Editorials
The 15 Scariest Enemies From the ‘Resident Evil’ Series
In a series full of terrifying creatures, we highlight some of the especially frightening ones that you wouldn’t want to run into in a dark alley
The Resident Evil series has made a name for itself off of sending its hapless gamers into terror comas while largely setting the standard for the survival horror genre of gaming. With the series steadily growing in size, checking in on some of the scariest foes that have been created so far seemed like an appropriate task. And listen, we all know that Lickers are terrifying as hell. We’ve all been startled or disgusting by the likes of Nemesis or Resident Evil 4’s Bitores Mendez. And there’s a pretty understandable communal groan heard whenever Giant Spiders/Moths/Alligators/Sharks/Snakes are stumbled upon in any of these titles. Nobody needs to hear more about those guys, so let’s dig into some of the really scary abominations that this series has given us.
Regenerators/Iron Maiden
Appearances: Resident Evil 4
Let’s kick this thing off right! Arguably Regenerators and their more ferocious counterparts are the scariest part of Resident Evil 4, period. Their scream-worthy entrance is surely cemented in all of our brains at this point. Stemming from the Illuminados’ experimentation with the Plaga virus for bioweaponry purposes, these creatures pretty much seem invincible the first time you encounter them. The key to taking these guys out lies in infrared technology, allowing you to identify where their leech-like Plaga viruses are, letting you take them out accordingly. Otherwise, these beasts are just going to keep re-growing limbs and coming at you at an alarming rate. Iron Maidens appropriately amp up the ick factor by having long nails burst out of the host’s skin, because we all need that many more nightmares in our lives.
Albinoid
Appearances: Resident Evil Code: Veronica
One of the scariest things about the albinoid from the criminally underrated Code: Veronica title in the series is that you get to see it at several different developmental stages in its life. Seeing this monster evolve and implicitly understanding it better makes it all the more disturbing. Apparently the creature came to be by Umbrella experimenting with the T-Virus in salamanders, and it’s not surprising when you see their sleek, aquatic bound physique. They look like Clive Barker tried to “improve” a tadpole. It’s too bad that these guys didn’t turn up in more titles because the adult form (which has the ability to electrify water, no less) is really scary stuff.
T-00 (”Mr.X”)
Appearances: Resident Evil 2, Resident Evil: Darkside Chronicles
So our favorite trenchcoat-sporting Tyrant may not look like the most frightening enemy that Umbrella’s ever cooked up, but what makes T-00 a true force to be reckoned with is the element of surprise that accompanies him. Resident Evil 2 is full of classic moments, but few are more memorable than slowly combing your way through a room, when all of a sudden someone smashes through the wall. T-00 sure knows how to make an entrance, and that combined with his seemingly invulnerable appearance make him a worthy addition here. He’s all about the suspense and tension rather than grossing you out.
Scarmiglione
Appearances: Resident Evil: Revelations
But hey, speaking of grossing you out, there are few things as frightening and disgusting as some sort of shark-man hybrid that’s clawing away at you in a tight hallway. Unsurprisingly the creature’s genesis comes from testing done on sharks, but the fact that this creature can split its body into separate halves, makes it all the more frightening. Resident Evil: Revelations may have flown under a lot of people’s radars, and granted, it’s far from a perfect title. One thing that Revelations absolutely nails though is its monster designs, with the T-Abyss Virus being a welcome addition to the mutation family. That and setting a survival horror at sea, on an ocean liner, is all sorts of awesome. Plus, the word scare is basically the first part of the creature’s name. You can’t argue with that.
