Resident Evil Village offers a wealth of unlockable bonus content. After completing certain challenges players receive points they can use to buy weapons and concept art. There are more than one hundred pieces of concept art available, and an additional one hundred for those who purchased the deluxe edition.
The following list ranks the ten best pieces of concept art one can find within the game. Some of these are simply beautiful to look at, while others reveal exciting details that never made it into the game. Even separated from the game, most of these would be awesome to own as prints.
10 Chris Redfield Doing What He Does Best
This photo depicts a sequence near the end where players control Chris Redfield and fights against the lycans on his way to destroy Mother Miranda and the Megamycete. He's ultimately only successful in the latter, while Ethan ends up taking care of Mother Miranda. It is the most action-packed section of the title. Other members of his squad are shown close by, but in the actual gameplay Chris mostly goes in solo while the others are elsewhere in the village.
9 BSAA As B.O.Ws
The big reveal at the end is the BSAA's usage of B.O.Ws in their fight against bioterrorism. The details of their inner workings during Resident Evil Village are sparse.
Are they truly evil now, or do they feel it necessary to use B.O.Ws to even the playing field? According to the description in-game, this design comes from the prior game, though the logo was slightly altered.
8 Donna Beneviento
While the gameplay section is unconventional and becomes tiresome upon replays due to it being more of a puzzle than a combat encounter, Donna Beneviento is an interesting character. Players only see her face for a moment after Ethan kills her, so this concept art gives an opportunity to look more closely at her. Angie the doll is oddly adorable, especially in the miniature bridal gown. The two are purposefully contrasting, with Donna's attire representing death and Angie's symbolizing life.
7 Mia, Ethan, And Rose
Ethan Winters' obscured face is a reminder of the almost comedic lengths the game goes to never let players see him from the third-person perspective. Rose and Mia look almost exactly the same, with the exception being Mia utilizing a wheelchair due to her injuries sustained during Resident Evil 7: Biohazard. Mia ultimately does not use a wheelchair in the final game, perhaps as her role in the later half expanded.
6 Lady Dimitrescu's Daughters
Considering their attire and hoods, it can be difficult to tell the three Dimitrescu daughters apart. Thankfully this concept art shows their faces more clearly. It was at first a little curious how quickly they are disposed of during a first playthrough.
Then players realize the castle portion is only a fragment of the whole Resident Evil Village campaign. Even though players spend just a couple of hours there, Lady Dimitrescu and her daughters manage to become memorable villains.
5 Wait, Was Ethan Going To Use A Sword!?
Resident Evil games have light melee mechanics, but nothing deep or interesting. This art hints at a potentially more engaging melee combat system. Using a sword against the Mold-infected enemies would have been sweet. Other pieces of art also detail early plans for scenes taking place in the distant past, so this could be alluding to that. If the next entry is also a first-person game, we would not be averse to an intricate melee combat system.
4 Flying Soldat Enemies
Seeing and fighting the evolutions of the various Soldat enemies inside Heisenberg's factory is particularly interesting. According to the description of this photo, the original bout with the flying Soldat enemies was to have a more open area, allowing the foes to more freely fly about. This section is scary enough without having to worry about the enemies soaring uninterrupted through the skies. Diaries throughout the area also detail Heisenberg's process in creating these adversaries.
3 Lycan Attack
There is a lot going on this photo. The comment from the art director says Resident Evil Village "was a lot of trial and error, but it was always going to be a survival horror game." This photo is great enough to be a poster on someone's wall. The action portrayed in the photo is a lot more compact than what Ethan finds during the story. Generally, players won't find themselves taking on more than five enemies at a time, and even this is rare. Chris's section is more action-packed, however.
2 Rose Winters
In the final game Rose Winters only shows up in the outfit on the right. The gun from the left side implies potential combat sequences. Another plus from this image is a closer look at the symbol on her sneakers. It is difficult to tell exactly what is written, but perhaps the sequel will reveal more information about it. It seems likely Rose will be the playable protagonist of Resident Evil 9, which has us excited to learn what powers she has.
1 Ada Wong Was Planned To Be In The Game
Ada Wong has not been seen in the Resident Evil canon since Resident Evil 6 in 2012. She was in the Resident Evil 2 remake, but this is a retelling of her first appearance in the franchise. This art shows plans to have Ada Wong show up in Resident Evil Village, but the team ultimately could not find a good reason for her to be there. While it would have been nice to see Ada come back, the more focused narrative helps make the story more understandable, especially for newcomers.