Resident Evil’s Greatest Hits Packed Into 10 Hours in Requiem
Resident Evil. The latest entry in Capcom’s decades-spanning zombie saga, simply titled Requiem, does a lot. It plays like a highlight reel of all the best moments of the series, pulling in puzzles, horror, action, and, of course, Leon S. Kennedy. But its greatest achievement is that it manages to pull everything together in just ten hours or so. Was that runtime a little surprising, given the current trend of hundred-hour epics?
Resident Evil Ditches The Bloat For Quality
Ten hours may indeed seem too short to some. It was admitted that the author was a little surprised at just how quickly the game was finished. It wasn’t like a rush job was being performed either. A small advantage was had, as the three-hour demo set in Rhodes Hill Hospital had been played, so a couple of helpful strategies were remembered from that, but otherwise, modern standard difficulty was selected and a lot of time was spent running around looking for secrets and Mr. Raccoons. Could a game really be considered a full-package deal with such a concise campaign?
Looking back, though, it is now realised that ten hours was just right. It may not seem like it at face value, especially considering Requiem has a hefty seventy-dollar price tag, but quality is present from start to finish. No moments that felt added to pad out the runtime were encountered, and every task it set before the player was enjoyed, even the ones that scared them out of their mind. Was the pacing simply too good to be true for a survival horror title?
Resident Evil 4 Was The Black Sheep All Along
Sure, hunting for treasure and side quests in the twenty-five-hour Resident Evil 4 remake run was enjoyable, but ten hours is actually pretty in line for a Resident Evil game. Resident Evil 7 is approximately ten hours long, and Village and Resident Evil 2 take around twelve hours. So, if anything, Resident Evil 4 is the black sheep of the family.
Honestly, it’s just nice to have another game in the library that can be finished over a weekend. Why does this one particular entry feel like a perfectly contained Requiem for the series’ classic format? There are some tough parts to Requiem, for sure. Some fights will probably need to be retried, and some puzzles will likely leave you stumped.
It is confessed that longer than it should have been was spent trying to figure out which battery to place in which power bank in the basement of Rhodes Hill Hospital. But really, Requiem’s length is a testimony to how smooth and seamless it is. Great storytelling, intuitive level design, and combat that’s actually fun are part of the reason why this Requiem feels so good to play.
Switching Heroes Keeps Requiem Feeling Fresh
Requiem’s greatest strength is arguably the switching between two protagonists. Before the horror sequences or puzzles could become sluggish or repetitive, a switch was forced from Grace to Leon, a rifle was provided, and the order was given to go kill zombies to your heart’s content. Playing as Leon honestly felt like a reward for the hard work creeping around as Grace, unlocking safe boxes and retrieving quartz to open the main door.
But after killing pretty much every zombie left in Raccoon City, it was a relief to be back in Grace’s shoes. It can be nice to have a break from the action as well, and the balance struck in this Requiem is what makes it so replayable. Before it was known, the “The Final Mission” objective had been reached. In the player’s head, the game had only been played for a short while, but in reality, about five hours had been logged straight.
It was just being enjoyed so much that it felt like no time at all. The experience serves as a fond Requiem for the days when games didn’t overstay their welcome. A second playthrough of Requiem is now just about to be finished, and there’ll undoubtedly be more of those ahead because of just how nice it is to get through. Who knows, the four-hour speedrun might even be attempted.
