A Logical Arguement for Why Slow Zombies Might NEVER Return in Resident Evil / Slow zombie vs Fast zombie Formula

I don't think we'll ever see slow moving zombies in games again here's why...

Slow Zombie Formula
(Capcom didn't create Slow zombies on their own, the limitations of hardware and the atmospheric need for pre-rendered backgrounds helped create slow zombies)
- Atmosphere and detail are important in horror, the "then current" technology can't deliver rich detail in 3D so pre-rendered backgrounds are used
- pre-rendered backgrounds limit camera to 3rd person camera angles, player must navigate character by seeing where the character is on screen and what direction they're facing, how far from enemy they are etc...
- if character is too far from camera, it becomes hard to navigate environment, so camera stays close to character as much as possible

- zombies are introduced into the environment
- player can run around slow zombies so environment is made more narrow (mansion, hallways, narrow streets) wide spaces are avoided in favor of narrow hallways and streets forcing the player to interact with zombies
- player can easily shoot zombies from a distance so camera angles are used to visually hide the zombies (also creates atmospheric "I can hear them but can't see them" effect)
- player can run forward, see zombie's visual location, step back and shoot, So to prevent player from easily killing zombies, ammo becomes restricted and shooting speed is lowered, player must now choose which zombies to kill, player will not be able to kill all zombies and MUST leave a few to live
- player can Lure zombies around map to his advantage, so zombie numbers are increased to heighten the sense of urgency, player feels rushed and frantic on which zombies to kill as they all close in on him
- player can shoot down one zombie and run ahead to avoid the others, so game balances this out by making player STOP moving while aiming and shooting, player now has to decide weather to "Fight or Run"
- player can save up a large amount of items and ammo by hoarding these items from areas with little zombies and saving them for use in areas with large amounts of zombies, so game limits the player's inventory space, now player must choose which item to pick up and which to leave behind
- player can still change strategies to combat the zombies so Locked Doors, closed gates and other conflicts are put in place to make player cross the same area multiple times, player now has to intelligently guess weather he'll come through this area more than once or never again and decide weather to kill zombies or avoid them. (players who've memorized the game have no problems with this conflict)

Deep Strategy = unlock areas, unfold story, collect items amidst a sea of zombies, carefully selecting when to run and when to fight, which zombies to shoot and which to leave, weather to use items now or save for later. Requires a lot of long term AND short term strategizing

Fast Enemies Forumula (RE4 + RE5)
- environments are now 3D, static camera angles can be dropped in favor of over the shoulder or first person view cameras
- player can now see and kill enemies from far away, so enemies are made faster and more plentiful
- game changes from Horror to Action, with emphasis on killing as many enemies as possible rather than strategizing
- because fast enemies create hectic moments the player can become mentally exhausted and can "normalize to constant action" ie: without contrast between action and peace player normalizes to action and sees it as boring, example: (ultraviolet, transformers) so game creates "quiet moments" aka calms before the storm where there are NO enemies present OR game gives player enough ammo to kill all enemies in the current environment so he can explore the area for items.
- more ammo is given to player to compensate for mistakes and to encourage killing enemies to clear out areas rather than leaving them behind and getting annoyed by them (fast zombies don't allow player time to collect items so game gives enough ammo to kill off all enemies in environment)
- fast enemies now change game emphasis to "fear of pursuit" instead of "fear of them slowly closing in on you", killing becomes a necessity over strategy
- player can run and gun past enemies so game restricts player from running while shooting, player must now choose to fight or run
- 3D allows for less closed spaces and more open spaces allowing player to shoot enemies, run back, reload, and continue shooting, current gaming trends favor constant action and progress so as not to "bore" the player.
- atmosphere is sacrificed for constant progress, player spends less time back-tracking


Shallow Strategy = instant action over slow burn action, short term strategy over long term strategy, run through areas once rather than back-track aka the game now allows you to Kill anything that moves rather than strategize on what to do.

Slow Zombies in 3D world Formula
- sucks, play Dead Rising and you'll see why, it's fun at first but gets boring fast, it's challenging but there's no fear. The areas were wide open and zombies so plentiful that we just got used to them being there and normalized to them.

How to make Slow Zombies work in a Fast paced 3D world
- introduce slow moving, rotting, gnawing zombies into an atmospheric 3D environment
- environments must be narrow and compartmentalized (lots of doors / hallways / alleys) forcing the player to interact with zombies
- use wide open areas sparingly, wide open areas should have either a LARGE number of spaced out zombies (so player is tricked into weaving around them only to get caught by one or two and have them all close in) or No zombies at all (to create a "where is everyone" creepy atmosphere)
- player can run, shoot, and reload quickly but is heavily restricted of ammo but not of health items, game should compensate it's lack of killing with ability to survive
- player should be allowed to sneak around zombies if he is not in their view (increases tension and "oh god i hope i don't get caught" effect)
- player must be forced to backtrack at least 1 through most environments
- zombies must NOT be distributed equally in all areas. Instead one area should be filled with zombies, the surrounding areas should be void of zombies so as to give the player a place to run and be chased
- zombies MUST have roaming and pursuit abilities, with the ability to slowly follow and relentlessly pursuit a player wherever he goes, across maps, buildings, loading areas, and rooms IF they see him or hear gunshots.
- player can create temporary one-time-use barricades that slow the zombies down (lock doors, bookshelves, couches) for a period of time before they break through, player now has to strategize when to use which barricade
- zombies should behave like they would in the real world, once they're killed their body is always there with a 50% randomized chance that the body will come back to life (increases tension when player returns through same areas)

