Resident Evil Village is just on the horizon, set to release May 7, and many fans have been able to get their hands on a small slice of it through the timed demo released by Capcom. However, Resident Evil Village also sees The Mercenaries mode return to the series, and a new gameplay trailer offers a look at the mode that fans are getting.
Resident Evil's The Mercenaries mode first appeared in Resident Evil 4, and has not come back since Resident Evil 6. The mode is a time-based challenge that sees players completing levels by killing a certain number of enemies and getting to an objective point before the timer expires.
The gameplay comes from a hands-on preview IGN had with Capcom, and it looks as though the mode will be similar to what fans expect, just with some new features and improvements. The Mercenaries mode unlocks after players complete the story mode of Resident Evil Village and follows the same structure of past iterations. One big addition is the ability for players to upgrade their weapons and customize their loadout by visiting the Duke between levels, like in Resident Evil Village's main story.
A new addition to Resident Evil Village's rendition of The Mercenaries are blue orbs present in every level. Players who find these orbs are presented with three options for a permanent buff. The gameplay preview gives a few examples of what these will look like for players, ranging from increasing a player's max health or pistol damage to increasing a player's melee damage and move speed with a knife equipped. The changes look as though they will allow players to customize their builds for each run a fair amount, which should help facilitate multiple play styles and revisits.
Fans are excited for the upcoming release of Resident Evil Village, and thankfully they do not have to wait much longer. Following the critical success of recent entries in the long-running franchise is a tall order, but Resident Evil Village is in a position to have a massive impact on the series. Hopefully, Resident Evil Village will satisfy fans and critics alike when it launches and lead to more great entries in the future. Until then, the new hands-on video offers fans a glimpse at the exciting return of a fan-favorite mode.
Resident Evil Village releases on May 7 for PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
