Expectations are high for Resident Evil Requiem, and producer Masato Kumazawa seems all too aware of how much the game has to live up to. Following the successful series renaissance in Resident Evil 7 and Village, Requiem jumps to a new protagonist and brings back a proper third-person mode alongside the modern first-person viewpoint. It’s impossible to satisfy every fan, but Kumazawa has an idea of what most of them are looking for.

In a new interview with Press Start, Kumazawa declares “survival horror and being scared” the “number one thing that fans want.” To that end, the team focused on adding “new elements” that bolstered the survival horror experience in Requiem. Unlike Resident Evil Village, which made a late-game pivot to an action-heavy experience, Requiem is focused on being “scary until the end.”

Resident Evil Requiem Puts Survival Horror First

It’s All In The Sequencing

In contrasting the games, Kumazawa stresses that Requiem has been in development since before Village‘s release, so its approach to scares isn’t just a reaction to Village. Rather than featuring constant frights, Requiem focuses on the pacing and sequencing of events to make the horror hit harder.

By putting in the action, and making sure the player isn’t thinking about the horror, the next horror part will scare more effectively than non-stop scares – Masato Kumazawa

When asked to compare the horror to any particular section of Village, Kumazawa chose instead to compare the overall approach to Resident Evil 2. Kumazawa also talks about the difference in fear factor between first- and third-person in the interview, noting that either one could be effectively scary.

First-person allows for more immersion, but third-person could hold its own thanks to Grace’s lack of confidence compared to other Resident Evil protagonists. To that end, Kumazawa cites the inclusion of animations where Grace trips or rushes things in fear.

RE9’s Survival Horror Focus Is The Right Approach

The Fear Factor Is Important

Resident Evil doesn’t always need to focus on the fear, and the enormous success of Resident Evil 4 is the perfect example. While it can still be scary at times, it’s much more of an action game than its predecessors, and none of Leon’s ridiculous kicks or leaps destroyed the experience for most fans.

In the broader view, though, maintaining the franchise’s survival horror roots is critical. Resident Evil 7 was a much-needed reset after 5 and 6, and allowing the series to drift back toward heightened action experiences again could reintroduce the same problems. Whether Resident Evil Requiem will deliver everything it’s promising remains to be seen, but producer Masato Kumazawa seems to have a good idea of where the focus should be.