Resident Evil 7 has headed back to the series' roots, a time when puzzles offered no hand-holding and enemies showed no mercy. It's a big change of pace from the much friendlier design of modern games, which means that a large number of people are struggling to survive.
We've had our share of successes and failures in Resident Evil 7. Above all else, we've learned a lot during our adventure. Below are 10 tips we've learned that may help you.
1. Use Headphones
Resident Evil 7 has incredible audio design. Music is rarely heard, so it's just you and the environment. Not only does this mean that there's a great sense of being alone, but it allows you to hear nearly everything around you, most importantly footsteps.
By throwing some headphones on, the game is going to be much scarier. Though, you'll also have better awareness of your surroundings. This is extremely helpful during stealth sequences, where you can use objects to obscure the enemy's vision before darting off into a hallway. Given the low lighting, your ears are a better tool than your eyes, anyway.
2. Put Some Power Behind Your Melee Attacks
There's no way around it, melee weapons do very little damage when used with regular attacks. If you want to put a dent in enemy health, and don't want to use ammunition, hold L2 (PS4) or LT (Xbox One) before your attack to perform a power attack. Note that pulling this off requires great timing and precision due, or at least if you don't want to find yourself being critically hit mid-strike.
Power attacks are best used after staggering an enemy, which is done by guarding an attack using L1 (PS4) or LB (Xbox One). This is a solid tactic to fall back on whenever you find yourself low on ammunition and confronted with opposition.
3. The Map Is Your Friend
You don't need to collect maps in this game. Instead, you can always open the menu and get an idea of where you are, with labeled rooms and all. This is especially helpful when you're struggling to find a puzzle item and/or where to go.
Open the map menu often to make sure you know what rooms you've explored and what the layout is of the area you're in. It'll save you time in the long run.
4. Master the Quick Turn
By tapping backward on the left analog stick and circle (PS4) or B (Xbox One) your character will do a 180 degree turn. Given the prevalence of chasing in Resident Evil 7 this move is of incredible importance, especially on higher difficulties.
By using the quick turn, you can check behind you, or turn around and start running when face-to-face with an opponent. The seconds you'll save could mean the difference between life and death.
5. Save Often
Unlike the early Resident Evil games, you can save as often as you'd like. This, combined with checkpoints occurring infrequently, means that you are susceptible to lost progress. Make a habit out of saving.
You can also abuse this system by loading a save before using psychostimulant to reveal hidden objects. You can then re-load the save and acquire the objects you now know the location of without having to use your psychostimulant. This might be cheap, but you should be doing everything you can to survive, anyway.
6. Use Your Legs
There are many encounters in the game that will make you believe that you need to pull out a ranged weapon and unload all your ammunition until the enemy dies. The truth is that many enemies are optional. What you may want to do is guard with a melee weapon to stagger them before running away, or simply find a good route to create some distance with.
This is particularly helpful in the second half of the game when ammunition simply isn't plentiful enough for you to kill every enemy you see. Though, it should be noted that some enemies are mandatory. You'll know when they are by the context of the encounter.
7. Slam the Door Behind You
Expanding upon the tip above, doors can be a great way to create space between you and an enemy chasing after you. Some enemies are more affected than others, but you won't know if it'll work until you try.
On that note, it's preferable to leave as many doors open as possible so you can run through them without delay when a chase begins. Nothing is worse than getting stuck on a door when a guy with a knife is behind you.
8. Full Clear Every Room
The puzzles in Resident Evil 7 require a lot of key items, many of which are found in drawers, shelves, and other locations outside of visibility. If you don't get into a habit of fully clearing every room you go into, you're going to be re-treading a lot of territory.
While you're at it, pay attention to any puzzle oriented objects that you come across. While you might not have the necessary item when you first run into them, you eventually will, and knowing where to use puzzle items is half the battle.
9. Start Collecting
Antique Coins are one of several collectibles found through the game's environments. These are useless for a vast portion of the game, but later are used as a currency for something you can and will want.
On that note, start knifing those bobbleheads you keep hearing and seeing throughout the game. You will thank us later.
10. Backtrack After Finding a New Key
There are several types of doors you will encounter in the game that are labeled with a type of animal, from crow to scorpion. As you find keys to open these doors you will want to head back and open every door related to the key. Some of the rooms you will gain access to will be required for progression, but some are simply there to reward you with useful items.
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