Resident Evil stands proudly as the longest-running horror franchises and one of the first introductions to the survival-horror genre. Throughout the years the game has gone through several changes both in gameplay and theme. It has inspired many games after it and every entry in the series adds more terrifying creatures and scenes.
Not every creature is made the same, however, as many monsters didn't quite hit the mark. A cinematic scene within the game has the potential to be horrifying or completely undersell the danger at hand. The game's biggest scares come from many environmental scares and some of the most hilarious moments come from a scene that tries its best to be scary but just falls flat.
10 Scary: Marguerite Baker's Grab Comes Out Of Nowhere (RE7)
RE7's first-person perspectives made many of the more cinematic scenes able to be played during gameplay almost seamlessly. Ethan's search for Marguerite's lantern has him follow a transformed version of herself into a greenhouse. The scene of her reaching for the lantern as she scurries off on all fours is already upsetting but it gets worse very quickly.
As Ethan comes in through a hole in the floor above, approaching the stairs has one of the most effective jump scares in the game. Marguerite can grab Ethan a few more times during the fight as well, but the initial one from the wall is the most unsuspected one.
9 Fell Flat: Lepotitsa's Introduction Left Much To Be Desired (RE6)
The church scene in RE6 has Leon and Helena attacking an endless horde of creatures before the door is opened for them. After talking with several of the civilians inside the pair use some levers in order to open the entrance to the underground.
All this is a setup for Helena rescuing her sister, but unbeknownst to both her and Leon, this ends up releasing a Lepotitsa. The creature infects everyone in the room but two people if killed quickly enough but the scene itself is just this blob creature releasing gas everywhere. The entire thing is underwhelming for all the theatrics set around it.
8 Scary: The Baby Following Ethan To The Elevator Is Both Relief & Terror (RE8)
RE8's descent into Donna's basement is undoubtedly the most terrifying part of the game. The game takes away Ethan's weapons and forces the player to solve puzzles in order to escape. This is without a threat initially until the introduction of the deformed fetus that follows Ethan around.
While there are many things about the Four Lords that people don't know about, Donna's entire section plays tricks on Ethan's psyche. By the time players avoid the fetus a few times, the last scene has it trying to catch Ethan in the elevator. Its wails and screams are something many players will continue hearing even after turning off the game.
7 Fell Flat: The Uroboros Isn't Very Scary (RE5)
The tentacle monster in RE5, the Uroboros, can be found in nearly any zombie Chris and Sheva come across. The first scene that features the creature sprouting out from a person comes fairly early on in the game. Following a woman's screams into a house, the pair sees her transform into a walking tentacle creature.
As an enemy, this is more of an annoyance than a difficult fight. The big boss Uroboros later down the line is bigger, consuming an entire boat, but is still very underwhelming.
6 Scary: Hunters Were A Dangerous Surprise (RE1)
In both the original RE1 and the remake, Hunters have a cutscene for when they quickly approach either Chris or Jill. The remake particularly makes these creatures stand out as Crimson Heads were already scary on their own. The inclusion of Hunters only makes walking around that much more difficult. The scene of their approach has them charging forward showing their point of view as they go through door after door.
Hunters have the ability to kill in one hit and the cutscene shows just how fast they are in the halls of the Spencer Mansion. They are some of the strongest enemies that outshine some of the weaker bosses in the game with how ferocious they can be.
5 Fell Flat: The Ceiling Trap Is Hilarious Every Time (RE1)
The voice acting in the original Resident Evil is some of the funniest in all of gaming. From the delivery to the cheesy lines, it's all comedy gold from start to finish. When playing as Jill players will find a shotgun they can take off a wall mount connected to a switch. The device ends up activating a trap on the way back that would normally crush the player.
Barry Burton ends up coming to the rescue, however, and Jill gets her shotgun without any consequence. The entire scene lacks urgency and is so funny and iconic that it is still referenced to this day. "You were almost a Jill Sandwich," may not have been scary, but it was certainly memorable.
4 Scary: The Door Animation Fake Out Catches Everyone Off Guard (RE2)
Ever since the original Resident Evil and up to RE4, doors would have an animation whenever the scenery would change. This would happen for stairs, elevators, and ladders as well, but doors were the primary times this would play. It was a breath of relief as the player could escape any encounter by going through doors.
This comfort would be the downfall of those who played RE2 for the first time, as there is one particular moment where zombies interrupt that safe cutscene and begin marching toward the player. It only happens once but it was enough for players to be on edge any time they opened a door again.
3 Fell Flat: Salvatore Moreau Is The Least Threatening Of The Four Lords (RE8)
Resident Evil Village has some fantastic theming and there are a plethora of things that fans of gothic literature and Resident Evil can enjoy. There are many things about the Four Lords that aren't as apparent to players on the first playthrough. Moreau is based off of The Island Of Dr. Moreau and his area in the game reflects that of a watery and mutated place. Some comparisons to Lovecraft's work have been but the issue with the section is that it may be the weakest of the four.
Where Castle Dimistrescu has the daughters and Lady D chase the player around, there is little threat in the Reservoir. Every interaction Moreau is laughable and pitying as he wants nothing more than to please Mother Miranda. His transformation should invoke fear, but that is broken as soon as he starts complaining.
2 Scary: Lisa Trevor Was Another New & Horrifying Addition (RE1 Remake)
Throughout "REmake" there are screams and shrieks found when exploring the mansion. Notes can be found from the Trevor family, detailing their days as experiments. Lisa Trevor's diary describes her slow descent into mindlessness as she takes ,her mother's face and wears it as a mask until she can give it back to her.
When players meet Lisa both in REmake and The Umbrella Chronicles it is nothing short of terrifying. REmake in particular has a sudden score change as the player enters the cabin and see her hunched over, slowly approaching. The latter game has a dedicated scene as well, but REmake has several encounters with Lisa until a final fight with her and either Barry or Wesker to help.
1 Fell Flat: Lady Dimitrescu Is More Sexy Than Scary (RE8)
The Internet's obsession with Alcina Dimitrescu and her three daughters— Bela, Cassandra, and Daniela— mitigated much of the horrors of being chased through the castle. While they serve a good purpose as the chasing antagonist that will threatens parts of the castle, many players were unphased by their imposing demeanor.
The developers seemed to have leaned hard into the thirst as many of the scenes involve the girls flirtingly toying with Ethan. There are many genuine sections of this first part of RE: Village that are unsettling and scary, but these chase sequences don't quite measure up to Jack Baker or Nemesis. It's simply too difficult to be scared when the person playing practically wants to be caught by the towering bombshell.