Resident Evil 2 director Hideki Kamiya says Capcom’s modern horror games have become so frightening that even he struggles to play them, calling for a less terrifying mode for players who cannot handle intense scares.
Resident Evil 2 director Hideki Kamiya has doubled down on his belief that Capcom’s recent horror games have become too frightening, arguing that the company has lost perspective on just how scary its modern Resident Evil titles have become.
Kamiya, who is now leading his own studio Clovers Inc., previously joked that Resident Evil Requiem should include a “non-scary” mode, but he has now confirmed that the idea was completely serious.
Speaking to Video Games Chronicle, Kamiya said he believes advances in visual technology have allowed developers to create horror experiences that are increasingly difficult for some players to enjoy.
Kamiya said: “Nowadays, with how photorealistic and high-fidelity video games have gotten, the amount of crazy, horrifying things that people are able to put on the screen is absolutely insane.”
He added that the developers working on Resident Evil may have become “numb” to the fear factor of their own games.
He explained: “I think anybody who’s on the Resident Evil teams at Capcom, at this point, they must all be completely numb to how scary the thing they’re making is.”
Kamiya first raised the idea of a lighter version of Resident Evil Requiem after seeing his team play the game in a Clovers Inc. video earlier this year.
He suggested a mode where zombies could become more humorous, blood effects could be replaced with something less disturbing and the overall atmosphere could become more relaxed.
In a social media post, he joked that zombies could wear “brown paper bags” over their heads and that dark, frightening environments could be replaced with brighter settings.
Despite creating one of the most beloved entries in the franchise with the original Resident Evil 2, Kamiya admitted he was unable to experience Requiem himself because it was too intense.
He said: “As somebody who directed that original game, Resident Evil 2, I was curious to know how that panned out for him. I wanted to experience that myself as a player, but the game was way too scary, and I couldn’t.”
Kamiya claimed he has personally told Resident Evil developers, including series producer Jun Takeuchi, that the games have become too frightening, but said they are often surprised by his reaction.
While Capcom appears unlikely to introduce a softer horror mode, the company continues to embrace the series’ darker direction, with more terrifying projects reportedly on the way, including a remake of Resident Evil Code: Veronica.
Resident Evil 2 director claims Capcom has made newer games too scary
