Resident Evil Village, the follow-up to 2017’s Resident Evil Biohazard will feature a bigger and scarier world filled with numerous creatures that are out to get you, including gigantic vampire ladies and werewolves, among many others. We wouldn’t blame you if you ended up dying more often in Resident Evil Village than you’d like to admit.
For those of you who just started playing, we’re not going to be revealing too many spoilers. Such as why the hell Chris Redfield shot Mia Winters dead during the opening sequence of the game. (To find out more read our Everything We Know guide here). But to just get you started we’ve rounded up a few tips for beginners that should help you suffer less and live a little longer.
Aim for the Knees
Now, first things first, this tip doesn’t apply to all enemies. However, because you’ll be fighting werewolves and ghouls most of the time in Resident Evil Village, you might as well learn what the most effective way to fight them is.
Unlike zombies, who will happily let you hit them on the head, the most common enemies in Resident Evil Village know how to duck and juke to avoid getting hit on the head. Body shots might seem like a logical choice, but it’s not as effective either.
But, if you hit them on the knees, you can slow them somewhat so you can get away or take them done much more easily. Not to mention, the knees are much easier to hit, so you’ll end up saving tons of bullets that would’ve otherwise missed their target if you went for the head.
Never Be Ashamed About Running
If there’s one thing that any long-time Resident Evil player knows all too well, it’s that running is a huge part of the game. In fact, the lack of running and too much action is arguably the reason why Resident Evil 5 and 6 were universally panned by critics, as well as fans alike.
Because Resident Evil Village is a true survival horror game, you’ll have limited resources at your disposal, especially at higher difficulties. This means that you’ll have to pick your proverbial spots and avoid fighting when you can. Moroaica, for example, are relatively easy to avoid and we do recommend trying to go around them whenever you can.
Of course, it’s not as easy to run away from other enemies in Resident Evil Village. However, with the way that Capcom programmed enemy AI, even enemies that could have probably chased you down to your death will eventually stop running at you.
Don’t Forget to Revisit Earlier Areas
There are multiple areas in Resident Evil Village that you’ll have to return to eventually and there are others that you’ll want to return to once you have the means. Either way, while even casual gamers know to search every nook and corner of any room in a Resident Evil game first before leaving, most forget how important backtracking is.
Every time you go back to the village, which acts as a central hub of sorts, you’ll return with a new means to open something or traverse to somewhere else. This can be anything from a set of lockpicks and keys to a new wheel and so on. So, in classic Resident Evil fashion, we recommend that you take a moment to circle through areas that you previously could not access to see what kind of treasures await you.
The treasures won’t always be as useful, but sometimes they are and the only way that you’ll find out is if you backtrack and go back to previously-visited areas.
Go Hunting
We know. It doesn’t feel right killing the wild animals living all around the village when they’ve got to deal with nightmarish creatures already. But, hey, it’s either you or them, so the choice isn’t that hard to make.
Taking loot that you get from hunting animals in Resident Evil Village to The Duke can give you a lot of benefits. This includes permanent stat bonuses that can make you run faster or take a lot more damage. It should then go without saying that you shouldn’t be too quick to sell off the mean that you’ve been gathering all this time.
Always Combine Your Treasures
Before selling treasures to The Duke, check if the item can be combined with others first. Chances are, you can combine two treasures to create something that, when combined, will have an exponentially higher value. So, if a treasure is incomplete, hold off on selling it for now until you can find the right piece to use and combine it with.
The Duke is The Man
The Duke is a less skeevy version of Resident Evil 4’s merchant. He’s also very friendly and talkative. He even helps you out in a pivotal moment in the game, for some reason. He’ll tell you everything that you’ll need to know in the game, from where to find Ethan’s daughter, Rose, and find out what happened to Ethan’s wife, Mia.
Given that you’ll find The Duke in even the most inhospitable and unlikeliest of places in Resident Evil Village, you’ll want to take every chance you can get to talk to him.
Outside of being where you can buy stuff from and sell stuff to, as well as your go-to man for upgrades, and more, talking to The Duke just seems like the right thing to do considering how nice he is to you.
Don’t Forget to Enjoy the Story
Given the sheer amount of things that you can do in Resident Evil Village, it can be easy to get lost and sidetracked. But, once you find yourself hitting a proverbial wall and no longer able to do things that you want to do, your best bet is to try and progress the story. Sometimes, keys and key items, as well as places, won’t be available to you until you’re way further in the story and there’s nothing you can do about it.
Besides, it’s not like the story of Resident Evil Village is bad. In fact, it’s one of the best in the Resident Evil franchise yet.
As a bonus, Resident Evil Village is such a well-designed game that you can almost always return to a previous location even if you’re already late in the game.
So, don’t forget to enjoy the story. Pay attention to the dialogue of the side quests. Listen to what the people are saying. Search for clues in the dialogue and, as we’ve already mentioned, always be talking to The Duke whenever you can.
Resident Evil Village
Resident Evil Village is actually less terrifying and, in a way, easier compared to Resident Evil Biohazard. The more open setting probably lends itself to making the game feel less difficult. Still, we can understand if you’re having a hard time in Resident Evil Village.
Having said that, players who are new to the Resident Evil franchise or survival horror games will find these tips very useful so you can do more than just tremble in fear whenever you’re met with a horrifying creature.