With the announcement of Resident Evil 7 biohazard this week, Capcom has already said it “draws from the series’ roots of atmospheric survival horror,” adds a new level of terror, offers a first-person view, and won’t be a “gun fest.” In an interview with GameSpot, Producer Masachika Kawata confirmed that there will be many types of mechanics in the game, including combat:
One of the main gameplay elements that is not in [the demo] is, as you stated, combat. In the final game, of course, there will be many types of game mechanics including combat, perhaps some gun-play. One of the things I would like to emphasize about this is that it’s not always about going in guns blazing. It might actually be to your advantage to try to run away from combat at certain times, or use items against your enemies in a different way. This is to say that trying to survive the horror, the survival horror, is a key element to Resident Evil 7.
Saying the demo was created to “convey just what type of feeling you would get from the game,” Kawata adds, “In the actual game, one thing that you’ll notice first and foremost is that the scale and scope of the game is much bigger than demonstrations.”
Confirming that Resident Evil 7 takes place entirely in first-person, he says this was done because it’s “the most advantageous way to present horror to the player.” Not only is there no barrier between you and the enemy when attacked, but “this also applies to exploration and gimmicks and traps and things like that.”
As for the decision to return to horror, Kawata reveals that “one of the main driving factors was listening to the desire of consumers. Consumers have often told us very strongly, very passionately, that they want a return to horror.” Since it’s strictly a survival-horror experience, you won’t find a magic item and become super powerful. “However, you’ll find items and weapons and things like that which will give you the advantage over your adversaries, or over the situation depending on what the situation is,” he says. “It’s about how you use it, how you use the scarce items at your disposal to make it through that situation.”
While Kawata wouldn’t say who the protagonist is in Resident Evil 7 (don’t expect it to be a “famous” character), he did confirm herbs will be in the game and there’s an item in the demo “that also hints at some connections with the larger Resident Evil universe.” Additionally, RE7 takes place in the Resident Evil universe and timeline.
Answering some questions about development, Kawata said no one who worked on PT is working on Resident Evil 7, development on Resident Evil 7 began before PT was announced, and they aren’t trying to make a AAA game with Resident Evil 7, but rather the “goal is to make the best B-rank horror movie type of experience,” as they don’t want it to be driven by marketing.
Resident Evil 7 launches on January 24, 2017 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.
[Source: GameSpot]
