History YMMV / ResidentEvil7Biohazard

** Despite the fact that he's a sadistic, murdering monster who enjoys coming up with horrific death traps and [[spoiler: is very much NotBrainwashed, unlike his parents]], Lucas Baker has managed to rack up a nice fanbase that is in no small part divided between players who think he's fun as a BlackComedy {{T|heTrickster}}rickster villain... and those who try to downplay or distract from his awfulness by suggesting that his murder of a classmate as a child didn't really happen, that everything he does goes back to his having been bullied for being eccentric as a kid, that he was a victim of ParentalAbuse (for the record, Lucas mentions mild physical punishment for rude behavior in ''Daughters'', but Jack's uninfected character is portrayed as kind and warmhearted, if conservative and strict), that the need to [[spoiler:keep fooling Eveline into believing he's brainwashed]] is the sole or primary motivation for his torture of others (despite his own all-out laughing ''glee'' as he carries it out), and so forth. He's even fairly-commonly shipped with Ethan, despite Ethan having nothing but contempt for Lucas and Lucas's interest in Ethan being so limited to leading him to his death that he ''ragequits his role in the game'' once Ethan outsmarts him; and Clancy, despite their interactions likewise consisting exclusively of one of them tormenting the other for kicks.

* CompleteMonster: Lucas Baker, the BigBad of the ''Not A Hero'' {{DLC}}, was known as the "Bad Seed" of the Baker family. A brilliant, yet sociopathic, inventor who once trapped a childhood bully to starve to death in the attic, Lucas liberated himself from Eveline's control but found he enjoyed his new powers and ability to "cut loose"--regularly capturing others and putting them in his {{death trap}}s to test them out, Lucas also makes sure [[KaizoTrap it's impossible to escape the traps]] so even if one solves them, they'll still die painfully. When Chris Redfield goes in, Lucas captures three of his soldiers and has Chris experience their deaths before trying to kill Chris as well. A complete sociopath with no regard for anyone, even his own family, Lucas is a unique glimpse at a twisted, inventive SerialKiller in the world of ''Resident Evil''.

** Despite the fact that he's a sadistic, murdering lunatic who enjoys coming up with horrific death traps and [[spoiler: is very much NotBrainwashed, unlike his parents]], Lucas Baker has managed to rack up a nice fanbase that is in no small part divided between players who think he's fun as a BlackComedy {{T|heTrickster}}rickster villain... and those who try to downplay or distract from his awfulness by suggesting that his murder of a classmate as a child didn't really happen, that everything he's doing goes back to his having been bullied for being eccentric as a kid, that he was a victim of ParentalAbuse (for the record, Lucas mentions mild physical punishment for rude behavior in ''Daughters'', but Jack's uninfected character is portrayed as kind and warmhearted, if conservative and strict), and so forth. He's even fairly-commonly shipped with Ethan, despite Ethan having nothing but contempt for Lucas and Lucas ending his ongoing attempt at killing him on a note of ''loathing''; and Clancy, despite their interactions exclusively consisting of one of them getting a kick out of the other's torment.

* JerkassWoobie: [[spoiler:Eveline]], although the specific {{Jerkass}} to {{Woobie}} ratio is definitely a point of contention. At the very least, [[spoiler:as horrible and sociopathic as she is in-game, she is still an ArtificialHuman created to kill who was never even given a chance at a normal life.]] The Woobie part of it is successfully increased in ''Village'' [[spoiler: by revealing that she was cloned from Mother Miranda's daughter Eva, but was discarded by her for being defective. And Mother Miranda is just as unstable, if not more, than Eveline was]].

* RealismInducedHorror: Lucas isn't too far behind [[VideoGame/ResidentEvil2 Chief Irons]] in this department, despite operating on a much smaller scale than the likes of the [[MegaCorp Umbrella Corporation]], Wesker, and the [[TheCult Los Illuminados]]. In real life, you'd probably be very unlikely to run into mad scientists or a virus-enhanced superhuman, but Lucas could really be any weird kid you knew in school, who happens to have predatory sociopathic tendencies just waiting for the right situation to unleash them.

*** Another one dealing with Lucas, [[spoiler: his much more subdued portrayals in places before he became infected leave it unclear if he was always a psychotic monster at heart who used his family's infections as a chance to finally drop his MaskOfSanity, or if he really was once a fairly normal, but still troubled, kid whose mind and personality were irrepairably warped by Eveline's influence, even after he broke free of her control]].

