I have already talked about “Resident Evil 7” at length. It is no secret that I love the game. However, less than a month after the game’s release, a downloadable content pack has already been released for it. I’m not a fan of games releasing DLC so quickly after release as it tends to come across as just being content that was cut from the main game to make a little extra money. This goes double for the “Resident Evil” series with its history of extensive in-game bonuses and unlockables. However, given how much I loved the original game, I decided to swallow my principles and check it out. This first DLC pack consists of three alternate game modes, “Nightmare,” “Bedroom,” and “Ethan Must Die.” So without any further ado, let’s take a look.

“Nightmare” is a survival/horde mode which downloads separately from the other two DLC modes for some reason that I do not fully understand. I have never really been a big fan of horde modes, but I think that “Nightmare” manages to pull it off because it does it while still maintaining the flawlessly taut atmosphere of the base game. In this mode, the player is stuck in the basement and has to fight off waves of the molded from midnight until sunrise. This mode features a crafting system different from that of the main game in which the player uses only a single resource called scrap to craft healing items, ammo, and even weapons. The scrap is obtained by finding and activating various compactors throughout the basement, which is a brilliant way to encourage the player to keep moving instead of digging in at an easily fortified position. At the end of a round of “Nightmare” the player is given a score which unlocks upgrades for future “Nightmare” games. It’s a pretty clever little mode that takes full advantage of the game’s narrative to have a reason for a seemingly infinite amount of enemies to just appear out of the walls, and the occasional larger fights at the end of an in-game hour really serve to break up a game that otherwise might have been very monotonous.

The second DLC mode, “Bedroom,” is the real gem of this set of new modes. This one essentially a virtual escape room. The player takes control of Clancy from the game’s demo (or the first VHS tape in the game, if you didn’t play the demo) as he struggles to escape from, well, a bedroom. The main antagonist in this mode is Marguerite, the matron of the monstrous Baker clan, who was perhaps a little underutilized in the base game. In this mode, the player has to try to solve a series of puzzles (which are more challenging than those in the base game, thankfully) while not creating too much noise, lest Marguerite come back to the room. And when she does come back, you have to try to arrange everything so that she won’t notice that anything has been missing. This mode is brilliant, thoroughly creepy, and a very unique video game experience.

Finally, there’s “Ethan Must Die,” which is a hardcore challenge mode. In a way it’s like the “Remix” mode from the old “Resident Evil: Director’s Cut” on the original Playstation. Unlike the other DLC there really aren’t any new mechanics or assets added in here. Instead, it has the main protagonist of the base game, trying to escape from the same mansion as the base game, but with largely randomized items and no ability to save or continue. This mode is definitely incredibly challenging. If you’ve thoroughly mastered “Resident Evil 7” and still want more out of it, something new to spend a lot of time conquering, then this is exactly what you’re looking for. However, this is my least favorite of the three new modes for one simple reason: this is exactly the sort of thing that would have been an unlockable mode in an older “Resident Evil” game (like “The Mercenaries” in “Resident Evil 3”), so this is where that feeling that you’re paying for something that should have already been included comes in.

Overall, I think that this DLC pack is worth well more than the $9.99 that it’s currently selling for. I would frankly have paid that much just for “Bedroom.” Sure, I have some problems with “Ethan Must Die” being included in this pack rather than the base game, but both of the other new modes add new assets, new mechanics, and new voice clips instead of just recycling what was already there, so it makes sense that those ones cost a little more. In short, it’s a great add-on to an already brilliant game.