“Simply stunning.” 

That sums up all of the thoughts I had while playing the game Resident Evil 8: Village. It is simply stunning because of its main story, campaign and multiple replayability options. 

Without getting into too much detail, Resident Evil Village follows Ethan Winters as he journeys through The Village in search of his lost daughter.  There are twists, turns and something evil lurking around each corner. 

Resident Evil Village presents a phenomenal story with outstanding visuals and sound design and a fear-inducing soundtrack that complements the frightful tone of the game and the player’s own progression. 

The game has players fight a group of ghouls, all monsters and freaks who serve under the wrath of the Head Witch, Mother Miranda. The vampire, Lady Dimitrescu, and her three daughters are terrifying and out for blood, Donna Beneviento personally scared the blazes out of me during my first playthrough, Salvatore Moreau who is a sad merman, and finally, Karl Heisenburg who is a magically-imbued, ragefully driven, god like wannabe with a machine factory that’ll send anyone on a one-way ticket to the grave. 

While playing, I enjoyed the banter between the villains and Ethan Winters, as it invoked a sort of Saturday morning cartoon nostalgia. My favorite antagonist in the game is Moreau, one of the antagonists players face in the game. He has an interesting backstory and a heart-pounding boss fight that’ll leave players shaken. He is easily one of the most haunting characters in the game, and yet somehow one of the most annoying. 

Another thing that I personally loved about this installment to the Resident Evil Franchise is the dramatic shift between settings and playability, from the scenery of Lady Dimitrescu’s Castle to Salvatore Moreau’s swamp. The game takes the player on a ride. One minute, you’re playing a Hitman-like game where you have to find puzzle pieces in order to escape the grasp of the Dimitrescu household, and the next you’re playing a psychological thriller that has you trying to escape the mad puppeteer that is Donna Beneviento. 

Personally I enjoyed my playthrough, which I’m not proud to say took me 15 hours over 3 days. It took me on a wild and haunting ride with turns and twists that will surely haunt you, too, this fall. 

So how should you play it? Again this game revolves around the players’ progression and choices, so there is no set linear path players have to take to complete the game. However, if you want an authentic, scary experience, turn off all the lights in your room and crank up game volume to max.