I played on: PS4
I paid: £11.99
Available on: PS4, Xbox One, PC
Notes: Seeing as this is DLC for Resident Evil 7 that is set both after the main game and the Not a Hero DLC there will be spoilers for them here.
End of Zoe is the final DLC for Resident Evil 7 and the end of the Baker’s story. Does it do this amazing game and wonderfully psychotic family justice? Honestly, I don’t think it does. I felt that the End of Zoe was the weakest part of Resident Evil 7 and it’s a shame to leave such a great game on such a low note.
You play as Joe Baker, the brother of Jack Baker and uncle to Zoe from Resident Evil 7. We learn that in the canon Ethan decided to save Mia instead of Zoe which I suppose makes sense seeing as she is his wife. Personally, during my first playthrough, I saved Zoe as I found her to be the better character. When I heard that the final part of Resident Evil 7 would be focusing on Zoe I got excited because I really liked her in the main story and the Daughters story in the banned footage DLC. Sadly when I played the End of Zoe I discovered that she was nothing more than a McGuffin for you to chase. It’s not until the last cutscene that she is even conscious. Instead, you play as Joe, who is a boring character and when talking about a Baker I never thought I’d say that. He lives off the land but all this amounts to is an overly masculine manly man that eats bugs. Instead of using green herbs to regain small amounts of health Joe will eat any insects he finds. As for Joe’s personality, well, it’s just about punching things. Even when he learns something towards the end of this DLC that should shock and upset him he shows no emotion. He’s just so bland and lifeless. The Baker family made Resident Evil 7 with their insane yet charismatic personalities. Here we have a man with the charisma of a damp rock.
Unlike the main game or any of the other DLC, you have no guns. Most the time you will be using your bare hands to fight the mould creatures. This sucks. It turns these monsters that were a real threat throughout Resident Evil 7 into literal punching bags. If I had realised that the mould could be killed with a few punches I could have saved myself a lot of ammo in the main game. It’s not just monsters you will punch through, many doors will also need to be punched down. This reminds me of Chris punching the boulder in Resident Evil 5 and we do not need any more of that. Although the universal chests make a return I never once needed to use them seeing as I had no guns to worry about. The area you explore is also depressingly liner and features none of the amazing puzzle based progression from the main game. Simply follow the path, punch the monsters and get to the objective.
I did enjoy the ending as you return to the Baker estate and have to fight your way from the old house to the lobby of the main house. This felt like a great way to end things where they started. The final boss fight was also very challenging in all the right ways. Hard but not unfair with fast moves that when you learn their tells can be dodged. As much as I dislike the majority of this DLC the final 15 minutes are pretty great.
The End of Zoe is a sad way to leave Resident Evil 7 because it fails to understand what made the game so outstanding. Once threatening and scary monsters now feel like pushovers. The wonderful open exploration and puzzle progression are gone. The only real character here is bland and boring giving us none of the charisma of the original Baker family. While it does pick up at the end it’s not enough to save it from feeling like the weakest part of an amazing game.
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