** [[spoiler:Eveline, as in Mia's flashback-section of the game, Eveline is far more mentally stable and tries to convince Mia to be her mother. However, she appears far more demented three years later in both Mia's and Ethan's perspective, evident in her more wicked actions towards them. Is the demented behavior genuine? Or simply a consequence of dementia, brought by her rapid-aging which affects her physical brain as well? Or is it a side-effect from when she integrated [[AxCrazy Lucas]] into the HiveMind, which rubbed off on her by accident? Or maybe some combination of the three? WordOfGod in the ending credits screenshots says that not taking her medication resulted in Eveline going completely insane along with her rapid aging.]]
*** Building on that, [[spoiler: why did Eveline throw away the honest love the Bakers would have given her to start trying to force her family into growing larger. Was it because she's just a psychopathic SpoiledBrat due to her upbringing? Was it uncontrollable instincts as a B.O.W to infect and grow, expressing themselves the only way they could with her warped mind? Was it simply part of the mental degeneration she suffered due to missing her treatments? Or even some combination thereof? Additionally, she actually went ''against'' her own programming as a B.O.W by staying with the Bakers in such a remote and isolated location, rather than leaving with them and seek out other people directly to infect in a more efficient manner as according to her programming. This only got more debate-inspiring with TheReveal in "Daughters" that she brainwashed them only a couple minutes after they brought her home and started taking care of her. Some players felt that Eveline, rather than being malicious, simply decided she liked the kind Bakers and wanted to stay with them longer than the "few days" they planned to take care of her for, in addition to her knowing that being given to the authorities would just result in her being locked up in a lab again. On the other hand, some found her smug proclamation that "they're [hers] now" after quickly and violently assimilating Zoe's family as proof of her malice.]]

** Despite the fact that he's a sadistic, murdering lunatic who enjoys coming up with horrific death traps and [[spoiler: is very much NotBrainwashed, unlike his parents]], Lucas Baker has managed to rack up a nice fanbase that is in no small part divided between players who think he's fun as a BlackComedy {{T|heTrickster}}rickster villain... and those who try to downplay or distract from his awfulness by suggesting that his murder of a classmate as a child didn't really happen, that everything he's doing goes back to his having been bullied for being eccentric as a kid, that he was a victim of ParentalAbuse (for the record, Lucas mentions mild physical punishment for rude behavior in ''Daughters'', but Jack's uninfected character is portrayed as kind and warmhearted, if conservative and strict), and so forth. He's even fairly-commonly shipped with Ethan, despite Ethan having nothing but contempt for Lucas and Lucas ending his ongoing attempt at killing him on a note of ''loathing''.

** The beginning ''reeks'' of this. Upon receiving an email from his wife, who's been missing and presumed dead for three years, Ethan goes to a ranch in the middle of nowhere, ''by himself'', to find her (and only tells one person, by the way). Upon seeing clear signs that she's in a '''''lot''''' of trouble, like an abandoned van, ominous messages, and a horrific effigy made of cow carcasses, Ethan does ''not'' turn around, get back in his car, and notify the authorities. Instead, he wanders further onto the property, and for his trouble, gets his hand cut off and then gets captured by the psychos keeping his wife hostage. The game's entire plot hinges on Ethan being too stupid to leave and come back with half the cops in Louisiana.

** [[spoiler: Eveline]] also has a pretty sharply divided reception in the fanbase, with fans being split almost neatly between those who sympathize with her as a TragicVillain and those who think she's just a monster who combines being a SpoiledBrat with being a WalkingWasteland. The fact that [[spoiler: she was designed from when she was a ''fetus'' to be this helps their case, as she had literally no chance to be a normal girl]]. This divide became much more prominent after the release of the "Banned Footage #2" DLC, in which we learn from the "Daughters" tape that [[spoiler: Eveline ''immediately'' brainwashed the Bakers upon their rescuing her, to the extent that her first words to Zoe were to jeer that Jack & Marguerite now belonged to her.]] When taken with [[spoiler:her general cruelty and delight in the suffering she inflicts, Jack's pity for her ends up saying far more about ''his'' sympathetic qualities than it does about hers.]] And then there are those who simply find her to be a boring ripoff of [[spoiler: Alma from ''VideoGame/{{FEAR}}'']] who clashes badly with the rest of the game's tone. ''Village'' rectifies some of these problems by revealing [[spoiler: she's a defective clone of Mother Miranda's daughter, Eva. Because of this, she was discarded by her own "mother" (who was even ''worse'' than Eveline), and horribly experimented on. She also, in her own way, helps Ethan by goading him into a HeroicSecondWind.]]

