Stalkers, such as Tyrants, are nothing new to Resident Evil. First introduced with the second installment's monstrous Mr. X, the Resident Evil series has grown increasingly comfortable with letting an un-killable enemy roam free around an area, adding a deadly, dynamic obstacle to every player's survival-horror experience.
With this role seemingly being filled by Lady Dimitrescu in Resident Evil Village, it's worth taking a look back at two of the series' notable stalkers: Jack Baker from Resident Evil 7 and Nemesis from Resident Evil 3. These two terrifying tyrants fill similar roles as they hunt each game's protagonist, but they also find unique ways to scare the daylights out of players.
It's All About Location
The spaces that Jack and Nemesis patrol might matter as much as their daunting appearances and abilities. RE7's Jack Baker primarily lurks through the Main House, which is filled with narrow corridors that make it all-too-easy for players to find themselves in a close-quarters situation with the Baker family patriarch. He's a villain of imposing physical stature, but further adding to the horror is the location of RE7's Main House — it's in the middle of nowhere.
Inversely, Nemesis operates in a more populated, open area. In RE3's Raccoon City, cover is minimal, and while there are buildings to enter, very few of them are connected. In short, if players want to get around, they'll have to go through the open, zombie-filled streets of Raccoon City, which means dealing with Nemesis.
While Jack is only a threat at close range, the same can't be said for Nemesis, who not only moves quickly, but also has some ranged attacks. His aggressive nature allows him to thrive in Raccoon City's open-ended areas as he begins his hot pursuit of RE3's lead, Jill Valentine. RE3's level design doesn't face players with an invincible enemy they have to avoid, but rather one that they have to fight. When Nemesis rears his ugly head, players better hope they're packing enough ammo to stun him to make a quick getaway.
Boss Battles
These two juggernauts are also fought multiple times throughout their respective games, and both are notoriously hard to kill. Jack is a recurring boss in RE7, and is first fought in the Main House's garage, where he's set on fire before having part of his head blown off. He later re-appears in the morgue, where he and Ethan duke it out with chainsaws. Still kicking, he eventually shows up again, this time as a giant, deformed flesh-monster. Once again, Ethan topples Jack, seemingly for good this time.
But Jack still has a little life in him, as he reappears as the final boss of RE7's "End of Zoe" DLC. But it isn't Ethan Winters who takes him down this time, rather, it's Joe Baker – Jack's brother. Unlike other final fights in the Resident Evil series, Joe doesn't use heavy weaponry to defeat his brother. Instead, he settles things with a good old-fashioned fist fight.
Jack is present throughout most of RE7, but the game continuously finds ways to make every encounter with him unique. Unfortunately, as a boss, Nemesis doesn't quite live up to the standard set by Jack. The first major fight against him is terrifying, but every subsequent encounter is dampened once players realize that he can be beaten by using the exact same methods as in the first fight. As a boss, RE3's Nemesis falls flat. His fights all follow a similar formula, which is especially disappointing considering how dynamic of a threat he is on Raccoon City's streets.
Jack Baker and Nemesis are both powerhouses in their own right, and both are terrifying thanks to how well they fit their respective settings. However, while Jack offers a fair amount of variety in his various encounters with Ethan, Nemesis frequently falls short of that goal. Here's hoping that Resident Evil Village's Lady Dimitrescu offers up an experience similar to the former.
Resident Evil Village releases May 7 for PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.