Since Leon first got his head chainsawed off Resident Evil 4, I’ve been more afraid to die in survival horror games than ever. But with such gruesome defeat comes the terrible catharsis of a well-produced and dramatic end for your character, something any fan of grisly horror will seek out. And so now videogame death montages have become a tradition of sorts, a way to bear witness to violent ends without experiencing them first hand—unless you’re awful at horror games like I am.
The excellent Resident Evil 7 ups the ante with a ton of death scenes, but this time, you get to partake. The Bakers are a mushy bunch, capable of regenerating from the smallest puddle of goo, and so you’ll reduce them to such time and time again with chainsaws, shotguns, fire, and whatever else you can muster. Still, they’ll do the same, and with a gorgeous, detailed new first-person engine, the scenes are more messed up than ever. I mean, check out this intimate chainsaw evisceration sequence. Hope you already ate.
Some are even interactive sequences where the characters toy with you for a while. In my favorite so far, if Jack catches you while wielding the shovel early on he might cut off your leg. You can then pick it up as an inventory item before eventually bleeding out on the floor (around 6:55 in the video). I don’t know, maybe it unlocks a door somewhere. Not likely. While your vision slowly fades to black, he goads you towards him, crouched, promising to help. It’s a twisted, funny sequence that further characterizes Jack as a sadistic madman—and it’s totally possible you’ll never see it.
The game only just came out which means players are still discovering different ways to die, so we’ll be sure to update with a more complete array of videos as they drip out.
