Hey guys!. In this post, I’ll be discussing a list of Top 10 Best Resident Evil Villains. In the 25 years since the first game in the franchise hit our consoles, the Resident Evil series has furnished us with more nutters, wrong ‘uns, and monsties than we could shake an umbrella at. From evil corporations to brutish grunts, our plucky heroes have been forced to put up with a lot over the years, but as dastardly and menacing as the franchise’s antagonists are, we do have to admire them to a certain extent. For this list, we’ll be wading through Resident Evil’s back catalogue of nasties to spotlight those that inspire as much awe as they do terror. Fair warning, we will be including plot points from the games, including the most recent title, Resident Evil Village, so a spoiler warning is very much in effect. So let’s get started.
10. Donna Beneviento - Resident Evil Village
There’s nothing that gets us feeling conflicted quite as much as a villain with a tragic backstory, and as much satisfaction as we got from embedding a pair of scissors into the face of Resident Evil Village’s second lord, we still can’t help but feel a bit sad about it. Seemingly driven mad by the deaths of several close family members, Donna resides alone in House Benevento, a cliffside mansion separate from the rest of the village, with only her doll collection to keep her company. Agoraphobic and childlike, she speaks almost exclusively through Angie, a doll made for her by her late father. Though she may be physically weaker than her brothers and sister, Lords Heisenberg, Moreau, and Dimitrescu, Beneviento is still able to temporarily halt Ethan Winters in the hunt for his daughter by manipulating his psyche, using the pollen of Mold-infected flowers to induce disturbing visions of his wife and that horrific foetus-monster thing. On the surface, Donna may appear to be the least intimidating villain in the series’ eighth main title, but upon reflection we’d sooner face a lifetime of acid rain vomit or Magneto’s crap cousin than just one encounter with this.
9. Alexia Ashford - Resident Evil Code: Veronica
It takes a special kind of evil for a villain to undertake horrific experiments on their own dad, but then again, knowing the circumstances surrounding Alexia Ashford and her brother, Alfred’s birth, we can’t say that he didn’t have it coming. Created with the intent of restoring the Ashford family’s reputation, genetically-modified, hyper-intelligent clone, Alexia, began undertaking dastardly deeds at a young age, using her extensive knowledge of virology to transform her father into the terrifying Nosferatu. From there, she goes on to expose herself to the T-Veronica virus with the lofty ambition of taking over the world, ultimately mutating into a giant dragonfly-like monster, capable of absorbing bullets and spewing fire. For a good portion of Resident Evil Code: Veronica, Alexia gets the better of our protagonists, seemingly outsmarting them at every turn. Despite all of his boulder-punching prowess, even Chris Redfield is able only to weaken Alexia, which just causes her to mutate further, making her more powerful than ever before. While he does eventually get the drop on her, it takes nothing short of experimental weapon, the Linear Launcher, to do the job, leaving us to thank our lucky stars that Chris was around to save the day.
8. Eveline - Resident Evil 7, Resident Evil Village
We don’t know what it is about small children that’s just so disquieting in a horror setting, and Resident Evil 7’s primary antagonist, Eveline, is no exception. Initially developed as a bioweapon intended to infiltrate enemy lines and telepathically control those with whom she comes into contact, Eveline’s unpredictability and uncontrollable behaviour make her a fearsome adversary. She constantly tells those around her that all she wants is a family, which, if true, would make her a somewhat sympathetic character. Sadly, it’s clear from the events of the game that her true motivation lies in controlling those around her, turning on anyone that doesn’t do as she says and infecting them with Mold. Not only does she destroy a cargo ship, killing almost everyone on board, and take control of the minds of the Baker family, causing them to commit horrific acts of violence against their will, ultimately leading to the demise of Jack and Marguerite, but she also turns up at the end of Village to smugly pull a Sixth Sense on us and laugh in our faces.
