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What’s the first creature you think of when I say Resident Evil? While there have been plenty of other creatures that make your skin crawl throughout the history of one of the most iconic horror series in entertainment, Resident Evil has always been known for its constant focus on the undead. Resident Evil Village, however, looks to be the continuation of not only Resident Evil 7’s story, but in that it is also swapping the zombie antagonists for something a bit different. Join us for a closer look at the Lycan, the hairy enemies that look to make a meal of Ethan Winters and scare the pants off of players.
The Lycan may be new to the Resident Evil verse, but the intimidating werewolves have weaved their way through human history since the days of Ancient Greece. These snarling charlatans have taken many forms even in recent history, but Village’s take on the intimidating creatures has to rank with some of the vilest.
“In terms of the Lycans, they very much spawned from the fact that we wanted to create an enemy that represented the village,” Morimasa Sato, the game’s director told us. “And so, we thought that they would be the best visual representation…We designed it very much where this is kind of the twisted outcome of a human being where we draw a lot of inspiration from werewolves, being able to tap into that gothic horror visual.”
Physical features aren’t the only major difference between the Lycan and their zombie counterparts, though.
“As Ethan Winters, it’s all about figuring out how do I fend these enemies off not just in single numbers but when they’re surrounding him in all different areas,” Sato said. “And the fact that they are very agile and a lot of times it’s going to be very difficult to hit them with a gun, so it’s all about having to predict their movements, having to figure out in advance where they’re going to be next, having to think one step ahead and also utilizing your environment, figuring out, okay, if I’m going to hunted against multiple enemies, where’s the best place to be.”
Gone are the days of the shambling menace slowly creeping towards you. The Lycans are quicker and more agile, capable of dodging your bullets and making life very uncomfortable very quickly. Verticality may also become an issue for Mr. Winters as a Lycan can attack from the disheveled rooftops of the village to provide quite the nasty surprise. But that’s nothing compared to the heavy hitters that lurk around the corner.
If you thought the normal Lycan would provide a harrowing headache, meet the armored version of Resident Evil Village’s latest tormentor. These armor-plated baddies may move a bit slower than their borderline naked counterparts, but you’ll need to pack one hell of a punch to take them down. Luckily, you can land strategic shots on the Lycan’s armored bits to strip the werewolf of its casing and land one hell of a satisfying headshot using the sniper, shotgun, or whatever weapon you have at your disposal.
The Lycans continue the trend of Resident Evil Village’s departure from the norm. But as sure as Lady D will stick you with her X-23-like claws and probably not step on you, these new werewolves will provide all the thrills and chills one could expect from this Victorian nightmare.
Enjoyed this early look at Resident Evil Village? Be sure to check out our content hub below as we take a deep dive into our cover story on The GI Show, walk you through a tour of the new village, and show off how the new upgrade system works!