Open-world ‘Resident Evil’ game was scrapped: “It wasn’t what fans wanted”

The developers of Resident Evil Requiem have revealed the upcoming horror game was almost an online, open-world title.

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Resident Evil Requiem was officially announced earlier this month after years of speculation. “A new era of survival horror begins in 2026. Technological advancements combined with the development team’s depth of experience combine in a story with rich characters and gameplay that’s more immersive than ever before,” said a statement at the time.

The single-player adventure will see players take control of new protagonist Grace Ashcroft as they return to Racoon City, 30 years after the events of Resident Evil 2. “While survival horror takes centerstage, Resident Evil Requiem will feature high-stakes cinematic action that will take the series in a bold new direction,” explained PlayStation in a blog post.

In a new developer diary video, producer Masachika Kawata said the team at Capcom have “managed to pack a lot into this game” before adding that they were “exploring many different systems” early in development.

“You might have heard some of the rumours…. things like an online Resident Evil or an open-world Resident Evil,” Director Koshi Nakanishi added before confirming that they had “spent some time experimenting with that.”

“In the end, although we had some interesting concepts, we realised that it wasn’t what fans wanted to see or play. So we went back to the drawing board and created what led to Resident Evil Requiem,” he continued.

Elsewhere in the video, Nakanishi revealed more about protagonist Grace Ashcroft. “She’s introverted and easily scared, which is a new type of character for the Resident Evil series. We wanted someone that experiences horror from the same perspective as the player,” he explained. “She learns to overcome her fears throughout the course of the story, but she’s also an analyst for the FBI who’s trained with guns, and is able to act with calm deductive reasoning.”

Responding to the rumours that fan-favourite character Leon is set to make a return in Resident Evil Requiem, Nakanishi said: “We always thought about making Leon the protagonist but making a horror game based around him is difficult. He wouldn’t jump at a bucket falling. No one wants to see Leon scared by every little thing. So he’s actually quite a bad match for horror.”

After the trailer was revealed earlier this month, horror fans predicted that Resident Evil Requiem would be the best game released in 2026.

In other news, Nintendo has confirmed the next Gamecube-era title coming to the Switch 2’s online library, with  Super Mario Strikers joining the service next week.

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