Chainsaw Man (Dr. Salvador)/Executioners
Appearances: Resident Evil 4/Resident Evil 5
So Dr. Salvador and the executioner enemies that are much in the same vein as him might not appear to be that frightening, but it’s definitely a case of less being more here. Cryptic touches like the cloth over the enemies’ heads—making it unable to see their faces—causes your imagination to run wild on these tortured souls. The details that you can see, like the many nails that are jutting out of their exposed flesh, only raise more disturbing questions. These lumbering enemies are always intimidating, but Dr. Salvador manages to be particularly effective due to the iconic noise of his chainsaw. It’s incredible how frightening it can be to be going on your way and suddenly hear his weapon revving up, not knowing where it’s coming from, until it’s too late. It’s a testament to how far sound design can go in these games, too.
Ouroboros (First Form)
Appearances: Resident Evil 5
Resident Evil 5 rightfully receives a lot of flak and can be attributed to many of the larger missteps that the franchise has taken after the fact, but of all the mistakes made, you can’t argue with the fact that leeches are gross as fuck. The entry knew how to deliver some sufficiently creepy foes, even if the scares might have been largely absent in the rest of the game. The title brought on the next chapter of the series, introducing the Ouroburos Virus to the series, with RE5 pitting you against the contaminate at several stages in its evolution. Surprisingly though, it’s Ouroburos’ first form that might creep you out the most. It’s essentially just a writhing mass of leeches, making it unpredictable and sufficiently eerie. Through most of this battle you’re just left wondering what the hell you’re up against, and hoping that none of that ick gets on you and ruins your cool tough guy exterior.
Ooze
Appearances: Resident Evil: Revelations
More confirmation that the T-Abyss Virus is just truly the worst, Ooze is one of the most disgusting creatures to come out of the entire franchise. Ooze, which is named after its experiment subjects resembling bloated corpses, operates almost as a liquid. The monsters move between cracks and gaps, appearing almost anywhere, making them even more unsettling. If that weren’t enough, they attack with a tentacle-like tongue, attempting to drain your blood (don’t spend a lot of time focusing on their faces, because ew). These abominations are all about maintaining their bodily fluids, and so unlike zombies, they won’t eat you but they will drain you dry. The fact that several variations on Ooze exist (including one that’s pretty much just globs of fat with arms and legs) mean that this enemy can even surprise you with all the different ways it can disgust you.
Ogroman
Appearances: Resident Evil 6
So this monster’s name might translate to “enormous” and “gigantic” in Serbian, but even if that wasn’t the case this guy’s size would be heavily apparent. You face off against this 30-foot foe fairly early in Resident Evil 6, but that doesn’t reduce how unsettling the C-Virus has made this creature. While Ogroman might feel like it’s heavily pulling from the popularity of El Gigante from Resident Evil 4, this tries to intentionally outdo all of that, giving the creature a more disturbing facelift as the icing on the cake. Ogroman’s purpose was to take out entire sides of the enemy forces, and it takes considerable efforts like air strikes to even take the guy down. The sheer rampage factor of this beast, combined with his endurance, make him a particularly intimidating battle.
Lurkers
Appearances: Resident Evil 0
Throughout the many Resident Evil games we’ve gotten to see a number of different takes on the infamous Hunter that was introduced in the original game. It makes sense that the series would mess around with this classic monster, spicing it up in several ways, but its deviations that strayed furthest from the mark are some of the most effective. A lot of people are experiencing Resident Evil 0 for the first time right now due to its recent HD re-release, but whether you first played it all those years ago or are doing so for the first time right now, one thing you won’t forget are the game’s infernal lurkers. Continuing to bank off of RE0’s big leech theme, picture some sort of leech/frog/hunter hybrid that takes the worst aspects from each. These things more or less seem like giant frogs, and their advanced tongues are able to swallow you whole in a particularly brutal insta-kill. That alone puts these unusual monsters on your radar and you certainly won’t want to get too close to them at any point.
