An appropriate dose of gruesome camp is central to the spirit of Resident Evil, a franchise that’s deservedly celebrated for being the video game equivalent of a blockbuster horror film franchise. It’s melodramatic, bombastic, constantly evolving story has given us a lot of memorable characters, yes, but even more memorable death scenes, which Resident Evil often revels in.
Major spoilers ahead for several Resident Evil games.
Broadly speaking, there are two categories of Resident Evil deaths. There are the canon deaths, those that take place in cutscenes and are generally considered part of the story, but there are also non-canon deaths, which are usually the result of getting killed during gameplay. Deaths in each category serve a distinct purpose, with canon deaths prioritizing emotional weight or shock value, and non-canon deaths prioritizing gore and absurdity. As such, if we want to break down some of the most brutal death scenes in RE history, it’s useful to discuss the categories individually.
For the sake of variety, I’ve limited the below to include only one death per game.
The Most Brutal Canon Deaths in Resident Evil
Shovelhead – Resident Evil 7
You’re way more vulnerable in Resident Evil 7 thanks to its stark change in protagonist, and this is especially pronounced when you first see another friendly face. After navigating to the Baker family garage, players might be relieved to see Deputy David Anderson, a police officer and the first benevolent authority figure of the night. Of course, this relief will be replaced by terror once Jack Baker appears, and thrusts a shovel through Anderson’s face with such force that it makes a clean, continuous slice.
Fit the 9 games into the grid.
Eat Your Heart Out – Resident Evil Village
Ethan doesn’t catch a break in Resident Evil Village, especially once he encounters Mother Miranda. After taunting him while in the form of Mia, Miranda shoves her hand into Ethan’s chest, rips his heart out, and squeezes the blood from it into her mouth. This death is made infinitely more disturbing since, although he’s not yet aware of it, Ethan is unable to die due to his Mold infection. Thus, he is forced to watch this horrific, confusing scene unfold through his own eyes.
He’s Coming for Us, You’ll See – Resident Evil 3: Nemesis
Nemesis, for my money, is a lot scarier than Mr. X, and a lot of that comes down to how he is introduced in the original Resident Evil 3. In that game, Jill Valentine and fellow S.T.A.R.S. operative Brad Vickers are approaching the Raccoon City Police Department when they are ambushed by Nemesis, who impales a cowering Brad with one of its tentacles, as the S.T.A.R.S. member pleads with Jill to save him. Making this death so much worse is the fact that Brad had already encountered Nemesis, and seemed to sense his own impending doom. For whatever reason, the Resident Evil 3 remake altered the story so that Brad “dies” at the hands of a random zombie, before his reanimated corpse is put down by Marvin Branaugh. By doing this, Nemesis becomes far less threatening.
The Most Brutal Non-Canon Resident Evil Deaths
No-face-stador – Resident Evil 4
Naturally, the Resident Evil 4 remake has its own slew of disgusting and horrible death scenes, but it greatly censors one of the original’s most devastating. When fighting a Novistador in classic RE4, failing a specific quicktime event will result in Leon’s face being melted off by acid. Even with rudimentary 2004 visuals, it’s quite graphic and disturbing.
Sliced Ada – Resident Evil 4 Remake: Separate Ways DLC
In an apparent homage to Paul W.S. Anderson’s 2002 Resident Evil adaptation, the 2023 Resident Evil 4: Separate Ways remake features a chilling potential death for Ada Wong. When running through the iconic Resident Evil laser hallway, the player can fail a quicktime event, which will result in Ada being seamlessly sliced with the laser. You only get an implication of how disastrous that outcome is, but the vacant, sad look on Ada’s face just before the Game Over screen really says it all.
Big, Happy Family – Resident Evil 6
The intersection of sex and violence is ripe with horror potential, these two themes dominating so much of human thought, art, and culture. Resident Evil 6 homes in on this intersection through its depiction of the Rasklapanje, a B.O.W. who can shove…a part of itself into the player-characters mouth during gameplay, allowing it to reproduce. Then, its offspring will burst out of the victim’s torso, Xenomorph-style. Not how I’d want to go.