7. Carla Radames - Resident Evil 6
Though it isn’t the worst Resident Evil game ever made, Resident Evil 6 is certainly considered by most to be the least successful of the main eight titles. But although the overall gameplay and narrative are somewhat generic, the same criticism can’t be levelled at its villain, Carla Radames. Tricked into volunteering for a heinous experiment, Radames swears revenge against Derek C. Simmons after discovering that he had taken advantage of her feelings for him to mould her into the image of Ada Wong, who had previously spurned him. In fairness to Carla, I’d be pretty annoyed as well, that’s creepy as all heck. Admittedly, she could probably do with attending some sort of anger management class, because rather than slurping down a couple of bottles of rose and swearing that all men are trash like most people would, she instead founds the organisation, Neo-Umbrella, and vows global destruction. Despite meeting her final demise at the hands of the real Ada Wong, Carla proves to be one hell of an adversary throughout Resident Evil 6, managing to elevate the game from utterly forgettable. Look, we’re never going to call it good, Carla just makes the whole experience slightly less bad.
6. Osmund Saddler - Resident Evil 4
When it comes to ambition in life, you might as well go big or go home, and no one knows this quite as well as Resident Evil 4’s big bad, Osmund Saddler. Not content with leading Los Illuminados, a strange religious cult comprising an entire Spanish farming village, what Osmund actually seeks is global domination, a feat which he plans to achieve through, you guessed it, bioweaponry. Having infected the residents of the unnamed village with a mind-controlling parasite known as Las Plagas, during the events of Resident Evil 4 Saddler kidnaps the U.S. President’s daughter, Ashley, and plans to use her to take over the world. His actual plan for how he’s going to achieve this is never really revealed beyond infecting the President, but we can assume he intends to use his newfound influence over one of the world’s great powers. Sadly for him, but fortunately for everyone that doesn’t fancy being controlled by some cult-leading nutcase, Leon S. Kennedy and Ada Wong are once again on hand to save the day, rescuing Ashley and incinerating all of the blood-thirsty villagers in a big explosion.
5. AlcinaDimitrescu - Resident Evil Village
I think I speak for all of us when I say that everyone loves Lady D. As iconic as she is tall, this blood-sucking aristocrat and her chimeric daughterscan be found hunting Ethan Winters around Castle Dimitrescu, toying with the poor chap with the intent of feasting on his flesh, or enjoying a nice glass of bodily fluid-infused wine. Born sometime in the early 20th century, AlcinaDimitrescu was transformed into the towering monstrosity we meet in Village after Mother Miranda implanted her with the Cadou parasite. Although she proved an unfit vessel for the resurrection of Miranda’s daughter, Eva, she exhibited extraordinary regenerative and transformative powers, including the ability to rapidly grow her nails into razor-sharp claws, and turn into a vicious, dragon-like being. Despite not being the quickest of enemies, Lady D’s sheer size alone makes her an intimidating foe, so even though you can probably outrun her, in the close-quarters of CastleDimitrescu’s corridors, she most certainly has the upper-hand. Add to this the fact that her stature is coupled with immense strength that will piledrive human adversaries through masonry with barely a thought, and you’ve got one formidable yet confusingly sexy villain.
4. T-00 aka Mr. X - Resident Evil 2, Resident Evil 2 Remake, The Darkside Chronicles, Operation Racoon City
As much as we are fans of big hunky boys (heck, we’ve already made several videos on the subject), we’re going to have to make an exception when it comes to Resident Evil’s Mr. X, because although we love a silent, brooding, muscular man in tight leather, we have to draw the line at getting our skulls crushed. Sent into Raccoon City to kill any survivors during the events of Resident Evil 2, Mr. X is first seen lurking around the Police Department in pursuit of Leon S. Kennedy and Claire Redfield. Far quicker than you’d expect for a bloke his size, not only is he powerful enough to viciously murder our protagonists with just one hand, but he’s also completely immune to conventional weapons. Additionally, he’s been blessed with highly attuned tracking capabilities, meaning that he’s able to locate his prey at a distance from the sounds of gunshots or hurried footsteps. Although he is eventually bested with a well-placed blast from a rocket launcher, Mr. X is still the most terrifying aspect of a game that’s got more spooky boys than actual human beings, and even when he isn’t around, you’re still left cacking your pants at the thought that he could show up at any moment.
