I'd agree that the Raccoon/Umbrella (0-CV) and the post-Umbrella/Global (4-6) are more of a conspiracy thriller wrapped in a horror shell, with some sprinkles of (both intentional and not intentional) comedy. A lot of body horror and jump scares (used correctly) but mostly built on tension.
7 and 8 just go fucking
hard
out of the gate and are just so much more visceral. The first 20 minutes of 7 alone are terrifying.
If you don't do straight horror I'd say avoid the Winter era, but you could still enjoy everything up to that.
If you wake up at a different time, in a different place, could you wake up as a different person?
#theresafreakingghostafterus