A theory of mine is that many long time RE fans have become immune to the type of horror that a RE game has to offer. We just don't realize it. Think about it, one plays the crap out of every other RE game for years they already know what to expect to an extent. I can play the old ones and still get a jump in but I think it has a lot to do with the fear I felt as an 8 year old playing it, that fear is still instilled in me.
Don't get me wrong, I still get scared with the new games, it's just not as intense as it used to be. I remember not ever wanting to play the old ones because I was that scared.
Then there's games like slender man, it's new and it is a different type of horror, but you can't use that kind of paranormal mind game in RE without straying from it's story and what it's about.
In Odin's name, I hope not!

The word "reboot" always rings alarm bells in my head since there's always the chance that the developers will change the story and characters completely. Resident Evil without the T-virus, Chris, Claire and the others? No thanks. Resident Evil without horror sounds better to me.
I agree with this. I love my horror, but I've always been more attached to the characters and story of RE.
RE3 I freaked out when the Nemesis came crashing in,
That's why I loved Ustanak, hiding from him gave me bubbles in my stomach. XD
and RE4 I was on the edge of my seat right from the beginning because of the view change, the first zombie in the hut, and the horde that you're thrown into straight away while tryin to get your bearings on the new system. And chainsaw guys. Who I found particularly freaky until they made them look too surreal in RE6.
Yes, it's sometimes the more simple things that can be more successful. Again, I point out Slender as a good example. Ubstivo, to me wasn't really scary. (That was his name right?)
I only found the chainsaw guy in RE4 to be scary. His design was creepier, that and the instant death attacks. I felt that they took a step back with the censored deaths. A lot of fans get criticized when people say they want the gore back. I don't get why. It's not about being a sadist, I just want to be convinced that this guy is really gonna cut my head off when they actually take the time to animate it. I think the suspense claim is just an excuse, considering I know what's gonna happen.

The chainsaw dude in 5 was a joke because he knocks you to the ground untill your health is low. Who the heck does that with a chainsaw in their hands with intent on killing you? Just cut his freakin' head off. It was much more scarier turning a corner then all of a sudden Leon's head is on the floor I don't even know what going on or what just happened.
I think there needs to be new material for scare factor because people become more desensitized with every game.
Agreed, that can be very successful or blow up in their face. Because there are some folks, as I stated before, that have their hearts set on hating anything about the new generation. Anything new is an instant rejection by strict purist.
But look at Dead Space. That game scared the **** out of me. 1 and 2 equally. But now they've added co op for DS3 (which I and a lot of people think takes away from the scare factor) because of "popular consumer demand". Which goes to show that even though the survival horror fans will always be the biggest advocates of the games, and have the greatest understanding of why they are the way they are, there is a much larger majority of action fans making comments that companies will try to cater to for sales. It's unfortunate, but all they hear is "we want co op!" or "why can't you move while you shoot?!", and then after the game they hear all the die hard fans yellin "what did ya do that for? ya ruined it!" lol. It's gotta be a pretty tough call.
Preach it! That reminds me, the next God of War is gonna have co-op. It shouldn't bother me but why in 7 hells does a game that has always been single player need multi player? Does everything need to be played with 50 people? What ever happend to just sitting in your room on a raining day and just enjoying the game by oneself???