9 Reasons Resident Evil 7 Is 2017's First Must-Have Game
Game of the Year entries are starting early...
It took five years and a lot of going back to the drawing board, but Capcom have finally dropped the new Resident Evil - a bold, first-person rework of its many core sensibilities, modernised, toned down in spots and essentially, done far better than Resident Evil 6 and the dreadful Umbrella Corps.
To be honest, it couldn't have come at a better time. The franchise itself has been flailing in the wind since Resident Evil 4 proved a wider audience would lap up a pure action-focused direction, only for RE5 and 6 to fly off the rails chasing the Gears of War crowd. Now that 7 is out, it's clear Capcom have seen the likes of P.T., Outlast and Slender Man revamping the survival horror genre from the ground up, and have taken their time crafting something truly special.
Casting you as one Ethan Winters after receiving a random message from your wife who's been missing for three years, it's time to figure out precisely what happened, why she went missing in the first place, and how it all ties into the Baker family; a Texas Chainsaw Massacre-inspired family of cannibals that'll oppose you at every turn.
Ingeniously, Capcom kept the levels of hype relatively low, distancing RE7 from the established canon and allowing the game to speak for itself. Thankfully, that voice is a confident one, and here are 10 reasons why you should listen up...