** The ending of [[spoiler:Ethan and Mia making it out alive together to continue their relationship thanks to a timely rescue by Chris Redfield]] becomes this with ''Resident Evil VIII: Village'', [[spoiler:where Chris seems to raid Ethan's home and murder Mia in cold blood after everything the pair had gone through in this game.]] However, the blow is softened by the game later revealing [[spoiler:that "Mia" was Mother Miranda disguised as her, and the real Mia is alive and well.]]
** Remember the infamous "Welcome to the family, son" punch? ''Resident Evil Village'' reveals that [[spoiler:Ethan actually ''[[DeadAllAlong died]]'' from that attack and was revived by the Mold.]]

* JerkassWoobie: [[spoiler:Eveline]], although the specific {{Jerkass}} to {{Woobie}} ratio is definitely a point of contention. At the very least, [[spoiler:as horrible and sociopathic as she is in-game, she is still an ArtificialHuman created to kill who was never even given a chance at a normal life.]] They successfully increase the Woobie part of it in ''[[Videogame/ResidentEvilVillage Village]]'' [[spoiler: by revealing that she was cloned from Mother Miranda's daughter Eva, but was discarded by her for being defective. And Mother Miranda is just as unstable, if not more, than Eveline was.]]

* AssPull: Part of Joe Baker's status as a BaseBreakingCharacter stems from the fact that there's nothing in the main game or any of the other [[=DLC=]]s that hint his existence.

** [[YouDontLookLikeYou Chris's look]] in the game... ''wasn't'' well received by some, to the point that they declare this Chris to be an imposter. Thankfully, the developers took the hint, [[AuthorsSavingThrow and went right back to a newer version of his ''[=RE5=]'' and ''[=RE6=]'' design]].

* JerkassWoobie: [[spoiler:Eveline]], although the specific {{Jerkass}} to {{Woobie}} ratio is definitely a point of contention. At the very least, [[spoiler:as horrible and sociopathic as she is in-game, she is still an ArtificialHuman created to kill who was never even given a chance at a normal life.]]

** [[YouDontLookLikeYou Chris's look]] in the game... ''wasn't'' well received by some, to the point that they declare this Chris to be an imposter.

** [[spoiler:Eveline's death and her lamenting that everyone hates her could've been more developed and well played if it happened ''after'' the climax, rather than having her turn into a gigantic tentacle monster and cursing you throughout most of her battle right on the spot. Then again, it is possible Eveline was never meant to be a likable character to begin with, as she did cause the Baker family to do the messed up things they did. ]]

** [[spoiler: Eveline]] also has a pretty sharply divided reception in the fanbase, with fans being split almost neatly between those who sympathize with her as a TragicVillain and those who think she's just a monster who combines being a SpoiledBrat with being a WalkingWasteland. The fact that [[spoiler: she was designed from when she was a ''fetus'' to be this helps their case, as she had literally no chance to be a normal girl]]. This divide became much more prominent after the release of the "Banned Footage #2" DLC, in which we learn from the "Daughters" tape that [[spoiler: Eveline ''immediately'' brainwashed the Bakers upon their rescuing her, to the extent that her first words to Zoe were to jeer that Jack & Marguerite now belonged to her.]] When taken with [[spoiler:her general cruelty and delight in the suffering she inflicts, Jack's pity for her ends up saying far more about ''his'' sympathetic qualities than it does about hers.]] And then there are those who simply find her to be a boring ripoff of [[spoiler: Alma from ''VideoGame/{{FEAR}}'']] who clashes badly with the rest of the game's tone.
** Joe Baker. On the one hand, he's a total badass who can punch out zombies with his fists, which can be very cathartic to anyone who has struggled with them the whole game. On the other hand, he comes out of nowhere as there was no mention of his existence in the main story, and many fans are disappointed that you play as him instead of Zoe and feel that the "punching out zombies" mechanic is silly and overpowered in what is otherwise a good horror game. In this case the character himself is sympathetic, but his being the protagonist of the side story in the first place is what's causing the divide.

