If you're using superficial examples as a defense to explain radical differences, I find it ironic that you accuse me of "stretching it" when I do the same thing. I used Silent Hill as a comparison precisely BECAUSE it is a stretch to call something "Resident Evil" with those extremely vague examples.
Anyway, both Umbrella and bioweapons manufacturing are very minor themes in Village, the former is basically a retroactive throw-away line in a document, and the latter is used as an excuse to incorporate more and more supernatural elements. Telekinesis is literally considered a psychic ability with roots in the paranormal. I have honestly never heard of another entertainment property who has tried to explain things like telekinesis as the result of scientific experiments. Trying is stretching it because if you play through Village without reading any documents you would never think of the monsters' abilities as being scientific. And that's just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the paranormal/supernatural elements in Village. If you're a big fan of RE4 I can see why you're more forgiving to this and might not really understand "what the fuss is about, this is RE!", because RE4 is basically when the series decided to change itself radically in that way.
On a sidenote, the Silent Hill series became popular because it was so different from Resident Evil and offered a more psychological aspect of the survival horror genre. However, it has never been as popular or mainstream as Resident Evil, I always got the impression that the fanbase for Silent Hill is much more niche and similar in ideas. Besides, Pyramid Head was just one character in SH2, the series has so much more to offer than that.
Al I'm saying is, there's not enough credibility in my opinion to say this new style of RE somehow isn't RE anymore. That would be like saying God of War 4 isn't God of War anymore because of the radical change from isometric view to full 3D view. What you're calling radical changes, others are calling a needed refresh. Long running game series tend to change, sometimes for worse, sometimes for better. It's purely personal preference as to what it is to you.
Somehow that doesn't change the fact that most whom claim originals in a series are the only ones that got it right, think they have the only valid opinion. As they say, some things never change. A long running series will always be what the creators of it intend it to be, as it evolves. They are not defined by what retro grouches whom are stuck in the past feel they should be. If I had a nickel for every wanna be dev that thinks they have a better idea, I'd be a millionaire.
Just the fact that you say Umbrella and bioweapon manufacturing are minor themes, instead of what the whole RE universe is actually BUILT around, is a prime example of what I'm saying. The disgruntled always paint the picture with their own brush, selectively and nonsensically discounting valid points of others. I'm just really glad you guys have no part in actually making these games. The funny thing is, you'd probably never agree with one another anyways, because you're all so eccentric! Communication is a key part of game development, and you get nowhere with too many cooks in the kitchen.
And enough phooey about the RE4/RE4 fan bashing, we are not naïve. Many of us didn't play the originals because they had horrible camera angles and controls. I HAVE played RE2 & 3 Remakes though, and IMHO they are nowhere near as good as RE4. Many just can't deal with the fact that RE4 was widely accepted, and it also ushered in a lot of new gaming concepts. About the only one of the concepts I could have done without was the QTE. As far as the level and monster design though, it was varied and creative. RE4 is what to many of us put RE on the map.
They didn't even need to bother remastering it until more than 10 years after development, and it never even has had a remastering to the extent of RE2 and 3, why, because it sold so many copies they didn't need to. But go ahead, be in denial about it, I really don't care, RE4 will always be to many of us, the best game in the series. God of War 4 is doing the same for the GoW series. You really don't get a sense for how well liked a game series is until you make it accessible to a broad fanbase. That's why I'll always see those claiming original RE games were the best as a cult following, they just aren't the whole enchilada like they think they are.