A REQUIEM WORTH HEARING

Capcom's latest horror opus knows exactly when to whisper, and when to scream

- BY SADAT OSMAN

I've been with Resident Evil since the original game, and that first one is still my favourite. Not because it was the biggest or the slickest, but because it understood something this series has never been better at than in its purest form: anticipation. The original game knew how to make a hallway feel dangerous, a door feel suspicious, and silence feel like a trap. That's the lens I brought into Resident Evil Requiem, and I'm happy to say it gets a lot right. It understands that fear in Resident Evil is not just about monsters jumping out of walls. It's about the slow tightening of your nerves while you wait for the game to make its move. Requiem remembers that. What I liked most is how confidently it balances the two sides of modern Resident Evil. On one hand, there's the slower, more oppressive survival-horror texture I always want from this series. On the other, there's the more muscular, action-forward pacing that Capcom has become very good at when it wants to hit harder and faster. Requiem doesn't feel confused about that split. It feels deliberate. The game knows when to tighten the screws and when to let things explode. That rhythm works for me because it keeps the campaign feeling alive. It never gets too buried in one mode for too long.