It’s been a while since survival horror enthusiasts got any substantial updates on Resident Evil 9. The series’ latest big installment, Resident Evil Village, came out in 2022, and since then, details about what’s next have been sparse. Sure, the fans had the spectacular Resident Evil 4 remake to keep them busy, but there’s an increasing eagerness to look ahead rather than dwell on past victories.
Interestingly, whispers suggest the future has some exciting stuff in store for Resident Evil aficionados. According to popular horror game insider Dusk Golem on Twitter, Resident Evil 9 is expected to offer a bold twist on this enduring series. He described RE9 as “very ambitious,” anticipating it as a significant evolution for the series, akin to the transformational impacts of RE4 and RE7. To put that into perspective, the original Resident Evil 4 reinvented the franchise by blending action with survival horror and introducing the widely adopted over-the-shoulder perspective in gaming. On the other hand, RE7 brought back the psychological horror with a fresh first-person view. If RE9 aims to push boundaries on the same scale, it’s poised to blow us away.
### How Will Resident Evil 9 Reinvent the Series?
If we take Dusk Golem’s words to heart about this anticipated “reinvention,” the question is: what new avenue could RE9 pursue? With only RE7 and Village representing the last big shifts, another leap could be daunting.
Yet, ongoing speculation about an open-world format in Resident Evil 9 provides clues about this latest supposed transformation. The thought of open-world within a horror game is intriguing. Typically, horror thrives in confined spaces with a tightly controlled atmosphere. Thus, if RE9 goes open-world, it could bring a fresh dynamic to the horror genre. The open environment can inject unpredictability, keeping players on edge. Additionally, handling resources and solving puzzles in such a setting could offer a refreshing twist.
### The Potential Benefits of Resident Evil 9’s Reinvention
There’s been a fair share of skepticism regarding the rumored open-world approach in Resident Evil 9—and it’s understandable. The gaming industry has seen the open-world genre grow excessively saturated, sometimes sacrificing quality for quantity. Not every game benefits from this design, and some even suffer because of it.
However, if RE9 decides to experiment with this structure, it champions the change and creativity pivotal to the gaming sphere. Many franchises, whether grand or modest, have faltered by sticking too closely to a familiar formula without daring to refresh it. Sure, creativity comes with the risk of backlash; audiences might not warm to RE9’s open-world attempt or whatever this reinvention entails. Yet, similar risks were taken with the first-person view in RE7 and the action emphasis in RE4, which ultimately paid off, elevating the series’ reputation. By continuing to take bold strides, Resident Evil 9 could set a new standard, proving to be much more than just another notch in the series.
