Monsters Sighted—Capcom’s Resident Evil 9 Is in the Works

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Are we satisfied with remakes or does the already lengthy Resident Evil franchise still have the potential to expand successfully?

If there is one thing that the Japanese have perfected, it’s the art of creating top-notch horror-themed media, and Capcom’s Resident Evil 9 is expected to carry on that tradition as expected. During the Capcom Next 2024 showcase that took place over a live stream, director Koshi Nakanishi, who had a big hand in the success of the Resident Evil 7: Biohazard game among others, revealed that another Resident Evil game was in the works. He didn’t dive into the storyline, the game’s release timelines, or even the official title of the game, but the brief Resident Evil 9 announcement was enough to get fans excited about the franchise. 

Earlier this year, we saw reports that suggested that Resident Evil Zero and Code Veronica were also getting remakes sometime soon, so there is no shortage of Resident Evil news to look forward to, even if none of these games have an official release date yet. We already have the Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster of the 2006 original arriving on September 18 this year, so you should have sufficient zombie-hunting experiences to tide you over till the RE9 game launch. 

Image: Resident Evil 7

Capcom Resident Evil 9 Confirmed—No Specifics Revealed

Capcom’s new Resident Evil game announcement was unexpected as there hadn’t been as many rumors circulating about the game’s release, however, the reveal wasn’t surprising. We’ve seen a consistent stream of the originals get remakes these last few years, which confirmed the company’s commitment to the franchise. Now that we’ve had quite a few rounds of remakes—Resident Evil 2 (remake) in 2019, Resident Evil 3 (remake) in 2020, and Resident Evil 3 (remake) in 2023—with a mainline release thrown in with Resident Evil Village in 2021, it’s time for the series to evolve to a new frontier.

“It was really difficult to figure out what to do after 7. But I found it, and to be honest, it feels substantial,” Nakanishi revealed during the live stream, and not much else was said about this new direction. It’s great to see him back at the helm after directorial successes like Resident Evil 7: Biohazard and Resident Evil: Revelations, and his designer contributions to Resident Evil 5. Some more information about the new direction for Capcom’s Resident Evil 9 game would have been nice, but it could be too early for them to reveal details that may change in the upcoming months. Early rumors suggest Leon S Kennedy from the Resident Evil 2 game could be the main character, and the game could have co-op play, but there’s no real evidence to back the claim.

The RE9 update came as Nakanishi guided us through the other bit of Resident Evil news they had for us, which was the release of Resident Evil 7 for iOS devices. You can now follow Ethan Winters’ journey on your iPhone or iPad which, from the reactions on the live stream, doesn’t appeal to too many fans. Still, mobile gamers are aplenty wherever you look and this move could bring more gamers into the stands for Capcom’s Resident Evil 9 release.

News of Capcom’s new Resident Evil game was a tad bit underwhelming when you compare it to the details about the upcoming Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess tower defense game and the Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster, but that was clearly the intention of slipping the Resident Evil 9 announcement into this particular livestream. 

Image: Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster

Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster Will Be Released on September 18, 2024

The main reason why a lot of fans had tuned into the Capcom Next – Summer 2024 livestream is for updates on the Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster, and the publisher did not disappoint. The Dead Rising game was originally released in 2006 for the Xbox 360 and it enjoyed quite a bit of success, breathing some life back into the Zombie hunting genre. 

The game is a remake of the original but with the enhanced ability to run in 4K 60fps on the RE Engine, as well as quality of life improvements, autosave features, and other changes to enhance the gameplay. Players should have a much smoother and more intuitive gaming experience and so will the NPCs in the Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster.

Image: Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster

One factor that is changing is that the original voice actor for Frank West, voice actor Terence J. Rotolo, is no longer associated with the character. For reasons of their own, producers chose not to contact the original voice and while it may not be a serious point of contention for fans, it is worth a note. What is interesting about the narration is that the game will be fully voiced in 9 languages (English, French, Italian, German, Spanish, Japanese, Brazilian Portuguese, Russian, and Latin American Spanish) with text in 14 languages, allowing a wider range of players to enjoy the full game experience.

The fundamental gameplay and storyline of the game remain unchanged so old gamers should be able to review old memories and new players will get to experience the charm of the original Dead Rising with more modern graphics support. With pre-orders already open, there truly does seem to be a lot to look forward to, including a physical release in November. 

We have our fingers crossed that the Capcom Resident Evil 9 game release will be just as exciting.

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