Capcom's issue with 6's sales wasn't that they were low, but that Capcom were trying to turn RE into some kind of CoD-style specticle and were expecting CoD sales to match. And I don't see how you can deduce from the difference in sales between 5&6 that fixed cameras and tank controls is the only way to put future RE titles' sales inline with either other big AAA titles or getting a decent profit.

Now Rev and the HD Remakes have sold well, but a direct comparison isn't possible because of their differnt approaches, although it has been great to see the press start talking favouribly about survival horror, regardless of the camera perspective, when reviewing those titles.

Outside of all this, I do hope RE2Make sticks to fixed cameras and embraces some of the RE1.5 content, as opposed to being a straight translation of RE2 over to HD. However, after saying I'd never want another RE1 remake again, I'd love to see RE1 in frist person after playing through 7, but only if it's possible to expand upon the game in a similar fashion to how RE1Make did over the original RE1.

---

Now this is a personal opinion, but I do think that moving away from the core characters and universe has been a good thing for this game. Suddenly the spotlight is thrust onto a solild set of adversaries and the location, not whether or not ADA will once again return to throw Leon a rocket launcher at the last minute or which new anti/pro BoW orginisation will you have to learn the acronym of in order to get the plot of the game. I think that direction has really caught the positive eye of the press, who have dedicated alot of space to the Baker family. I'm not denying that ending has got chins wagging, but people outside the core fanbase are excited because the core idea is so simple and relatable. One of RE's strengths is tapping into a plethora of popular and cult horror worlds and pinching bits in order to create something fresh and new, and like 1,2 & 4, it hits the nail right on the head here.

Also, in a market where AAA titles are either very linear specticle fests (CoD etc) or behemoth open world games, RE7 stands out for giving us something different - much more intimate and personal to explore, but with choreography and pace to make sure its story has impact. I really hope RE7's sales continue to be strong.

It's not just good, but essential for long term franchises to know how to reinvent and reinterpret themselves in order to progress and stay relevent, and part of that process can involve cutting ties with established characters, locations, histories, stories etc. Personnally, I'd love to see Capcom flip it's approach to main and revelations entries so that the big numbered titles focus on more intimate survival horror etc whilst revelations can occupy some of the vaccum left in RE's third person action gameplay, as well as embrace long running characters and plot points. Heck, I'm even happy for DLC to provide more bridges between more seperate mainstream entries and the wider universe.

Maybe that leaves revisiting other older titles to give us our Fixed Camera fix. I felt that Code Veronica was sloppy all around - from plot to character feel - but could see HD remakes of that and RE3 keeping this area going after RE2HDREMAKETHINGY.

[Guest]

People such as myself are referring to it as a spin-off merely because it has little to do with the other games, being that it has all-new characters, a different setting, a viewpoint only seen in side games, and there is little connection to what has gone on already. Much like how 4 was a 100% new game despite Leon from 2 coming back, but it's still milking the brand name alone. It's the name that ropes people in. It could have easily passed as another generic horror game. Remember how Silent Hill 4: The Room wasn't actually supposed to be part of the series? Konami just added some stuff and put the name on it. It sold well because of that. I'm not saying it doesn't fit in or "belong" here, but it could have easily passed as a different game entirely.

[Jimmy_Jazz]

SH4's situation was different, it was intentionally renamed.

RE4 & 7 are about re-imaginging the series by distilling everything back to their routes and then taking things in a new direction. Without that, RE would have stagnated and died. The different viewpoint is a red-herring in terms of is it / isn't it connected to the past. The short, medium and long term gameplay loops are much more aligned with RE1,2,3 & CV than anything that's come since. And as for "generic", whilst it's clearly been influenced by the rise of single antagonists in other horror titles, it's done it in a unique way with skill and aplomb, whilst the RE series was enjoying crafting mechanics over 15 years before the likes of Alien: Isolation.

And look at the press, RE new comers and RE returners are saying about the game - it's not the name that's getting their attention. It's the fact that survial horror is back, if's the Baker family, it's the southern setting and an entirely different set of movie references than what came before. I suspect the fact that you don't to engage with the series' long standing characters and history are also positives for many.

Yeah, if you removed the ending story ties then it could be a different game. But that game would be favourible compared to early REs and would probably be considered as inheriting their crown. I'd take that then RE6, which had alot less in common the gameplay of the first 4 big titles but was full of their characters. And I'd take this RE7 over those of those because it shows that the series still has potential and doesn't have to be relegated to the attic whilst a spiritual successor is worked on instead.

[Jimmy_Jazz]

Heck, you can trace those single, repeated antagonists back to RE2, 3 & even 3.5's Hookman.

If RE7 is generic, it's generic in the sense that it's built on features that are common in survival and horror games. However, since the many of features can be found throughout the RE lineriage & RE had a big hand in shaping them, any complaints that it's not RE in-terms of gameplay then become null and void. Although I appreciate that where you, BSAA ORG, specifally feel it departs from RE is in the setting and characters, not gameplay. Also, "generic" also suggests that those features are unchanged in any meaningful ways, which I don't think is the case for the majority of the game. Crafting offers some great strategic choices to make, especially on Madhouse, no-one does doors like RE7 does doors and the Bakers, as adversaries, are sublime.

It's not perfect in my eyes though, I do have some complaints about how plain the Molded and final boss enouncter. I would have also prefered more complicated puzzles and larger, more complex buildings, but for those I also appreciate that as a reboot, it also wants to be wide appealing.

RE7 gets back to basics, does them both well and in new ways, and sets up a new era for the series that shows that it can both be relevent to wider gamers and a leader in approach and features. It will inevitably evolve and broaden as this incarnation continues to be developed, and I wouldn't be surprised if it reintegrates itself with the wider universe, but I hope it's change is scope and focus is is more inline with the orignial trilogy than the second trilogy.

One thing I am surprised about though is that the traditionals aren't slapping down moving whilst aiming.

[Guest]

You have to admit though, that Capcom do have a bad history when it comes to milking everything. What? With all the extended versions and stuff that should have been DLC rather than a £40 re-release. Although to be fair, that was more so in the days where DLC was not that huge.

[Jimmy_Jazz]

Of course, no denial there. But I can't view RE7 itself through cynical eyes. This feels like a genuine attempt to turn the series around, even if UC came partially through its development. Going back to 2014 rumours suggested that RE7e would be returing to its survival horror roots, and since then, the team have said that the first person direction came before the release of the P.T. demo. I'm happy to take that Capcom's words at face value for the full product, even if the demo was a deviation that embraced abit of P.T.

[EvilMark443]

I suspect the fact that you don't to engage with the series' long standing characters and history are also positives for many.

This, combined with the Texas chainsaw feel of the trailers, is why I ignored the game as RE in-name-only and did not purchase it at the launch. From a story perspective, nothing we were shown pre-launch excited me or gave me any reason to get it.

Yeah, if you removed the ending story ties then it could be a different game. But that game would be favourible compared to early REs and would probably be considered as inheriting their crown.

Without the story ties I would not be planning to get the game at some point in the future. I've always wanted a return to horror, but the story is even more important to me when it comes to RE.