* HilariousInHindsight: It turns out that the "Kitchen" demo was a preview for the game. What was the name of the engine used for "Kitchen"? The ''RE'' Engine.

** [[spoiler:The second fight with Jack Baker]], especially if both the handgun and the shotgun are brought to the battle. After pumping with with enough lead into him, it eventually culminates in a ''chainsaw duel'' with him.
** The [[spoiler:second]] fight with Marguerite. As opposed to most of the fights which are more straight up brawls, the fight with Marguerite is a big game of cat and mouse as you sneak around a pretty big green house trying to find her without her getting the jump on you. And there are a lot of special animations for the fight. Nothing is spookier than seeing a hand slowly reach out and grasp the doorway you are looking at before she walks through.

** [[spoiler: Eveline]] also has a pretty sharply divided reception in the fanbase, with fans being split almost neatly between those who sympathise with her as a TragicVillain and those who think she's just a monster who combines being a SpoiledBrat with being a WalkingWasteland. The fact that [[spoiler: she was designed from when she was a ''fetus'' to be this helps their case, as she had literally no chance to be a normal girl]]. This divide became much more prominent after the release of the "Banned Footage #2" DLC, in which we learn from the "Daughters" tape that [[spoiler: Eveline ''immediately'' brainwashed the Bakers upon their rescuing her, to the extent that her first words to Zoe were to jeer that Jack & Marguerite now belonged to her.]] When taken with [[spoiler:her general cruelty and delight in the suffering she inflicts, Jack's pity for her ends up saying far more about ''his'' sympathetic qualities than it does about hers.]] And then there are those who simply find her to be a boring ripoff of [[spoiler: Alma from ''VideoGame/{{FEAR}}'']] who clashes badly with the rest of the game's tone.

* ScrappyWeapon: Both the burner and machine gun are almost universally considered to be the worst weapons in the game. They both have very weak damage output and require massive amounts of ammunition to kill even the weakest Molded. Bullet for bullet, even normal handgun rounds are more effective. [[NotCompletelyUseless That being said]], the Burner is a ''very'' useful tool for clearing away bugs, enemy and obstacle, in the Old House section where you assemble it, and can get a last hurrah as a really good weapon against area boss Marguerite Baker, even if it's atrocious against ordinary molded, while the lategame gives you a ''whole lot'' of machine gun ammo to burn through. You're using a ton of it, yeah, but it gives you a ton to burn through.

* UnintentionallyUnwinnable: It's possible to get to the mook boss battle near the end of ''Not a Hero'' where you fight many Molded at once and not be able to complete it if you somehow wind up being one bullet short for handling the special Molded enemies.

* UnwinnableByInsanity: It's possible to get to the mook boss battle near the end of ''Not a Hero'' where you fight many Molded at once and not be able to complete it if you somehow wind up being one bullet short for handling the special Molded enemies.

* CrazyAwesome: While he may be slightly divisive, there's no question that Joe Baker qualifies as this, as a badass old man who's lived out in the bayou alone, implicitly throughout the entire years-long nightmare his brother's family was going through, has mastered the art of killing molded with his bare hands, and ''will'' employ it liberally for the sake of saving his niece.

* MemeticBadass: Joe Baker is slowly getting this reputation among the Resident Evil Fandom thanks to being a CrazyAwesome MountainMan who fends of the Molded with just his fists, spears and all other assortment of weapons. With many lamenting the fact that they should've played him from the beginning, while others are also lamenting that they're lucky Joe didn't become infected with the Mold and became Ethan's enemy which would make him an even bigger threat than Jack Baker.

** Lucas has well crossed it by now [[spoiler:considering that he is no longer infected, and is just killing trespassers for the fun of it while maintaining the charade that Eveline has him under her control]].

* ThatOneLevel: The entire Tanker section where you [[spoiler:play as Mia]], thanks to encountering plenty of enemies well before you find a way to defend yourself, a scarcity of healing items, having no way to tell just how much damage you've taken and being stuck with the machine gun as your primary weapon for both segments (you only start with one and have a codex in the flashback segment). On Madhouse difficulty, it's not much of an exaggeration to say you're as good as unarmed until you can get your hands on some remote bombs; nothing else you find packs enough punch to use against Fat Molded, and the place is positively ''stuffed'' with the fucking things.

