11 Powerful Video Game Opening Sequences That Gave You Chills
Making that first impression go down in history.
Sometimes a game just needs to make the best first impression possible. I mean think about it: You've waited for months upon months, sifting through trailers and sporadic gameplay footage, plonked down your hard-earned cash, perhaps sat through a loading screen or three - whatever happens next needs to strike the right chord, and it needs to do so with the perfect amount of resonance, otherwise you just might not play any further.
In a world of Steam sales and monthly freebies on the console side, first impressions count more than ever. It's why the likes of Call of Duty or Battlefield always slap you upside the head with gunfire and pyrotechnics, why Assassin's Creed's annual releases became increasingly action-focussed, and why - when looking to press conferences and hype-building trailers - it's essential to hit the ground positively sprinting.
That said, which games did it better than others? Which games when you think back, gut-punched you with the perfect mix of technical execution, graphical splendour, scriptwork and everything in between?
I've got some suggestions, and let me know your own in the comments below.
11. Surviving The Village Assault - Resident Evil 4
Resident Evil 4 marked a turning point for the franchise; the last Resi to put a real emphasis on atmosphere and jump-scares before 5 and 6 went way too far down the action route, never to be the same again.
To that end, director Shinji Mikami needed to prove the revolutionary 'behind the back' camera view wouldn't take away from the claustrophobic tendencies of years gone by. Enter the Spanish village opening level, and gaming's answer to The Wicker Man.
No sooner have you slowly walked a few feet through the trees and down towards the various ramshackle sheds and dilapidated wooden structures passing as houses, that all hell breaks loose. You'll fight for your life popping headshots, unleashing roundhouse kicks to free up distance, climb ladders to regain some composure and barricade windows to stymy the flow of your pursuers just for a second.
It's no good, there are always too many. You're down to your last ammo box now, your health dwindling and your escape options literally backed into a corner and then... nothing. A church bell rings in the distance and like the parasitic lifeforms they're later revealed to be, all your opponents vanish in an instant.
You can breathe again, and as you do, the title card pops up...
"Resident Evil".
Perfect.