Resident Evil Village vs Resident Evil 7: Which is the better game?

After Resident Evil 6's letdown, fans thought that the franchise was straying too far away from its survival horror roots. However, the series would soon return to its origins in 2017 with Resident Evil 7 as Capcom hauled the franchise back on track. This entry heavily leaned towards elements such as resource management and backtracking that made the franchise famous in its early days.

RE7 was a massive success and was even called one of the best horror games of all time, giving fans hope that the franchise would continue being a survival horror experience.

However, the series would again see a shift in direction with the release of Resident Evil Village in 2021, which was a direct sequel to RE7. This game would again lean more toward action which fans took as a sign of the series again losing its focus from survival horror.

There are many ways these games are different and similar to each other which makes one of them better than the other. Here we will compare both the games to see which Resident Evil comes out on top.

Note: This article is subjective and solely reflects the writer's opinion.

TRIGGER WARNING: GRAPHIC IMAGES BELOW.

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Resident Evil 7 vs Village

Survival horror vs Action horror

Chris Field gameplay section from Village. (Image via Capcom)

Resident Evil 7 is filled with horror sequences that keep the players on their toes. There are not just jumpscares, but build-ups to scary moments that make the game a true horror experience. You are unaware of what will happen next which keeps the gameplay tense and fresh. You are alone in this place and your arsenal never feels enough whenever you encounter the Baker family members.

Resident Evil Village doesn't have enough moments that can make it a horror game. This title has very few scary moments spread throughout the playthrough with more emphasis on action sequences than actual horror.

This emphasis on high-octane action in Village made the franchise slightly drift away from its horror roots again making the previous entry a better survival horror experience. In terms of horror, RE7 is a better game than Village.

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Which Resident Evil villains are better?

Jack Baker is still terrifying to this day (Image via Capcom)

The story of RE7 is more impactful because we spend more time with the villains. Ethan Winters feels like a protagonist who doesn't react appropriately to events that are happening to him, but the Baker family makes up for it. All characters of the Baker family are interesting with Jack Baker being the best villain in the game.

Village, on the other hand, has characters that don't feel real. We have a talking doll, a vampire lady, a mixture of a fish and a man, and a telekinesis person. These villains feel too far off from the franchise as the focus has been taken away from zombies to superpowers. These villains don't have enough personality or screen time to make them feel like a genuine threat.

Considering how villains from both the games are two different families, RE7 is better at giving these villains personalities. Whether it is Jack, Marguerite, or Lucas, they all do a wonderful job of inducing fear into the player making them feel like classic villains of the franchise. Villains of RE Village struggle to impress, except for Lady Dimitresque, who shines even in the short screen time she gets.

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The gameplay is similar but different

The First Person Camera was new to the mainline RE games. (Image via Capcom)

Resident Evil 7 and Village use first-person mode in their gameplay to give the players a more "heightened horror" experience. While both have resource management in them, RE7 takes better advantage of it as there is a lot more thinking involved with what you should keep with you and what you should use immediately.

The gunplay in both games feels good, but RE Village has better weapons that make the gameplay loop fresh and exciting. The environment in RE7 is more claustrophobic, which helps make the player uncomfortable compared to the open areas of RE Village.

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Resident Evil 7 feels like a better game

RE7 is a masterpiece (Image via Capcom)

After a playthrough of both games, RE7 feels like a more focused experience with a heavy emphasis on survival horror. RE Village tries to do a lot of things at once to please the horror and action fans but ends up impressing none. The game could have been better if it knew what it was going for by picking the genre it was trying to fit into.

Resident Evil 7 overall is a better game as it not only brings the series back on track but has also become an iconic game for horror fans.