Scagdead
Appearances: Resident Evil: Revelations, Resident Evil: Revelations 2
There’s a lot of the bestiary of Revelations getting featured here, but when the game is turning out monsters like Scagdead, how can you argue with it? The Scagdead’s creation occurs when the T-Abyss Virus experiences a second mutation within its host, a rarity that only occurs about one in a thousand subjects. This thing is basically just Cronenberg run amok, with the further mutation terribly disproportioning the human body in a way that would make John Merrick cringe. Limbs shift, lumps grow, and gaping fanged openings and “buzz saw-like” protrusions adorn this husk of a body. The truly horrible thing here is that the human part of the Scagdead still seems to have consciousness, pleading with you to not hurt it, with most of the monsters that you fight having already lost their humanity. Oh yeah, and they vomit up bear traps. Enjoy.
Duvalia
Appearances: Resident Evil 5
There’s a lot of disturbing grossness oozing out of Resident Evil 5, but Duvalia should be a monster that plagues your mind whenever you close your eyes. Imagine what would happen if an advanced stage of the Plaga virus happened to crossbreed with the Duvalia flower from Africa. The result is a bulb-heavy, protected creature that gives the Ivys from the first Resident Evil a real run for their money. Duvalia certainly ascends beyond its plant-like trappings, resembling a super scary humanoid in its own right, too. Just seeing how much the world is being perverted, and what is prey to Tricell/Umbrella’s wave of destruction is a scary concept to grasp in its own right.
Titan and Stalker
Appearances: Resident Evil Outbreak: File #2
Uh, so where were these guys in Resident Evil 5? You know, the Resident Evil game that’s actually set in Africa and could have fostered a lot of good will by having you race against a herd of zombie wildebeests, or require you to take down a towering zombie elephant as a boss (yes, I’m aware of the organization, PETA, why do you ask?). Important precedent was set here, and while Outbreak might have merely scratched the surface of these terrifying ideas, RE5 could have really gotten to run with them. That being said, your first encounter with a zombie lion and zombie elephant in Outbreak are pivotal moments in the game. This sort of out of the box zombie thinking is reason alone to check out this lesser embraced, online Resident Evil title. Not just because you can’t believe the ridiculous threat that you’re up against, but that a regular lion or elephant would be a match in their own right. It’s like giving a bear some chainsaws, and it’s so fantastic.
U-3
Appearances: Resident Evil 4
This thing is really a mish mash of fear, but I suppose that’s what happens when you splice human DNA with a reptile’s and an insect’s, and then add a pinch of Plaga for flavor. Very much acting as an experimental bodyguard, this creature is just unleashed id that won’t stop until you’re taken down. U-3 has a lot of moving parts and ways to disembowel you, and just trying to keep track of the skittering creature is enough to give you panic attacks. One more of the many hybrid failures that would come out of Resident Evil 4, U-3 is just a particularly complicated mess that won’t fail to get under your skin.
Globster
Appearances: Resident Evil Revelations
Maybe the scariest and grossest enemy to come out of Resident Evil: Revelations, simply due to its simplicity, this creature is pretty much The Blob (plus, a razor mouth). Blowing limbs off an enemy provides some sort of catharsis and progress, but a huge gelatinous blub is a whole other can of worms. Trying to take this thing down can feel like a lost cause, but getting absorbed by the creature, and watching the beast move on its way with its swallowed humans still present in its core is deeply unsettling. Globster is a reminder that as ornate as these villains may get at times, sometimes a classic throwback to ‘50s horror is all that you need.
Nyx
Appearances: Resident Evil Outbreak: File #2
One of the most upsetting monsters from the series closes out the list here, and even though it’s named after the Greek goddess of the night, Nyx is far from being picturesque. Adopting much of the usual look of the amorphous Tyrant types that the games have gotten into (with a particular resemblance to the G-Virus’ bulbousness), Nyx doubles down on that infinitely. This already dangerous beast ends up absorbing an entire UBCS team, as well as a Tyrant, so it just has constant danger dripping off of it. I mean, its arm is basically a dozen corpses cobbled together as a swinging device. This monster is pure excess, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Honorable Mentions: Cephalo (Headshot Ganados), Crimson Heads, Leech Queen, Chimeras, Reapers, Nosferatu (if only for the disturbing creation backstory, involving Alexia and Alfred)
We’ve done a good job here to highlight a lot of Resident Evil’s monstrosities, but with practically a dozen games under its belt, there’s still plenty more out there. Which enemies frightened you the most? Which creatures are still resonating in your psyche and rendering you a blubbering mess? Sound off in the comments below, lest Nyx absorb you, or you get swallowed whole by a Lurker or Globster.
