Resident Evil is no longer the franchise we knew back in the day. For better or worse, it has evolved over time. Resident Evil 4 was a very evident and abrupt shift towards action. Resident Evil 7 was a return to the origins of horror, but it doesn’t feel the same as the old games. Something that has value in itself, but doesn’t take away that particular itch.
Because in this house we are big fans of the first three Resident Evil games. The ones from the original PlayStation. And not just out of nostalgia. We can replay them today and they are still as fantastic and original as their equally excellent remakes. But it’s true that these games are showing their age in terms of graphics. This makes us wish that someone would make a classic Resident Evil game with today’s tools. Prayers that have been answered, even when we thought it was impossible.
Those who have heard our prayers are not Capcom, but SFB Games. A studio known for their puzzle games that has decided to venture into the classic survival horror genre with a game called Crow Country.
Very inspired by the survival horror games of the first PlayStation, both in graphics and gameplay. In this game, we play as Mara Forest, who must investigate an abandoned amusement park, Crow Country, to find its missing founder, Edward Crow. As it is evident, we will not take long to discover that there is more than meets the eye. And we will find ourselves searching for keys and mechanisms while fighting and dodging terrible creatures that seek to end our lives.
Part of the appeal of Crow Country is that, while it is inspired by Resident Evil and survival horrors from the original PlayStation era, it does not fully imitate them. In Crow Country, we can move the camera, disable tank controls, and there is no inventory management. The game focuses more on exploration with excellent level design, a clue system that forces us to take notes or remember them if we don’t want to go back to a safe point to remember them, and particularly resilient enemy combat.
This is also contributed by the fact that the aesthetics of Crow Country are not those of classic Resident Evil. There is the decay and rust of these, but its lowpoly art direction is more reminiscent of a refined version of the original Final Fantasy 7. An incredible nostalgia boost that works extremely well with its scenarios, which are presented as small dioramas made for the world’s most sinister Pinypon.
Actually, although the scenarios are relatively small, they are very compact. They are full of objects, enemies, secrets, and doors. This makes them extremely dense and interesting to explore, even though they are quite small in size.
That’s why the game is reminiscent of classic Resident Evil games. Combat is in the background and is more of a last resort than something we use constantly and consciously. Not so much because of scarcity, since we can replenish our pistol ammunition whenever we want, but because of the resistance and quantity of our enemies. Making it wiser to simply clear our path to be able to advance without fear.
If you like classic Resident Evil games, Crow Country is the game you should be playing. It’s beautiful, it’s fun, and it perfectly captures the sensations of those first three installments of Capcom’s classic. So whether it’s nostalgia or because you’re in love with that kind of design, you should play Crow Country.
