I played 1-4 back in the day, but my memory of the details is pretty fuzzy. Something something Umbrella releases a new virus like iPhones every few years, something something, somehow Wesker returned.
Anyway, I hear 7 is kind of a soft reboot? Is that a good one to get back into the series with, and not have to know 12 games of plot?
And if 7 is good, does 8/Village follow directly from that without needing too much prior game knowledge?


A gaming community free from the hype and oversaturation of current releases, catering to gamers who wait at least 12 months after release to play a game. Whether it’s price, waiting for bugs/issues to be patched, DLC to be released, don’t meet the system requirements, or just haven’t had the time to keep up with the latest releases.
Umbrella evil. There, that’s pretty much your catch-up on every game’s story.
I guess it gets confusing with recent remakes of 2, 3, 4; they’re meant as clear entry points, and the latest version of RE1 is still a bit old (though it too is a “remake” of an ancient PS1 edition)
7 is extremely different from the others - it was even thought to be a new/different IP when it was revealed. Village is a direct sequel to that, but could also be enjoyed alone; it’s a bit more action and less creepy.