College kids, strippers and vampires—those were Donald P. Borchers’ only requirements when he approached Richard Wenk about writing and directing a movie for New World Pictures. As requested, Wenk cooked up Vamp (1986), a tailor-made blend of the decade’s teen movie craze as well as its horror boom.
Grim and earnest stories were still very much a part of the ’80s horror landscape, yet Vamp is something of a comedy. One difference between it and, say, Saturday the 14th, though, is the former avoids using schtick. Wenk’s movie proves that horror comedies also don’t have to subtract thrills from their recipes. Of course, it takes a minute before reaching that point; college antics and culture shocks preface this one macabre misadventure.
Vamp‘s initial setup is apt for a typical college-set, sex-driven comedy; to bribe their way into a fraternity house, two pledges (Chris Makepeace, Robert Rusler) go looking for some adult entertainment. Without wasting time on any further exposition, the characters embark on an all-in-one-night trip that quickly detours into terror.
To procure their elusive MacGuffin—a stripper willing to gyrate for some frat boys—Keith (Makepeace) and AJ (Rusler), plus a third wheel named Duncan (Gedee Watanabe), trade the safety of their remote college campus for the seediness of some unnamed city. The setting is recognizably L.A. by day, but as soon as night falls, downtown, along with the characters, slips into a kind of surreal universe. Director of photography Elliot Davis gave this early entry on his prolific résumé an unusual yet distinctive look; that Mario Bava-esque, magenta-green lighting is omnipresent, so much so that it’s almost its own character.
Chris Makepeace and Robert Rusler in Vamp
The faint comparisons to Martin Scorsese’s After Hours are merited, although not just because of Vamp’s distinguishing nighttime aesthetic. Save for the primary characters, the supporting roles in Wenk’s movie are also quite colorful and transactional in their behavior. The difference here, though, is the additional urge to ruin Keith and his friends at every turn. Some of that harm is humorous and tolerable enough, whereas the moment Vamp dishes out its first fatality, it’s abundantly clear how this movie qualifies as horror.
Vamp falls into that category of horror movie that reveals its genre with a scream rather than a series of whispers. The opening scene can function as a hint of what lies ahead—things are not at all what they appear to be—but otherwise, Wenk is more than happy to hold off on the horror. When that time does come, though, it catches the viewer off guard. In addition to the pure shock value is that sudden decision to upend the movie’s foremost feature. Or so it would seem.
If afraid of major spoilage, those new to Vamp would be wise to stop reading here. There’s just no skirting around the fact that the central fellowship in this buddy movie hits a serious snag when AJ is killed. That development causes the story to become more of a “long, bad night” journey for Keith and his romantic interest. So while Wenk scores points for subverting expectations, there is also a touch of sadness in his decision. Because if Vamp does anything well, it’s making the characters likable.
Something that comes easily to Vamp—and other teen horror movies from this same era—is its ability to invent young characters worth caring about, or at the very least, are interesting and not so immediately off-putting. More impressive is how Wenk did all this without actually fleshing out those characters. Still and all, Keith and his kind are a grade above cookie-cutter, and in some cases, aren’t completely devoid of growth.
Grace Jones in Vamp
Vamp appeals with an assorted cast of characters. No two are the same, nor are they operating on the same wavelength. The cinematically extroverted AJ, whose actor conveyed charm and vulnerability in near equal amounts, comes alive when he’s at his most undead. Makepeace then makes the chronically cautious Keith a sympathetic fellow, even as he’s more and more affected by the night’s bizarre events. Meanwhile, Duncan is indeed the designated loser of the whole bunch, but Watanabe still manages to humanize him. As a bonus, the role didn’t require him to pull a Long Duk Dong.
