Resident Evil Village: demo, release date, and everything about the new game coming to PS5, PS4 and Xbox One

On 21 January, legendary Japanese video game studio Capcom delivered a live-stream detailing all that players can look forward to in the universe of Resident Evil.

The long-running franchise of horror games has been captivating fear fans since 1996, and the stream gave viewers an updated look at Resident Evil Village, the next game to come in the series.

Fans were shown a number of new trailers, including one detailing the gameplay of the new game further, and Capcom even surprise-dropped a demo of new the game that players can pick up for free.

Here is everything you need to know about it.

What is Resident Evil Village?

It’s an unwritten rule that video game naming conventions must be confusing and superfluous, and so it is with Resident Evil Village.

Despite the ‘VIIIage’ of its title being stylised to suggest the Roman numerals for the numbers eight – and despite it being a direct sequel to 2017’s Resident Evil 7 – Village is actually the tenth mainline instalment in the long-running and iconic series of horror games.

But let’s not get too bogged down in that. All you need to know is that like Resident Evil 7, Village will be played from a first-person perspective, an immersive angle which gives the series’ trademark horror an all encompassing, enveloping feeling.

According to Capcom, the new title will utilise “next generation console technology will elevate the survival horror experience”, and “will showcase the most realistic and terrifying graphics to date.”

What happens in Resident Evil Village?

Taking place a few years after the events of Resident Evil 7, Village sees you once again playing as Ethan Winters who, along with his wife Mia, is living peacefully in a new location, free from his past nightmares.

Just as the couple are building their new life together, tragedy befalls them again when Chris Redfield – legendary hero from the Resident Evil series – horribly disrupts their life, leaving Ethan devastated and thrown into an entirely new nightmare.

Distraught and shattered, Ethan seeks to uncover the mysterious new horrors that plague a once peaceful village nestled within an isolated mountainous region of Europe.

"Throughout this terrifying journey, players will fight for every breath as they are hunted by vicious new enemies that have infested the snow-capped locale,” say Capcom, who promise a “relentless feeling of fear” which will “increase with each desperate battle for survival.”

Is there a demo?

Players on PlayStation 5 are able to download a free demo of the game right now.

Unlike a traditional demo, which gives players the chance to experience a slice of the main game, Village’s first demo takes an interesting spin on the concept.

You won’t be playing as main protagonist Ethan, instead assuming the role of a separate character known as ‘The Maiden’ in a ‘non-combat’ demo.

You’ll be tasked with escaping one of the game’s locations – a castle – a scenario that won’t appear exactly as it does in the main game.

Instead, the demo will drop hints and Easter eggs about the full game, giving players a taste of what’s to come without actually spoiling anything you’ll get to play to come Village’s full release.

Players on other platforms will have to wait a little bit longer, but a more fleshed out demo is expected in the Spring.

It’s likely to be more reminiscent of what you’ll actually be doing in the main game, but confirmed date for this demo has not yet been announced.

When can I play it?

Capcom have announced that Resident Evil Village will be released on Friday 7 May 2021.

It will be available for PC, PS4 and PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S consoles.

Previously, it had not been confirmed whether the game was coming to ‘last-gen’ consoles like the PS4 and Xbox One, with the developers simply saying they had been “working hard” to bring the survival horror experience to those platforms alongside the ‘next-gen’ versions.

Now it's been confirmed that players on those older machines will get to experience the game, albeit without the modern-day bells and whistles more advanced tech can deliver, like ray tracing and 4K visuals.

Those that do purchase the game for last-gen consoles will be able to upgrade to the more visually pleasing, next-gen version of the game when they make the jump absolutely free.

What is Resident Evil Re:Verse?

One of the more surprising announcements of Capcom's live-stream was the reveal of Resident Evil Re:Verse, a six-player online multiplayer game.

It will be included with purchases of Resident Evil Village, and though technically it’s a whole other game unto itself, you won’t be able to acquire it any other way.

Not much is known about the new game – which will be played from a third-person perspective – but Capcom say it will feature "beloved Resident Evil characters as they clash in six-person deathmatches.”

"When players are defeated in combat, their character respawns by mutating into a bioweapon to enact revenge on their foes."