Resident Evil Village Vs. Resident Evil 4: The Best Merchant

Screenshot: Capcom

In one corner, a tall, helpful man who sells weapons and cooks meals. In the other corner, a mysterious character who has a lot of good things on sale today, stranger. Could he also be infected? It’s time to find out who’s better: The Duke from Resident Evil Village or The Merchant from RE4.

The Duke and the Merchant perform similar functions in their respective games. Both men sell and buy items, can upgrade your weapons, and increase your inventory space. They have both set up shops in different locations around the world, and those areas are often devoid of enemies or threats, providing another handy service to the player: a moment to catch their breath.

Although they may have a lot in common and even seem to be friends, it’s the Internet. We can’t just say two things are good and move on. We need to break our figures together like a Marvel Cinematic Universe producer and figure out who’s the best of the best.

(Spoilers for Resident Evil Village and Resident Evil 4)

Screenshot: Capcom

Round 1: Mysterious

While these two men are mysterious, RE4 merchant is by far the darkest character. The merchant hides his face and never shares his name with you. However, you can tell from the little of his visible face that he is a Ganado, aka an infected villager. Yet, strangely, he doesn’t seem to hate Leon or even want to attack him. Instead, he sells weapons to Leon and more, in effect betraying his own. Maybe he knows that the parasite that infects all the villagers is terrible and that it is helping to prevent the dangerous infection from spreading. Or maybe he’s some greedy bastard who saw an opportunity to make money and grabbed it.

Meanwhile, Duke of the village is also mysterious, but in a different way. He’s not sure where he came from, telling Ethan as much towards the end of the game. While some of the early Village concepts and designs had the Duke as one of the game’s evil lords, that’s not canon. as far as we know in the finished game. As we see his face and get a title beyond the merchant, old Duke is still an enigma.

It’s a tough category to judge, but I’m giving the Resident Evil 4 merchant the minor victory over this one.

Screenshot: Capcom

Round 2: Services provided

The merchant shows up early in the game and quickly establishes itself as the only store in Resident Evil 4. Its main focus is to sell weapons and buy treasures. However, while playing Resident Evil 4, Leon will find shooting ranges that the merchant manages. Here you can compete for a high score to win prizes including thousands of dollars. It seems that the merchant is a rich man, which is not surprising. But beyond weapons and shooting ranges, the merchant doesn’t offer much else.

Meanwhile, the Duke in Village is the king of extras. The Duke often provides Ethan with useful information on what’s going on and what to do next. He also helps Ethan directly a few times, in one case even saving Ethan after he’s nearly killed. Lastly, the Duke is an excellent cook, able to prepare a multitude of meals for Ethan that provide much needed bonuses if you can provide the meat and other ingredients. (Tip: don’t sell the meat to the duke.) Oh and don’t forget the duke is in charge bullet puzzles too.

While I like both vendors, the Duke wins easily.

Screenshot: Capcom / Kotaku

Round 3: Immortality and other quirks

Resident Evil 4’s merchant appears to have the ability to instantly teleport to the map. You’ll see him in one spot, then quickly run to another area to find him waiting for you near all of his stuff and his blue light. Some gamers have speculated that this is because the merchant is not one person, but many people who all look and sound the same. In most universes that would be a wild theory, but in Resident Evil there are several clones that aren’t weird at all. More evidence for this theory: you can kill the merchant. When you do, it will always appear in other parts of the map. On lower difficulties, it will come back even after you kill it. Hmmm!

The Duke also appears to possess the ability to teleport, although he is often seen in a car. Maybe that’s how he moves so fast. Unlike the merchant, the duke is a singular character, referring to past events as Ethan visits his various shops. It is also interesting to note that the Duke is allowed to work and live freely in the various castles and dungeons of each lord. What kind of deal does the duke have with Lady Dimitrescu? Unlike the Merchant, the Duke is less fragile; you can throw homemade bombs at him and he won’t even flinch. Awesome stuff.

This round decides the winner. And I’ll give it to… the Duke!

I like both characters, but the more I thought about it and compared the two vendors, the more I realize that I prefer the Duke. He might have nasty feet and he might be a little suspicious, but he’s a talented chef and he has some great items to sell. In addition, he provides you with useful information and often gives Ethan a helping hand (which Ethan desperately needs.)

If this was a purely focused contest on who has the best catchphrases and most memorable dialogues, it would go to merchant any day of the week. It’s hard to beat “What are you buying?” and “I’ll buy it at full price!” So hang on, Merchant fans.