Resident Evil Village: Shadows of Rose Review

Resident Evil Village: Shadows of Rose

Release: October 28, 2022
Publisher: Capcom
Developer: Capcom
Genre: PlayStation 5 Reviews, PS5 ReviewsXbox Series X Reviews
PEGI: M
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Comment

Resident Evil Village has FINALLY released its long awaited DLC Content in Winters’ Expansion. Included in this DLC is introduction of 3rd person view for the core game if you want to replay or couldn’t play it in first person to begin with, additional content to mercenaries’ mode, and a story expansion titles Shadows of Rose. This review will take you through the highs and lows of this DLC.

First off, the addition of 3rd person view mode is really just a way to get me to play through the game again with a slightly different feel. This actually feels a little cheap that you have to purchase the DLC to access this and it wasn’t just part of a regular update to the game in the first place. It’s pretty cool to be able to toggle this mid game but I will say since the game was designed to be played in first person mode, sometimes it feels out of place and Ethan doesn’t work how he should with his newfound on camera body.

Mercenaries’ mode (which was already pretty awesome to begin with) gets an additional boost in more stages and three new playable characters. The fan favorite Chris Redfield is unlockable right from the start. Then you can unlock two more in Heisenberg and Lady Dimitrescu as playable characters to give an added flair to the whole thing by achieving higher ranks in all stages. A difficult, but worthwhile loop kept me going back for more and more.

Lastly is the story expansion in Shadows of Rose. This picks up right from the epilogue of the core game which takes place 16 years after the events take place. Rose has been on an emotional journey after being saved from the events in the game, her unique powers have left her as an outcast and feeling mocked by her peers.

She is approached by one of Chris’ handlers who have been watching her (and using her skills) and has a solution to possibly remove her powers once and for all making her just your average teenager. To remove her molded DNA she has to merge with some consciousness and relive some familiar locations to find the crystal which will allow her reprieve of her abilities. The game plays entirely in 3rd person so folks cannot be upset about that from the start and you are equipped with your standard handgun/shotgun/bomb combos to take down foes and complete trials to obtain the crystal.

Along the way you encounter some familiar faces from the base game with a bit of a twist. As Rose progresses on her journey she begins to discover and use her abilities more and more. The game does an excellent job of balancing the traditional Resident Evil playstyle with Roses abilities without making her seem like a demi-god of sorts. I don’t want to give away any of the story as it is definitely interesting to say the least and gives a potential glimpse of the future of the series, along with some traditional old school puzzle solving.

There are some very tense and creepy moments in this experience which overall is fairly on the short side unfortunately, I was so enamored however that i completed it all in one sitting because I didn’t want to put it down. There are some minor flaws in gameplays and such but overall, it was a very solid and enjoyable experience.

If you played the base game and enjoyed it, I think this is an easy recommend completing the package. However overall, it is lacking compared to RE7 as far as DLC is considered and if you weren’t a fan of Village to begin with, nothing here is going to make you miraculously change your mind.

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