Resident Evil HD: 10 Essential Lessons Capcom Must Relearn

10. Assume The Player Is Intelligent

The Resident Evil remake doesn't assume you are stupid. The game doesn't hold your hand and offer you explicit hints on where to go or what to do in any given situation. Sure, you are given a general sense of direction, but beyond that progress is up to you. The game assumes you are smart enough to open a locked door or solve an elaborate puzzle, all while scaring the pants off you in the process - most of the earlier Resident Evil games followed this formula. Unfortunately the franchise's newfound focus on action and large-scale set pieces has reduced player agency in favour of linearity. The head-scratching puzzles and complicated navigational design have almost been thrown out entirely, making the latest entries too easy, which contradicts the entire point of playing a Resident Evil game. Fans enjoy playing the games because they are challenging and force you to use your brain a bit, and when you remove this element of the games they become increasingly generic. Resident Evil needs to go back to being a bit more mentally involved. There needs to be more reading of discarded old journals and puzzle solving and backtracking. The player should be able to get lost and frustrated. Many people enjoy a little lack of direction, and the Resident Evil games used to offer just such an experience.