Resident Evil Requiem Almost Became an Online Game

Did you know Resident Evil Requiem was almost a very different game? Producer Masachika Kawata just dropped a bombshell: the game was originally planned as an online title before Capcom pulled the plug to double down on horror.

Kawata shared this in the Biohazard 30th Special Mook, a 124-page fan book packed with series history, creature genealogy, and developer interviews. "Every game is a continuous process of trial and error," he said. "For example, with Resident Evil Requiem, [game director Koshi Nakanishi] initially went so far as to develop it as an online game." But midway through, research results weren't favorable, so they decided to prioritize the horror concept and abandoned the online direction.

That's not all. Kawata also revealed that Leon was the first character chosen as a protagonist, but the team worried his combat skills would make the game too action-heavy and less scary. "With Leon alone, who excels in combat, 'horror would no longer work,' so it was decided to introduce Grace as a new character," he explained. That's why we're getting a new face alongside the returning hero.

And about keeping Leon's involvement under wraps? Kawata says that was intentional: "By keeping the full picture of the game, which would develop along both the horror and action sides, until the very end, we were able to successfully maintain interest in it up until release." Smart marketing, right?

This isn't the first time Capcom flirted with online for Resident Evil. Back in 2022, franchise producer Jun Takeuchi recalled how management pushed for Resident Evil 7 to have multiplayer and microtransactions during its conceptual phase. "Right around that time, there was a big push at Capcom, a big 'marketing' push, saying 'we have to make the games players are asking for,'" he said. "So we were being told 'make this, make that'... 'Ongoing service games! Microtransactions! Make a Resident Evil game that ticks all those boxes!'" But the idea of multiplayer got killed off pretty quickly. "We didn't really have any good ideas, so we set it aside. We went down the list, chopping them out, until we had marketing's worst nightmare — a regular old single-player horror game."

Capcom is moving full speed ahead with Resident Evil. The series just got a film adaptation directed by Zach Cregger, and a Code Veronica remake is set to release in February next year. Given that RE9 didn't go online, could we see another online Resident Evil in the future? Maybe another Resident Evil Outbreak?

What do you think about Resident Evil Requiem's scrapped online mode? Are you glad they stuck to horror? Let us know in the comments!