Ever since her appearance in “Maiden,” theResident Evil Villagedemo, fans have been anxiously awaiting more content featuring who seems to be the primary antagonist, Lady Dimitrescu. Fans have had incredibly strong, positive reactions to the mysterious 9'6"vampire lady that shocked art director Tomonori Takano, and the hype has yet to calm down. Lady Dimitrescu actually did appear in the announcement trailer, but she’s just recently skyrocketed to fame.
Alcina Dimetrescu is shaping up to be a very interesting and prominent character inResident Evil Village,which has a clear folklore influence. Even without seeing what are probably the vampire lady’s best scenes, Lady Dimitrescu has taken the internet by storm and inspired numerous memes and several exceptional cosplays. She definitely has a growing fan club, some of whom claim they’ll lose on purpose just to see more of her. That hype will probably continue to increase when the game releases on May 7. Capcom is definitely aware of it, as showcased in its most recent clip.
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Resident Evil Village Confirms Photo Mode
In the recently released gameplay clip, Ethan Winters hovers next to a window and eavesdrops on Lady Dimitrescu’s conversation with the mysterious Mother Miranda. During the scene, a small prompt appeared that offered to let the player skip the cutscene or access photo mode.
Photo mode has become increasingly popular in the gaming community and was one of many primary selling points forGhost of Tsushima,which featured dynamic effectsand weather customization.Cyberpunk 2077andMiles Moralesare recent examples of games that had entire trailers devoted to showcasing the photo mode, emphasizing just how important the feature has become in games. So while it’s not necessarily surprising thatResident Evil Villagehas photo mode as well, it is exciting and didn’t go unnoticed by fans.
Resident Evil Villagelooks like it will be a stunning game. The mansion Lady Dimitrescu shares with her daughters is stunning, and all of the characters look incredibly expressive. The eerie village will be perfect for virtual photographers tocreate some masterful works of art with photo mode. That said, expect everyone’s favorite vampire lady to be the star of many of them.
There’s no confirmation of what featuresResident Evil Village’sphoto mode will have, but it’s worth mentioning that photo modes, especially for biggerAAA games, have only been increasing in qualityand depth. Hopefully, Capcom will follow the same trend withResident Evil Villageand provide players with a photo mode experience that allows them to be as creative as possible. Because a lot of the game will be on the darker side, one of the more innovative features that should definitely be included is customizable lighting effects, akin to those inSpiderman: Miles Morales.
When the game releases, don’t be surprised to see the internet absolutely flooded with new screenshots of Lady Dimtrescu. Photo mode is the perfect tool for artistic expression, but it’s also a great way to create new memes and spread fan hype about the game. There are many other photo-worthy subjects inResident Evil Village,but none of them are nearly as hyped up as the vampire lady. It might be wise to avoidobsessing over Lady Dimitrescujust yet because, otherwise, the barrage of screenshots will get very old very fast. Or, maybe they won’t.
Resident Evil Village’s Photo Mode Could Be More Versatile Than Others
Generally speaking,photo mode doesn’t work as well in cutscenes. While some games do allow it to be accessed while the scene is playing, it’s harder to pause on the right frame. Rotating the camera view, an essential aspect of any photo mode, is usually impossible during cutscenes. It makes sense why; developers don’t often plan for the camera to be spun around in the middle of a cinematic scene, and probably haven’t rendered or animated the other side of the scene.
Sometimes the cutscene limitations are frustrating because except for combat sequences, most of the time playable characters are in one or two poses.Horizon Zero Dawnswitched this aspect up with its photo mode, offering different poses for Aloy to strike when the tool was opened.Cyberpunk 2077also allowed players toselect poses for V in photo mode. Most games, however, don’t have this, especially not for NPCs.
However, the timing of the button prompt is interesting in the gameplay trailer. It comes up right asLady Dimitrescu is sitting down to speak to Mother Mirandaand a cutscene begins. This could mean thatResident Evil Villagewill allow for more involved photo mode options during cutscenes, which could result in a huge amount of photos that could never have been seen otherwise.
And again… most of them will probably be of Lady Dimitrescu. She’s not going anywhere, andResident Evil Villageplayers may be in for a big treatif photo mode and the vampire’s presence in the game live up to expectations. IfResident Evil Villageallows players to truly customize shots from cinematic cutscenes, that would be a huge step forward that a lot of other games should implement in the future.
One thing players can count on is thatResident Evil Villagewill allow them to get up close and personalwith the bewitching vampire lady and that the best is still yet to come.
Resident Evil Villagewill release on May 7 on PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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