There are many successful video game series, but Resident Evil’s popularity is on a whole other level and it’s one of the rare exceptions of a property that’s found popularity as a video game, movie franchise, and is soon set to tackle television. Resident Evil has been influential in helping establish the survival horror genre of gaming and it’s still one of the most prominent franchises in the frightening niche of video games.

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Part of the reason that Resident Evil has been able to endure for so long is that it hasn’t been afraid to experiment with its formula and make some major changes, whether it’s with storytelling, gameplay, or even the style of camera that’s used through the creepy experience.

10 1st Person: It Allows For A More Immersive Experience

Game Resident Evil 7 cannibal family

The strong storytelling and mastery over atmosphere and tension guarantees every Resident Evil entry to be quite the frightening exercise. However, the first-person perspective that’s adopted in the latest entries in the series truly allows the player to feel like they’re the ones that are fighting for their lives.

This illusion is furthered with how Resident Evil 7 has added VR to the equation, which specifically needs a first-person perspective to operate. It’s such a successful transformation that it’s even leading to non-first-person Resident Evil titles being redesigned for VR.

9 3rd Person: Camera Angles Can Create Their Own Puzzles

Game Resident Evil 3 Remake repair garage (1)

The third-person perspective to the earlier Resident Evil games is somewhat a concession of its time, but part of the series’ charm stems from how it directly uses these elements to build puzzles and scares. A third-person perspective showcases more of the environment and actively determines what the player can and can't see, as well as from which vantage point.

Resident Evil cleverly uses this to its advantage to hide objects and build simple puzzles in subtle ways. It’s a reminder of just how much a camera angle can control and determine.

8 1st Person: It Mystifies The Protagonist

an image from the Game Resident Evil 8 depicting the scene in which Ethan loses his hand

The Resident Evil series has found such a devoted audience partly because it’s created a number of cherished protagonists that develop across multiple titles. Resident Evil 7 and 8 introduced Ethan Winters as the newest hero, but he’s very much an audience surrogate because of the first-person perspective that’s applied to the character.

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Very little of Ethan is ever seen, which shrouds him in mystery to an unprecedented degree for the series. Ethan is meant to be an everyman protagonist, but he gets to live in the player’s imagination due to how it obscures pieces of him.

7 3rd Person: The Lack Of Control Over The Camera Builds Tension

Capcom Resident Evil Outbreak

Audiences may be more accustomed to a first-person perspective, especially when it comes to their prevalence with online shooters. Accordingly, third-person can often feel like the player has less control over their environment, which can deceptively be an asset in the survival horror genre. Resident Evil consistently creates particular third-person environments where players will need to walk past suspicious windows or mirrors where danger feels inevitable.

This tension is often palpable in a way that’s not possible with a first-person view. Some of the series’ most effective scares stem from this lack of control over the environment.

6 1st Person: It Allows More Freedom And Control

Game Resident Evil 8 Workshop Lock Combo

Sometimes the absence of control and being forced down a particular path can be the right fuel for horror, but first-person Resident Evil games offer a new level of control to the experience that accentuates the evolution of the gaming industry. The first-person angle in the latest Resident Evil games encourages exploration where the player should investigate every nook and cranny since they’re ostensibly the camera.

Third-person angles can force information on the player based on what’s contained to the frame, but first-person offers more freedom, which can ultimately lead to scarier scenarios.

5 3rd Person: It Has A Higher Capacity For Jump Scares

A licker jumping through the mirror in Resident Evil 2's most famous jumpscare

Jump scares are a necessary evil in the horror genre. There’s a right and a wrong way to handle them and the type of camera that the game uses plays a major factor in the construction of these jump scares. It’s scary to confront danger, but a third-person perspective with set angles creates tension when there are noises in the distance and a monster is around the corner.

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These aesthetic elements remove the control from the player and they’re forced to wait for the creature to make the first attack, all while their noises amplify the fear before the attack.

4 1st Person: It’s Easier To Shoot

Game resident-evil-village-lady-dimitrescu-boss-fight

The earlier Resident Evil games are far from perfect and remakes have happened precisely because some of their control and gameplay decisions now feel outdated or incongruous with the rest of the franchise. Shooting is essential to Resident Evil and with the third-person perspective, a lot of aiming is taken for granted or done automatically for the player since the camera adds an extra element of depth to everything.

This can make the shooting feel somewhat random or inaccurate. The first-person perspective makes it feel like the player is responsible for every shot and that they’re directly behind the crosshairs.

3 3rd Person: It’s Easier To Determine The Entire Environment

Capcom resident evil william 2

Exploration is essential in Resident Evil, but the way in which players go about this is different depending on whether the game is in first- or third-person. First-person perspective only shows off the portion of the environment that the player looks at and they need to traverse the whole environment to get a sense of everything.

A third-person perspective effectively shows off the majority of the room all at once. It’s much easier to orient oneself and assess the entire area before any action is taken. It’s considerably easier to build a strategy when the whole picture is immediately clear.

2 1st Person: Head-On Attacks Are More Frightening

Resident Evil 7 Ethan Blocking Against Jack

Resident Evil features some especially aggressive creatures that add an extra layer of horror to the already dangerous proceedings. It often works best to keep these enemies at a distance, but sometimes confrontation is unavoidable and an attack happens.

This level of anxiety becomes so much worse in first-person because it looks like these monsters directly grab the player and tear them to pieces. It’s frightening to see tentacles thrash someone from third-person, but it’s even worse when they fly right into the camera and overwhelm the screen.

1 3rd Person: The Protagonist’s Damage Is Seen

Game Resident Evil 3 Remake

The first-person perspective for Resident Evil offers many benefits to the horror, but there are some unexpected ways in which seeing the entire character can actually be more frightening. In the first-person vantage point, it’s really only the protagonist’s hands that depict any damage.

However, the third-person Resident Evil titles can really accentuate how much damage the persistent hero has acquired. These titles can cover the protagonist in blood and show them gripping their arm in pain as they limp through the environments. The first-person alternatives instead leave this to the imagination.

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