Resident Evil Village Winters’ Expansion review: An unremarkable DLC

Rose approaches Castle Dimitrescu with a key in her hand. Rose is greeted by a voice from behind the door. The young woman inside is firm as she slides the key in, her shocked face turning into a scene of shock. Her face is the same as Rose’s, and within the confines of the castle, they are trapped inside the collective consciousness of the Megamycete and the horrors Rose has yet to fully behold.

Shadows of RoseIt was established 15 years later than the events in Resident Evil Village, which is a series first for how far it lurches forward into the future, unlike previous games or DLC that roughly took place around the same time as a game’s initial window of release.

Rose had a significant role in Village as a major plot device — we spent most of the game as her father, Ethan, searching for the various pieces of her literally dismembered body — she now stands as the protagonist of this relatively short DLC. Shadows of Rose This is based on understanding her turbulent upbringing and BOW (a series acronym that stands for Bio-Organic Warfare), just as in the case of Resident Evil’s Sherry Birkin and Jake Muller. All in all, the new content does a good enough job of painting Rose’s insecurities that stem from her otherworldly powers, and the ridicule of others as a major point of contention in her life.

Capcom Image

The one thing Rose wants, more than anything else, is to sever her connection with the Megamycete and become a “normal’’ teenage girl. Ethan and Chris fight to the death over a Megamycete, but Rose discovers that a crystal she can use purify the mold from her body. Village) found at the Wolf Hound Squad headquarters (which is presumably still affiliated with the BSAA, but that is never clearly explained, much like a lot of things in Resident Evil). This plunges Rose into the memories of those that have died in close proximity to the massive, fungal hivemind, and she’s transported to an eerie, cerebral replica of Castle Dimitrescu, which her father knew so intimately when he was alive. She must retrieve three masks to get the crystal. In typical Resident Evil style, she has to avoid falling into the clutches of the Duchess (the merchant). Village() That has sent her emaciated animals to capture her.

Capcom does a decent job of setting this transition up through the use of liminal space, and masses of thick, dark red sludge to bar your path, forcing you down anterior hallways or Completely new rooms that weren’t available in Village. This includes an extended look at a library, more of Lady Dimitrescu’s personal chambers, and a more intimate look at the dungeons hidden deep beneath the bowels of the castle ramparts. Rooms connect in odd, dreamlike ways — they’re familiar, but not entirely familiar.

Rose finds herself immediately in an extremely precarious position, trapped within the Megamycete’s consciousness and fighting for the life she loves. With the help of her “guardian angel” Michael, who communicates with her via floating golden letters, Rose is set to task uncovering the whereabouts of the purifying crystal as she fights through swaths of long, gangly, homogenous enemies composed of ash-colored mold. Unfortunately, their design isn’t compelling enough to be frightening, nor is the hammer-wielding monstrosity that appears further in the DLC as a pursuer. Rather, it’s the doppelgangers of Rose scattered across the castle, and the resulting psychological terror of the protagonist, that fuels Shadows of Rose’s tension. They are twisted and contorted to look like Junji Ito illustrations, their naked faces and gums contrasted with swirling milky skin contortions.

Capcom Image

However Shadows of Rose doesn’t offer much outside of this initial fear. There isn’t any throughline of greater commentary. In fact, Rose suffers the same fate as her father, Ethan, in the narrative department; she’s a mere plot vehicle, as opposed to a character with a greater sense of her own agency, even when compared to one-off Resident Evil characters like Carlos Oliveira or Billy Coen. Rose is defined solely by her position as a girl, much like Ethan. For all of the series’ missteps with characterization, there are some standouts (Moira Burton in Revelations 2. in particular) and it’s a shame that’s not the case here.

What about the gameplay? It’s fairly stock and standard. You can use Rose’s mold powers to temporarily halt enemies and solve environmental puzzles, but you’re also wielding a firearm to pepper enemies with bullets. Rose must purify any moldy flower in a room to solve the puzzles.

Rose control by comparison, so the third-person view feels more significant. The third-person view in VillageIt is an interesting addition that I find to be a pleasant throwback to more recent versions of the Resident Evil 2 Resident Evil 3 remakes), it’s integral to Shadows of Rose’s mechanics. The cleansing mechanic is vital to progression, and aiming Rose’s arm toward any of these pustules of corruption while being chased down by enemies helps create a greater feeling of tension, since enemies may be just out of view. Aim assist absolutely doesn’t work as intended in third-person mode, which makes the game significantly more difficult when it’s turned on — in too many cases, it made me overcompensate when turning to face a monster, and I had to quickly readjust.

Capcom Image

Third-person mode, however, is an alternative way to play Village, one of 2021’s best games, and one that I imagine die-hard fans will more than likely embrace — even if Capcom still makes it impossible to see Ethan’s face.

Shadows of Rose isn’t a spectacular DLC, and it doesn’t necessarily do or say anything meaningful. It feels like a B-tier horror film, which isn’t out of place for Resident Evil, though its sometimes self-serious tone can become tiring, especially after two whole games in the decidedly grim saga of the Winters family. It will be a great resource for those who are invested in the story. The third-person perspective also makes it possible to return to the original game. But it doesn’t do anything to further the narrative. Much like Rose herself, it feels less like a stepping stone in the franchise — a gentle nudge toward more plot points that will potentially remain unresolved for years to come.

Resident Evil Village Winters’ Expansion The game will release on October 28th on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5 and Windows PC. Capcom provided a prerelease code for PC review. Vox Media also has affiliate relationships. Although these partnerships do not impact editorial content, Vox Media could earn commissions for products sold via affiliate links. Here are some links to help you find. additional information about Polygon’s ethics policy here.