Song Title: Sorrow

Composers: Misao Senbongi, Shusaku Uchiyama

Game: Resident Evil 4 (GCN, 2005)

Length: 3:36

Whether you consider Resident Evil 4 the game that killed classic RE, or you think that it was the shot in the arm the series needed, there’s no question that it was an excellent game. Drenched in hostile atmosphere, packed to the brim with tense set-pieces and memorable moments, this over-the-shoulder third-person shooter became an instant classic and countless titles have borrowed from its playbook since.

Though there’s plenty to be upset and frightened by in Resident Evil 4, it’s certainly more fast paced and action oriented than its tank-controlled predecessors (you can roundhouse kick enemies now). In place of the dread that permeated the early Resident Evil games, are constant heart palpitations. The infected villagers and zealots that are after you attack in droves, attempting to kill you with anything they can get their hands on. Not even decapitating these enemies bring relief; the parasites using these humans as hosts will emerge from their head, manifesting in various deadly, repulsive ways. Making it to the end of Resident Evil 4 is an exercise in managing your blood pressure.

When you finally do reach the end of the game after sending a rocket hurtling at the final grotesque antagonist in grand Resident Evil tradition, the sense of accomplishment is extraordinary. Despite knowledge that the threat of bio-terrorism is far from over, riding off into the sunset on a jetski with the president’s daughter in tow after escaping incredible danger feels pretty peppy and triumphant. Then you see the end credits…

For 3 minutes and 36 seconds, the mood of classic Resident Evil returns. The real horror of the original games, other than the fear of death by the strange hostile creatures, was the personal tragedy that all affected by the T-virus endured. It was the family members lost, lives broken, the destructive paranoia during an outbreak, and the terror of watching your own body slowly rot as you lose your sanity. The records and files found in the early games were heartbreaking tales of loss and regret. The macabre picture book presentation of the pueblo’s peaceful times followed by their descent into madness after the religious leader who promised them salvation and purpose infected them with the Las Plagas parasites is disturbing and tragic. It would be affecting even if presented in silence. Instead, it’s accompanied by a poignant track appropriately titled Sorrow.

Until 1:14, the song is painfully nostalgic. Sorrow starts inviting and warm, with just a twinge of melancholy. As the tune continues, pictures are shown of the villagers we’ve spent the game shooting to death in self defense cheerfully doing chores together, playing music for each other, and taking care of their children. After a huge tonal shift at 1:14, Sorrow sounds more like most of the background music as players explored the dark, bloody halls in the Spencer Mansion during Resident Evil. Dark and foreboding, this part of Sorrow is heard during scenes of the villagers being approached by the cult of the Los Illuminados, being injected with the parasites, and then losing their minds and having their bodies degrade. The most haunting image is of a female villager, clearly illustrated resemble the most prominent female enemy in the game, standing and staring aimlessly in her home, her child slumped over in a chair, presumably killed. The last image shown is of a villager’s head falling from his shoulders with a bladed, fleshy parasite emerging, much to the horror of his fellow citizens.

At 2:04, Sorrow becomes a dirge. With the warmth removed from the first part of the composition, and the dread from the second now gone, all that remains of Sorrow is the eponymous emotion of the song. The piece creates a palpable sense of sadness along with finality, providing closure for a few different cases. Sorrow becomes a dirge for those villagers who lost their lives long before the players were tasked with destroying their bodies, a dirge for the harrowing but excellent experience of Resident Evil 4, and in my opinion, a dirge for Resident Evil as a survival horror series helmed by Shinji Mikami. This beautiful piece of music marks the end of an era of one of the most legendary franchises in video games.