Final week, Capcom gave fans their most extensive look at Resident Evil Requiem but. Now that the cat is out of the bag about Leon’s inclusion within the sport, the builders can showcase all this ninth mainline entry within the common survival horror franchise has to supply, whereas additionally explaining what makes its twin protagonist method distinctive.
Forward of final week’s reveal, I used to be in a position to play a major chunk of Resident Evil Requiem – about 3 hours of the sport – to see, firsthand, what the subsequent Resident Evil brings to the desk. As this newest period of Resident Evil has gone on, and with the critically acclaimed remakes slotting in alongside the primary entries, Capcom has been cautious to make sure that every new sport evolves the franchise with out abandoning what made it so particular within the first place. It’d sound unusual contemplating that is the ninth sport, nevertheless it feels just like the collection has hit its stride inside this new technology, balancing the previous with the brand new.
My Resident Evil Requiem demo supplied hands-on time with each Grace Ashcroft and Leon Kennedy. Grace is a brand new protagonist for the RE collection with some ties to present franchise lore. She’s our new Ethan Winters, so to talk, a personality with out all the luggage and fan expectations – a chance to current a recent perspective on the undead-slaying.
If Grace is available in unburdened by baggage, Leon comes on board with baggage, carry-on, and a private merchandise. He’s a fan-favorite Resident Evil staple who hasn’t been playable since Resident Evil 6 (not counting the RE 4 Remake), and his return to the franchise has been vastly anticipated. Rolling out Leon isn’t any small gesture on Capcom’s half and carries with it enormous expectations.
Enjoying as Grace in Resident Evil 9
The Resident Evil Requiem demo put the highlight on Grace essentially the most, providing two Leon segments as bookends to the expertise. In my first hands-on with Resident Evil Requiem, the expertise was quick, nevertheless it highlighted how Grace’s gameplay is much less action-focused – a return to the collection’ roots. For that demo, Grace snuck round a medical wing, avoiding a grotesque monster that was impeding her progress. There have been no weapons and no fight; it was a irritating wrestle to outlive within the vein of the sooner Resident Evil video games.
For this second preview, Grace has extra company, however the idea remains to be targeted on survival with restricted sources. She will get a gun and may dispatch the contaminated with a mixture of fastidiously positioned bullets and melee jabs, however that’s not all the time one of the best plan of action. The enemies could be spongy in Resident Evil Requiem, which requires you to be thought of along with your method. There have been occasions once I wanted to battle, however oftentimes I discovered it greatest to sneak/run previous a zombie if it didn’t pose too massive a menace.
The brand new wrinkle for Resident Evil Requiem is the injector, which presents the participant with a good quantity of selection. Crafting stays a key part of the RE expertise, however for Grace’s gameplay it’s important to resolve the best way to mix the injector with particular sources. All through the extent, there have been buckets of contaminated blood that Grace might use to refill the injector, making a brand new useful resource to mix with inexperienced herbs or spare components. It makes for an attention-grabbing selection the place you aren’t positive if a heal is healthier than further bullets, or if a harm improve is extra useful than extra well being. Moreover, the injector can be utilized to create an “instant kill” explosive injection that may take out zombies in a gloriously bloody style. So whilst Grace is seeking to maintain the physique rely to a minimal, she will nonetheless take out an contaminated or two when essential.
Resident Evil Requiem makes use of Grace as a solution to give followers an expertise nearer to the unique video games. Restricted sources and stock area power you to make decisions about the way you need to transfer ahead, whether or not it’s value it to clear a room of zombies or merely scrape by. The visuals and the sound are as soon as once more very good, making a temper and environment that’s chilling. Resident Evil is not all the time scary, however Requiem did properly to create a way of unease in the course of the Grace part, and there have been just a few downright horrifying moments.
Even with these slight adjustments and a decidedly stronger emphasis on stealth and survival horror, Resident Evil Requiem’s Grace sequence do really feel acquainted to what has come earlier than. The power to switch between first and third person is novel, nevertheless it doesn’t considerably change the gameplay. Even the design of the extent I performed, a multi-level home with a good bit of puzzling and shortcuts, exuded that signature RE DNA. That is Resident Evil at its greatest and I loved each minute of what I performed.
Leon Brings the Motion Component to Resident Evil Requiem
However let’s not neglect that Grace is just one piece of the Requiem puzzle. Though I spent far much less time taking part in as Leon, his sections had been unimaginable. The place Grace feels weak, and her part was irritating, Leon’s two sequences had been action-packed. The duality between the 2 playable characters is certain to strike a stability between excessive pressure and excessive depth.
From wielding a chainsaw to taking over a ugly boss, Leon is ready to deliver the cool factor that you may argue Resident Evil has been lacking over the previous few entries. There’s nothing extra satisfying than getting just a few photographs right into a zombie to stagger it after which operating as much as roundhouse kick it, or slam Leon’s axe melee weapon into the contaminated’s cranium.
Though it was shorter, the Leon part hit all the best notes. It’s Resident Evil at its peak, providing gamers the selection to be tactical, chaotic, or someplace in between. For sure, Capcom knew they needed to ship one thing memorable with Leon’s return and if the ultimate sport can meet these sections, followers needs to be very comfortable.
The identical could be stated about the entire preview I performed. Grace presents a pleasant counterpoint to Leon, providing you with some motion beats intermixed with slower, deliberate sequences. Resident Evil has been using excessive for some time now and Requiem isn’t attempting to rock the boat with any massive adjustments like RE 7’s swap to first particular person. As a substitute, Resident Evil 9 needs to offer followers extra decisions in a framework that honors the collection’ previous and its current. It’s one of the best of each worlds and needs to be precisely what followers are in search of.
- Launched
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February 27, 2026
- ESRB
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Mature 17+ / Intense Violence, Blood and Gore, Sturdy Language, In-Sport Purchases
Resident Evil Requiem releases February 27, 2026 for Nintendo Change 2, PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Sequence X/S. GameRant was supplied journey assist for this preview.
