One of my favorite aspects of the Resident Evil series is the exploration of different flavors of horror. Even discounting the gameplay changes over the series’ three-decade history, many of these titles feature a variety of enemies ranging from the uncomfortably creepy to pure body-horror gruesome.
Resident Evil Requiem certainly keeps things fresh for players with plenty of unique ideas and enemies. So, there’s no better time for me to subject you to my list of the Top 5 scariest Resident Evil enemies.
5. Nemesis
Stalker enemies have become a defining element of the Resident Evil series. While most would point at Mr. X in the remake of Resident Evil 2 as the best example, the seeds were planted decades ago with 1999’s Resident Evil 3: Nemesis.
The namesake monster’s sole goal is to hunt you down, and he is relentless in achieving that goal. He appears multiple times throughout the campaign, with only three of his eleven possible fights being mandatory. Run away and he might follow you into the next area or teleport somewhere else.
Are his appearances/spawn triggers scripted? Yeah. Are the moments where he follows you around a little wonky because of RNG? Yeah. But repeatedly having to choose between a difficult fight for an exclusive upgrade item and running away is a unique experience. Even more so when he dives through a window with a rocket launcher in hand.
Don’t forget that a much more proper stalker version of Nemesis is featured in the Resident Evil 3 remake. I can admit he has some fun moments in the remake, but he’s undoubtedly scarier in the original game.
4. Scagdead
There is a special kind of uncomfortable horror when facing an undead nightmare that’s reminding you of its humanity. Resident Evil Requiem’s zombies are making this more of a focus, but one of the more haunting examples of this is the Scagdead from Resident Evil Revelations.
A Scagdead is a rare mutation from the t-Abyss virus. The result is a large fleshy monster with a wide mouth for a head, a flipper for a left arm, and a bulky chainsaw-like appendage for the right arm. It’s a strong enemy that instantly kills you with a grab.
What makes this boss so memorable is the human torso of its host on the monster’s left shoulder. It mindlessly repeats phrases as it went insane from the virus. Needing to fight a large behemoth that’s asking for help and claiming it’s still human might leave you chilled to the bone.
3. Licker
Some of my earliest gaming memories were watching an uncle play the first two Resident Evil games. I adored it, but I’d be lying if I said the FMV introduction to the Licker wasn’t a core memory. Multiple games and films later, and few have reached the iconic status of this grotesque beast.
Which really isn’t surprising. A skinless monster with an exposed brain and muscle mass, claws that let it climb onto various surfaces, and a deceptively long tongue that can stab you is easily one of the most creative enemies in the series.
It’s also only gotten better with age. Lickers have always been eyeless creatures who use their hearing to locate you, but that mechanic is far more robust in recent games. Their clacking claws and shrill shrieks will leave emotional scars to go with the physical ones.
2. Regenerador
Resident Evil 4 might have skewed more towards intense action horror than its predecessor, but it still had some monsters that made you shudder. The best example of that is the Regenerador.
These towering human-like monsters usually stumble towards you with labored breathing. It then quickly closes the gap by sprinting or using its elastic arms to pull you in for a bite. Although you can blow off some limbs, this will only briefly change its attack pattern before regenerating what was lost.
Making them all the more terrifying is that you can’t just mindlessly deal damage to them. Inside its body are multiple Las Plagas parasites. You’ll need a specific scope attachment to destroy these and kill a Regenerador. Because the cherry on top of this nasty thing is that killing it feels like solving a puzzle.
Honorable Mention - Moths
It took a lot to narrow down what felt like the scariest enemies in Resident Evil. That naturally meant a lot of monsters from this horror franchise didn’t make the cut, so it only felt right that there should be one honorable mention. I present to you the Moths from Resident Evil: Code Veronica.
These things respawn and can poison you by implanting larvae or emitting poison dust. The worst instance is an infamous hallway where a bunch are gathered. Wasting ammo feels like a sin in older Resident Evil games and backtracking is at its worst in this particular entry.
Get poisoned, and your only hope is that you have some blue herbs to heal yourself before inevitably coming across more of these winged menaces. If there was ever a time when pure frustration could lead to fear, either from the experience itself or out of what you might do while filled with rage, it’s because of these Moths.
1. The Baby
Of course, The Baby tops the list. It’s part of a hallucination and is very inspired by horror games where combat isn’t an option and you have to run. Some would argue it loses the spectacle once you recognize where the scripted parts of the encounter are.
At the end of the day though, this was terrifying. Nothing comes close to how uncomfortable this thing makes you feel. The stark contrast of being chased by the evil spirit of a child or a possessed doll is peanuts compared to what is essentially a humongous disfigured fetus.
Especially when said fetus is crawling through hallways to chase you, leaving the warped sounds of a child’s laughter echoing through the house. The only thing worse than running from the Baby is getting caught and having to watch it swallow you whole through its disgustingly stretched mouth. No thank you.
I won’t claim this as a definite list. There are plenty of repulsive creatures and enemies with sad backstories that could make a bigger impression on some. What we can all agree on is that the series has some incredible monsters to fight, and I’m excited to see if the decent-length Resident Evil Requiem changes this list for anybody.
