Resident Evil Requiem Systems That Reward Cautious Play Over Aggression

Normally, when playing a Resident Evil game, caution is able to take the back-burner in favor of more aggressive tactics. It's a relatively easy time, all things considered, especially with how quickly you're able to blast through enemies.

However, Resident Evil Requiem takes a different approach, taking one simple mantra to heart: Slow and steady wins the race.

It doesn't matter if you're playing as Grace or playing as Leon, caution in this game is rewarded above all else, even if you have plenty of resources at your disposal. The game is structured in a way where you think first, then shoot, rather than shooting first and asking questions later.

Even within the mechanics themselves, caution is quietly rewarded instead of aggression, which is a nice reminder to newer players or if you find yourself getting stuck.

10 The Many Collectibles

So Much to Search For

There's no better way than to force players to slow down than to hide a dozen different collectibles that they have to find. Whether it's the Mr. Raccoon Memoriam Statues, the BSAA Crates to open, the many different Files that need to be read, or even additional resources like Blood Crafting Vials, these collectibles are a sure-fire way to force caution and paying attention to your surroundings.

And let me tell you, all these little guys are hidden all over the place, so you really need to pay attention. Of course, some are more out in the open, but more often than not, you're going to have to go out of your way to look for them.

While these collectibles aren't crucial for getting through the game, they can be in order to unlock other parts of the map (such as the Files being able to provide various Safe Combinations for more resources). Not to mention, taking the time to actually look for all these things will allow you to find so much more hidden loot, especially while you're backtracking.

So, even if you don't care about trying to platinum the game, it's good to pay attention for these collectibles so you get a good idea of everything around you overall.

9 Inventory Management Remains Essential

Always Track Your Resources

Survival horror games have always focused on the importance of inventory management, and Resident Evil has always had this mechanic implemented in their games, dating all the way back to the first one in Spencer Mansion.

What's cool about the inventory in Requiem is that it changes depending on who you're playing as. When you're playing as Leon, you have an attaché case like how you did in Resident Evil 4, only limited by your organization skills. When you play as Grace, however, your inventory is much more limited, so you need to be picky about what you carry with you.

Thankfully, there are various Hip Pouches that you can find that will increase your inventory space, and they're honestly live-savers. When you're paying attention to all the various things you need to collect, keep an eye out for Hip Pouches, too, especially since there aren't too many, and they're much easier to come across.

You inventory and the resources that you carry within that inventory has always been crucial for RE's gameplay, and Requiem is no exception to this, so don't treat it as an exception.

8 Antique Coins for the Parlor

Look Around, Use Hemolytic Injectors

While you're playing as Grace, there are several different spots (and different enemies that you can defeat) that have Antique Coins, gold currency that can be spent at the Rhodes Hill Care Center Parlor. The Parlor, locked with an empty slot where a Red Jewel should be, is located in the West Wing Hallway that leads all the way to the Kitchen, but watch out for The Chef/The Butcher that continuously roams around the place.

In fact, he's actually one of the enemies that will drop Antique Coins if you kill him (which you can use a Hemolytic Injector on him and will kill him instantly). However, the main way you're able to get these coins is through opening Safes or just by finding them while out and about the care center.

At the Parlor, you're able to spend these coins on whatever you need — however, I recommend players to save up and buy the Hip Pouch and the Blood Collector Expansion before getting to the Steroids or Stabilizer. These items will help you so much more in the long-run instead of a nudge up in health or firepower.

With these coins, you're able to make things easier for yourself, you just have to remember not to be reckless with what you get.

7 Environmental Hazards are a Classic Reminder

Always Err on the Side of Caution

The many environmental hazards in this game are meant to help you, especially when you're too busy kicking butt as Leon. However, you're also able to be harmed by this environment if you're being reckless in it.

One notable example is the flammable red barrels, which you're now also able to throw; these barrels will, in fact, hurt you upon an explosion, so you need to keep a good distance away. And sometimes, Leon doesn't have the best throw with these heavy things — so you'd need to run before you catch on fire.

Speaking of fire, there are several different areas where fire is present, and obviously, walking into it will result in taking damage. On Insanity difficulty, it's enough to kill you outright, especially if you're standing in it for longer than a second.

So, while you pay attention to the surrounding environment, it's important to take note of any hazards that you notice — not only so you know what you can use to your advantage, but also so that way you can be careful and don't put yourself at an accidental disadvantage.

6 Your Charms Can Save You from Fatal Blows

Many Charms Are Defensive

There are several different charms that you're able to pick up and carry with you while you play as Grace, and just as many charms that can be attached to your guns while you play as Leon. Grace's charms, however, are mainly defensive.