As for Dedee Pfeiffer, she is plain adorable as the mysterious After Dark server nicknamed “Amaretto”. She spends all night fixing her dress strap while at the same time trying to get Keith to remember how he knows her. As their offbeat romance grows, it becomes another highlight of this movie. Whether or not Pfeiffer’s character is really a vampire also creates some welcome tension in the story.
Like a lot of its contemporaries, Vamp went on to become a bit of a cult classic. That current status is determined by several factors, but without a doubt, the casting of Grace Jones is the most considerable. The image of her writhing on that unique-looking chair, a Keith Haring original, springs to mind whenever this movie is brought up.
Chris Makepeace, Billy Drago and Paunita Nichols in Vamp
Prior to that first display of unequivocal horror, local vampire queen Katrina (Jones) took to the stage and delivered a strip show like no other. One would expect nothing less from that renowned model and performance artist. By now reports of Jones’ tardiness on set are no secret, yet it’s also hard to deny her commitment to the part of Katrina. It was, in fact, Jones who took charge of her character’s appearance—on top of Haring painting her body and that now-iconic chair, she had Andy Warhol handle her costuming. And not too many actors could seize a room’s attention without saying a single line of dialogue.
In 2022, Vamp received a retrospective novelization from Encyclopocalypse. This literary union of preexisting source material—Wenk’s original screenplay—and new ideas from author Christian Francis amounts to a more comprehensive visit to the After Dark Club. The basic story there is no different than what’s shown on screen; however, Francis gets creative with the characters’ origins and designs, and he enhances a number of key scenes.
The novelization expands on the urban and social decay of the main setting, and supplies a background for the After Dark Club. Sandy Baron’s character, Katrina’s emcee and familiar, is given ample motivation for sticking around; up until the fiery end, he is loyal to his friend and former business partner “Squeak”, who looks like he was “fed through a combine harvester, and left as nothing more than a heap of mangled remains”. Then there is Billy Drago’s character Snow, the leader of a street gang called The Dragons. His reason for menacing Keith and AJ is more altruistic than in the movie; he and his peers act tough to scare off any potential food for the vampires.
Lisa Lyon in Vamp
If not for all the backstories, Francis’ Vamp would be a hell of a lot shorter. Instead, this tie-in read dives into how AJ met Keith—the orphaned Anthony Joseph hailed from a broken home back in Brooklyn—and how their friendship flourished over the years. Keith’s archership is no longer just an assumed part of his entire being; it’s a confidence-building extracurricular for a boy who got picked on before coming into the protection of the new kid in town. These supplemental, in-depth looks at the protagonists, plus their close connection, are maybe unnecessary. The movie already did a fair and concise job of addressing their platonic intimacy without the need for flashbacks and insights, specifically in that scene where AJ lays it all out as he sacrifices himself.
Where the novelization gets off course is its approach to the minor characters. Intermittently backstorying the likes of Katrina’s indentured servants, Seko (Leila Hee Olsen) and Vlad (Brad Logan), ends up disturbing the flow of the writing. Was it absolutely essential that readers know Vlad was the Grand Duke of the House of Romanov, or how Snow’s accomplice Maven (Paunita Nichols) became so dentally challenged? No, not really. However, one’s mileage with these random biographies may vary.
The novelization is a more substantial experience, but for a movie like Vamp, less is more. And as plentiful as they are, it never simply coasts on its campy charms, either. The character work sits comfortably in that realm between cursory and meticulous, the script is sharper than first realized, and Greg Cannom’s vampire makeup is straightforward yet effective. Most of all, the movie didn’t squander its out-of-the-box concept. Richard Wenk made his vision of a “comic nightmare in which just about anything that can go wrong does” come true, and it is very enjoyable.
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