3. Albert Wesker - Resident Evil, Resident Evil CODE: Veronica, Resident Evil 5
Albert Wesker was indeed there from the beginning, and if it hadn’t been for his nefarious intentions then we’d never have been introduced to the likes of Chris Redfield or Jill Valentine, and frankly, that’s not the sort of world I want to live in. Having appeared as an antagonist in more Resident Evil games than most people have had hot dinners, it’s no surprise that Wesker has worked up quite the malevolent resume. From humble beginnings as a double agent in the Spencer Mansion, he went on to fake his own death, gain superhuman powers thanks to an experimental variant of the Progenitor virus, and conspire both with and against the Umbrella Corporation. Ultimately, Albert had intended to use his powers along with all of his dodgy dealings to bring about the extinction of humanity, with each outing planning to use whichever bioweapon was flavour of the month to do so. Unfortunately for him, his demise was brought about somewhat unceremoniously by those he really should have dispatched in the first game, with Chris Redfield and chums on hand to run him a nice hot, if slightly lava-y, bath.
2. The Baker Family - Resident Evil 7
I’ll give the Resident Evil series one thing; it certainly does have the knack for making us feel sorry for its villains. Whilst trying to track down his wife, Mia, unfortunate amputee Ethan Winters stumbles upon the Baker residence, home to husband and wife, Jack and Marguerite, and their children, Lucas and Zoe. Following the shipwreck, the two elder Bakers fell victim to Eveline and her mind-controlling Mold, and deteriorated from quiet but peaceful people into offal-munching psychopaths; capturing, torturing, and murdering innocent passersby to satisfy the bratty bioweapon’s thirst for a family. Though Marguerite and the uninfected-but-equally-unhinged Lucas are each terrifying in their own right, with the former being able to transform herself into a spider-like monstrosity and the latter clearly a huge fan of the Jigsaw killer, the gold star for wee-inducing dread has to go to family patriarch, Jack. Even in human form, he’s wickedly quick, devilishly strong, and can absorb bullets like a sponge does water. Transformed by the Mold, however, he’s utterly grotesque, and by far the game’s most difficult boss to beat, bested only upon administration of the infection’s cure. In summary, the Bakers are one scary bunch, and suffice it to say that this is one family reunion we wouldn’t feel too bad about missing.
1. Nemesis - Resident Evil 3, Resident Evil 3 Remake, Resident Evil Survivor 2 Code: Veronica, Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles
You know what’s the last thing you need in the face of a zombie outbreak and impending nuclear destruction? Some big trench coat-wearing lad stomping about and generally getting in your way. Jill Valentine’s already having a pretty rough day of it when news reports show that the entirety of Raccoon City is overrun by flesh-chomping mutants that are all infected with the T-virus, and it’s only made worse by the fact that she’s pursued at all turns by experimental bioweapon, Nemesis. Throughout the events of Resident Evil’s third main instalment, Nemesis manages to endure a rocket launcher attack, a suicide bombing, and an acid bath, only finally biting the big one when Valentine is able to unleash the power of an experimental railgun upon the mighty beast. What makes Nemesis so utterly terrifying, and by extension such a great villain, is the omnipresent threat that he poses throughout Resident Evil 3 and its remake, with players never quite sure when or in what form he will appear. Although the logical part of our brain tells us that there must be a way to overcome the monstrosity, seeing him defeat Jill time and time again certainly has us doubting if he can be beaten, and if nothing else, has us absolutely cacking ourselves.
That is it from today’s post on Top 10 Best Resident Evil Villains. If you do not agree with the points in the post and have some of your own opinions, share them with us in the comments section down below.
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