So, while you can carry charms that increase your firepower or knife abilities, many other charms will actually just help you directly — such as making it to where you're less likely to take Fatal Damage from an enemy that grabs you. And on Insanity, it truly is that small difference between life and death.

The charms themselves are flexible to your play style, but many of them have an emphasis (and nice reward) regarding caution. So while you can still be hostile with aggressive charms as Grace, you're more likely to find something that keeps you on the defense instead.

5 Backtracking is a Given

A Classic Resident Evil Gameplay Staple

If you've played any Resident Evil game before, you'd know how often you're going to backtrack through the map. This has been a classic since the start, and Requiem has its fair share of required backtracking.

However, there's also some optional backtracking in order to solve some puzzles or gather additional supplies. The Final Puzzle, which has left players absolutely stumped, is one example of the optional backtracking that can happen.

Yet, as you're backtracking through areas, you're likely to be introduced to new enemies (or even just zombies that you haven't killed yet), so it's a good idea to keep a stack of Hemolytic Injectors on you, so that way, you're able to sneak up on zombies and just make them explode. Or, to prevent them from coming back as Blister Heads, you can inject their corpses on the ground.

If you're the kind of player that likes to clear an area specifically for backtracking purposes, just know that you have to be meticulous about in Requiem, as it's something that's done in steps.

4 Ink Ribbons

Standard (Classic) FTW

When you first start the game, you have three main difficulties: Casual, Standard (Modern), and Standard (Classic). Standard (Classic) was designed with veteran fans in mind, with slightly tougher enemies and manual saving with Ink Ribbons.

Because of your saves being limited to a resource, it's another thing you have to watch out and be careful for — but you also have to be careful of when exactly you save. You truly don't know what's going to happen that might make your overwrite unnecessarily difficult, so saving has to be another resource in and of itself.

You don't have Ink Ribbons when playing as Leon (saving on the computer is unlimited, after all), only when playing as Grace, so you have to truly reflect on if it's worth using an Ink Ribbon just for the sake of convenience.

Or, you could just beat the game in less than four hours and get the Infinite Ink Ribbon instead of having to worry about it.

3 Aiming to Stagger

Especially as Grace

The number one rule with zombies is simple: to kill them, you have to shoot them in the head. In Requiem, that only works when you're able to blow an enemy's head clean off, with no chance of it mutating into a Blister Head.

However, if you were to aim for the limbs (or stay on the head), you're more likely to make that zombie stagger, which you can then run up to them and push them down. While they're down, you can either run away, or you can kill them while they're down (with either a makeshift knife or with your gun).

Either way, it's difficult to shoot to kill in this one, so it's better for players to go in with the intent to stagger enemies rather than try to kill them immediately. It just won't work out as planned — so go in with a plan to push them away.

2 Stealth and Observation is Crucial

Study the Zombies, They Were Once Human

Stealth is a relatively new addition to the Resident Evil games; being able to sneak around zombies was honestly unheard of in the OG entries, but in Requiem, stealth is crucial. This is especially the case with these new zombies, since they talk and mimic patterns of behavior from when they were once human.

Because of this, you're actually able to stop and observe them for a little while. You can learn their routine, what gets them riled up, and even the pathways they prefer to take.

If you pay attention to the zombies that you're sneaking around, you're able to have a better idea of how to defeat them, especially for zombies like the ones roaming the hallways turning off the lights. You can genuinely trap him over in the far corner with a simple flip of the light switch.

Being sneaky and watching everything around you is textbook cautionary gameplay, and it's the exact kind of thing that Requiem thrives on.

1 Blood Crafting

Don't Be Wasteful

One of the new, more crucial mechanics of Resident Evil Requiem is the inclusion of Blood Crafting, where you take the Infected Blood that you find all over the map and mix it with some Scrap to turn it into something else you need (such as Hemolytic Injectors or bullets). And believe me when I say there is so much blood.

The thing is with this crafting, you can't be reckless with it; it's incredibly tempting to want to use the Scraps as soon as you get your hands on them, but you're actually more likely to lock yourself out of something you may need a little down the line. The same can be said for your Blood Bags.

You're able to create all kinds of things with Blood Crafting, all of them will have some kind of benefit to you, so long as you aren't being wasteful with what you have. If you're careful with it, the crafting will be among the most flexible and versatile that the series has ever seen.

Caution is the gameplay loop here, and Blood Crafting is at the center of all of it.