Amazing fan concept shows off what RE9 would look like with a classic fixed camera—and I think it should make a comeback

The fixed camera perspectives of old have largely been lost in modern times. They were created as smart optimization tools that helped keep only what is important in focus while not rendering anything else but also grew into a recognizable aspect of classic horror games that oftentimes upped the tension and kept the player engaged and centered. Most of the older Resident Evil games, particularly the first three main titles and then some others, used fixed camera angles. Whenever you crossed preset "thresholds," the camera angle would switch. Say you were going down a hallway and then made a left to enter another hallway, the camera would switch as you made that turn, focusing just on that specific hallway while your character maintains freedom of movement through the environment. It's a nice trick, an old one, that immediately invokes a "classic" vibe and wasn't just a horror game gimmick either. With Resident Evil Requiem now out and about, first- and third-person perspectives are the only ways to play. Most of the industry uses these two camera styles, and odds are that fixed camera angles won't ever make a mainstream comeback now that we have the machines to drive detailed environments. But a player wanted to see how RE9 would have turned out if it still used fixed cameras, and I honestly think the results are amazing. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYHcKt3z6Y0 Specifically, I think Grace's segments would have been even more terrifying if we didn't know, or had no way of learning, what was behind each corner. If you play the game in first-person, then some of that fixed camera tension is maintained, since peeking around corners or learning if there are enemies around is rather challenging when you have to actually come around a corner to check it out. In third person, though, you can use the camera itself to get a fairly large view of the environment, and by editing FOV settings, the first-person camera loses a lot of its tension as well. With these theoretical fixed cameras, your view would be largely limited, and you would actively have to facetank enemies or locations to switch the camera angle and learn if that place is safe to explore. What's more, while exploring that hallway, you'd lose sight of the place you came from and would have to again force yourself into switching the angle to get some information. All of this is rather easy to do with modern perspectives, for the reasons I outlined above. The fixed angles above also make every frame turn into a literal painting. Since they are focusing very specific parts of the level, they also make everything look much better. Every angle serves as a still picture of sorts, allowing different elements to respect mathematical ratios, thus "popping" out much more and becoming more pleasing to the eye. What's very interesting to me is how well the levels and the props within them work with these fixed angles, almost as if Capcom had them in mind when making the game. It goes to show how something that goes largely unnoticed can become fundamental to your game's design just by changing the perspective. This sort of game design is on its way out, however. Most games use a first- or third-person view, and the last title I played that did have a fixed camera was Signalis. That game is amazing in every sense of the word, and I wrote as much some time ago, and I think it would have significantly lost in terms of vibe and atmosphere if it used standard perspectives instead of its preset angles. The horror genre is yearning for more innovation and change, but it might also do well to go back to its roots and see what made those old games great in the first place. Perhaps the fixed camera angles have something to do with that, and this RE9 concept surely does make a strong argument for that. The post Amazing fan concept shows off what RE9 would look like with a classic fixed camera—and I think it should make a comeback appeared first on Destructoid.

Mar 16, 2026 - 05:26

Amazing fan concept shows off what RE9 would look like with a classic fixed camera—and I think it should make a comeback

The fixed camera perspectives of old have largely been lost in modern times. They were created as smart optimization tools that helped keep only what is important in focus while not rendering anything else but also grew into a recognizable aspect of classic horror games that oftentimes upped the tension and kept the player engaged and centered.

Most of the older Resident Evil games, particularly the first three main titles and then some others, used fixed camera angles. Whenever you crossed preset "thresholds," the camera angle would switch. Say you were going down a hallway and then made a left to enter another hallway, the camera would switch as you made that turn, focusing just on that specific hallway while your character maintains freedom of movement through the environment.

It's a nice trick, an old one, that immediately invokes a "classic" vibe and wasn't just a horror game gimmick either. With Resident Evil Requiem now out and about, first- and third-person perspectives are the only ways to play. Most of the industry uses these two camera styles, and odds are that fixed camera angles won't ever make a mainstream comeback now that we have the machines to drive detailed environments.

But a player wanted to see how RE9 would have turned out if it still used fixed cameras, and I honestly think the results are amazing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYHcKt3z6Y0 Specifically, I think Grace's segments would have been even more terrifying if we didn't know, or had no way of learning, what was behind each corner. If you play the game in first-person, then some of that fixed camera tension is maintained, since peeking around corners or learning if there are enemies around is rather challenging when you have to actually come around a corner to check it out. In third person, though, you can use the camera itself to get a fairly large view of the environment, and by editing FOV settings, the first-person camera loses a lot of its tension as well.

With these theoretical fixed cameras, your view would be largely limited, and you would actively have to facetank enemies or locations to switch the camera angle and learn if that place is safe to explore. What's more, while exploring that hallway, you'd lose sight of the place you came from and would have to again force yourself into switching the angle to get some information.

All of this is rather easy to do with modern perspectives, for the reasons I outlined above.

The fixed angles above also make every frame turn into a literal painting. Since they are focusing very specific parts of the level, they also make everything look much better. Every angle serves as a still picture of sorts, allowing different elements to respect mathematical ratios, thus "popping" out much more and becoming more pleasing to the eye.

What's very interesting to me is how well the levels and the props within them work with these fixed angles, almost as if Capcom had them in mind when making the game. It goes to show how something that goes largely unnoticed can become fundamental to your game's design just by changing the perspective.

This sort of game design is on its way out, however. Most games use a first- or third-person view, and the last title I played that did have a fixed camera was Signalis. That game is amazing in every sense of the word, and I wrote as much some time ago, and I think it would have significantly lost in terms of vibe and atmosphere if it used standard perspectives instead of its preset angles.

The horror genre is yearning for more innovation and change, but it might also do well to go back to its roots and see what made those old games great in the first place. Perhaps the fixed camera angles have something to do with that, and this RE9 concept surely does make a strong argument for that.

The post Amazing fan concept shows off what RE9 would look like with a classic fixed camera—and I think it should make a comeback appeared first on Destructoid.

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