* EnsembleDarkhorse: The entire ''[[ParanormalInvestigation Sewer Gator]]'' crew is insanely popular despite how little they appear, for their [[MemeticMutation hilarious interactions]], and fun personalities. [[spoiler: It makes their fates all the more tragic.]]

* AntiClimaxBoss: And it's unfortunately the FinalBoss of the main game. After the well-made battles against Joe (both fights) and Margurite, Evelyne's battle is pretty much bereft of strategy or tension: just pumping as many bullets into a huge, all-but-stationary target as fast as you can before [[AdvancingBossOfDoom she unavoidably damages you or]] {{One Hit Kill}}s you outright.

* AntiClimaxBoss: And it's unfortunately the FinalBoss. After the well-made battles against Joe (both fights) and Margurite, Evelyne's battle is pretty much bereft of strategy or tension: just pumping as many bullets into a huge, all-but-stationary target as fast as you can before [[AdvancingBossOfDoom she unavoidably damages you or]] {{One Hit Kill}}s you outright.

* JerkassWoobie: [[spoiler:Eveline]], although the specific JerkassWoobie ratio is definitely a point of contention. At the very least, [[spoiler:as horrible and sociopathic as she is in-game, she is still an ArtificialHuman created to kill who was never even given a chance at a normal life.]]

** The beginning ''reeks'' of this. Ethan, upon receiving an email from his wife, who's been missing and presumed dead for three years, goes to a house in the middle of nowhere, ''by himself'', to pick her up, and only tells one person. Upon seeing clear signs that she's in a '''''lot''''' of trouble, like an abandoned van, ominous messages, and a horrific effigy made of cow carcasses, Ethan does ''not'' turn around, get back in his car, and notify the authorities. Instead, he wanders further onto the property, and for his trouble, gets his hand cut off and then gets captured by the psychos keeping his wife hostage. The game's entire plot hinges on Ethan being too stupid to leave and come back with half the cops in Louisiana.

* IronWoobie: Ethan went through so much just to rescue his wife, but his HeroicResolve pushes him to the point he's able to breeze through powerful enemies. He goes to the Woobie status if [[spoiler:Mia dies in the bad ending]].

** The beginning is this in spades. Ethan, upon receiving an email from his wife, who's been missing and presumed dead for three years, goes to a house in the middle of nowhere, ''by himself'', to pick her up, and only tells one person. Upon seeing evidence that she's in a '''''lot''''' of trouble, like an abandoned van, ominous messages, and a horrific effigy made of cow carcasses, Ethan wanders onto the property, and for his trouble, gets his hand cut off and then gets captured by the psychos keeping his wife hostage. The game's entire plot hinges on Ethan being too stupid to turn around, get back in his car, and call the police.

** The beginning is this in spades. Ethan, upon receiving an email from his wife, who's been missing and presumed dead for three years, goes to a house in the middle of nowhere, ''by himself'', to pick her up, and only tells one person. Upon seeing evidence that she's in a '''''lot''''' of trouble, like an abandoned van and a horrific effigy made of cow carcasses, Ethan wanders onto the property, and for his trouble, gets his hand cut off and then gets captured by the psychos keeping his wife hostage. The game's entire plot hinges on Ethan being too stupid to turn around, get back in his car, and call the police.

** The beginning is this in spades. Ethan, upon receiving an email from his wife, who's been missing and presumed dead for three years, insists on going to a house in the middle of nowhere, ''by himself'', to pick her up. Upon seeing evidence that she's in a '''lot''' of trouble, like an abandoned van and a horrific effigy made of cow carcasses, Ethan wanders onto the property, and for his trouble, gets his hand cut off and then gets captured by the psychos keeping his wife hostage. The game's entire plot hinges on Ethan being too stupid to turn around, get back in his car, and call the police.

** The ending of [[spoiler:Ethan and Mia making it out alive together to continue their relationship thanks to a timely rescue by Chris Redfield]] becomes this with ''Resident Evil VIII: Village'''s reveal trailer, [[spoiler:where Chris seems to raid Ethan's home and murder Mia in cold blood after everything the pair had gone through in this game.]]
** Remember the famous "Welcome to the family son" punch? [[spoiler:Turns out that Ethan actually ''[[DeadAllAlong died]]'' from that attack and became infected by the Mold, as shown in the next game.]]

** Remember the famous "Welcome to the family son" punch? [[spoiler:Turns out that Ethan actually ''died from the punch'' and became infected by the Mold ass hown in the next game.]]