One Resident Evil Village fan's Reddit post is quickly going viral. Posted onto the r/residentevil subreddit, the accompanying image reveals the real-world location and inspiration for the game's Castle Dimitrescu.
Developer Capcom's eighth mainline installment of its long-running survival horror franchise is off to a great start. Despite releasing only a few days ago, Capcom has officially confirmed that Resident Evil Village has already sold 3 million units. The series celebrates its 25th anniversary this year as well, with sales of the latest installment pushing the franchise over the 100 million units shipped mark.
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Posted by u/Smooth_Skin_Operator, the Reddit post in question reveals the real-world castle which Castle Dimitrescu is based on. It is called Peles Castle, and is located in Transylvania, Romania. Attached are a half dozen screenshots of the Resident Evil Village structure lined up with Peles Castle photographs from roughly the same angle. Viewers can easily see that the resemblance between Lady Dimitrescu's residence and the Romanian castle. From the snowy hilltop exterior, near-identical dining room, to even the chandelier, the real-world castle's influence is undeniable. The fact that it's in Transylvania also lends itself to the game's vampire elements, with the region heavily intertwined with Dracula lore.
Capcom is apparently borrowing more designs than just Peles Castle, if a particular film director is to be believed. The director for the 2013 horror film Frankenstein's Army is accusing the Resident Evil Village developers of ripping off its monster designs. In another case of image comparison, the director makes a strong case that shows how eerily similar several of Village's monsters are to some of the ones in Frankenstein's Army, particularly with that of the game's Factory area. While fans online continue to debate some of the similarity claims, most have made the conclusion that at least Sturm, the propeller engine-headed enemy, is almost certainly "borrowed" from the movie.
While Resident Evil Village may have taken inspiration from a real-world location, the practice is actually fairly common in the gaming industry. One Red Dead Redemption 2 fan recently revealed that one of the gorgeous in-game areas is based on an actual place as well. The western RPG title's Cumberland Falls are based off of the real-world Cumberland Falls located in the state of Kentucky. The game may have taken real-world inspiration for its characters too, with business magnate Leviticus Cornwall bearing a striking resemblance in appearance and background to Andrew Carnegie.
The discovery of Peles Castle serving as the template for Castle Dimitrescu will likely cause a spike in tourism for the property. While Resident Evil Village boasts the latest graphics to emulate things found in the real world, one fan has thrown that out the window, demaking the title into a PS1 game, which provides a creepy atmosphere all its own.
Resident Evil Village is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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