Strategy = keep moving because they're right behind you. short term and long term strategy, player has speed on his side but zombies are in large numbers

Zombies weren't always slow, the zombies in the earlier games were slow, and fast. I can't think of any that were as fast as Crimson's, but they weren't always slow. Mixing fast and slow isn't hard, and will probably show up. alot of the enemies in RE5 are slow, Executioner.

Being able to aim where you want, and being able to take them out from a far(not that you could do that in RE1, just that you couldn't see it alot of the time), doesn't make them action games.

Regardless of Spike's acute obersvations, overall, I agree with pretty much everything said. It's well thought out and very possible.

Moonknight67 wrote:

Regardless of Spike's acute obersvations, overall, I agree with pretty much everything said. It's well thought out and very possible.

My observations were very obtuse and open-minded. I didn't disagree with the entire thing, just parts.

That was a very good read.

Personally, I would like to see a return to small claustrophobic environments and slower zombies.... It just adds suspense to me... walking down tight corridors with a lot of blind turns, you never know what you will run into around every corner. I have said it before but I think Dead Space got the formula right.... I would love to see a RE with that type of gameplay. Kinda mixes fast and slow, and open and tight environments. I just kinda miss the gratuitous "make you shit your pants" startles that used to exist in the RE world, Its all just in your face now but i digress.

You know what would be funny? Shooting a slow zombie with RE5 style of gameplay.

yeah jamesy but it would get boring after 30 seconds

What do you mean it would get boring after 30 seconds?

Jamesy wrote:

What do you mean it would get boring after 30 seconds?

well it isnt hard to figure out is it. if you keep killing slow zombies in re5 style gameplay, the fun would last for about 30 seconds

yeah true. it would be fun if there were dozens crimson heads running at you but if its three slow zombies then its just laughable.

Jamesy wrote:

yeah true. it would be fun if there were dozens crimson heads running at you but if its three slow zombies then its just laughable.

that would be brilliant. lots of crimson heads in re5 style. im hoping they might have something like that in store for us in re6 but i wont get my hopes up

i can imagine it would be like how you fight lickers in RE5 fighting crimsons. Quite similar probably.

Jamesy wrote:

i can imagine it would be like how you fight lickers in RE5 fighting crimsons. Quite similar probably.

maybe much harder because the lickers were actually slow whilst crimson heads run at you non stop

Yeah but it would be cool using hand to hand combat moves on a crimson head.

Jamesy wrote:

Yeah but it would be cool using hand to hand combat moves on a crimson head.

it would indeed. im off now jamesy have a good night

cool chat with you tomorow.

BOBLATHON wrote:

That was a very good read.

Personally, I would like to see a return to small claustrophobic environments and slower zombies.... It just adds suspense to me... walking down tight corridors with a lot of blind turns, you never know what you will run into around every corner. I have said it before but I think Dead Space got the formula right.... I would love to see a RE with that type of gameplay. Kinda mixes fast and slow, and open and tight environments. I just kinda miss the gratuitous "make you shit your pants" startles that used to exist in the RE world, Its all just in your face now but i digress.

I can't speak for Dead Space, haven't played it, nor do I intend to, but I think RE can have slower zombies and small corridors, and over-the-shoulder.

Capcom could take out the melee attacks, although I love them, and they work great for the experienced characters like Chris, Jill, Leon & Claire, but if they used a new character, or less experienced, they could play over-the-shoulder, without melees, and maybe even take out the laser sight.

That way it is still your aiming, but it isn't as precise, it is just as challenging as the original RE in it's ways.A fine one I think.

@Jamesy, I liked the melee's in Outbreak, like how Kevin could kick.

Never played Outbreak.

Jamesy wrote:

Never played Outbreak.

why not. i thought you were a 'die hard resi fan' you should give thse games a chance instead of rejecting them because they arent main series

Give me a break at least I have played Umbrella Chronicles.

what do you mean give me a break. you call yourself a die hard resi fan yet you refuse to play the spin off games and then you tell me to give you a break. how dare you

only joking jamesy calm down dont take it to heart what i say because i dont mean to annoy you or take a shot at you

Fair enough. Too lazy to go and play Darkside Chronicles.

Jamesy wrote:

Fair enough. Too lazy to go and play Darkside Chronicles.

have you got it or could you not be arsed to buy it. its a great game ans i recomend you play it jamesy

Can't be arsed to buy it. Too tied up playing LIN.

Jamesy wrote:

Can't be arsed to buy it. Too tied up playing LIN.

its a pitty you didnt have a ps3 because we could have played it online together. are you going to buy the darkside chronicles in the near future