Capcom has released a new video to the Resident Evil YouTube Channel, detailing the development of Resident Evil Village. This includes how COVID-19 impacted the development, which at one time brought the process to a complete stop. Director Morimasa Sato explains some of the hurdles the team had to overcome. Sato and other members of the development team also dive into how certain mechanics needed refinement for this entry in the series.
As mentioned previously, development for Resident Evil Village stopped entirely due to the situation surrounding COVID-19. Sato explains that due to the staff needing to quarantine, they had to halt progress on the game. He goes on to mention that for an entire month he worried about the development of the title. Ultimately, the staff came to the decision that the game would need a lot of work when returning to the office.
Sato then explains that the concept for the game was based around a single concept. That concept being “the struggle to survive,” which the developers wanted to convey through the aggression of enemies. This also contributed to how scary the game would end up being. At one point they scaled back how aggressive enemies were due to feedback from a test session with players.
Quality Assurance Manager Shutaro Kobayashi mentions that there had initially been a very strong negative reaction, with players stating that combat was “frustrating and boring” to play due to various elements. The Resident Evil Village developer video also reveals the various changes that were made to the game before release.
However, since its release, Resident Evil Village has shipped 3 million units worldwide. Comparatively, the title has sold as much as Resident Evil 7 did within roughly the same timeframe. Capcom also revealed that as of March 31, 2021 Resident Evil 7 had sold 9 million units worldwide.
Resident Evil Village is now available on PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X, Xbox One, and PC.
