Have you showered yet today? No? Then maybe treat yourself to a bath if you can. It might help prepare for Resident Evil Requiem. Capcom formally confirmed last night that, as leaked, it contains Leon Kennedy. Some of their devs have now offered a bit more detail as to how it’ll feel to play as both him and co-lead Grace Ashcroft.
Speaking to Automaton, Requiem director Akifumi Nakanishi and producer Masato Kumazawa revealed that the time number of sections you’ll spend playing as one of the two protagonists are “almost equally split”, likening the structure to Resident Evil Revelations.
As for how it feels to jump back and forth between them, there’s a dichotomy of more traditional horror/fighty bloke action going on. “I’ve said before that Leon isn’t well suited to horror,” Nakanishi explained. “Since quiet sections where you cower before monsters don’t fit him, his chapters focus on intense, adrenaline-pumping action. Grace’s sections, on the other hand, are the scarier ones. We’re really emphasizing the difference in their experiences this time.
“It’s almost like having two games with completely different types of tension mixed together. Early on, we worried players might not be able to keep up, but now we feel that the contrast gives the game a unique rhythm, like jumping into a cold bath after sitting in a hot sauna.”
Taking that metaphor forwards, I assume the monstery things the pair are up against are the dirt and dust we all accrue when we’re out and about not playing a horror game. If any other familiar Resi faces show up, will they be filling the role of those little bits of cucumber which get put on the eyes of every person who’s every been in an advert for places that boast baths and saunas?
Despite all the relaxing language, Nakanishi made clear that the actiony bits won’t be a walk in the park. “The battle this time will probably push Leon to his limits more than ever before”, the director said, later adding that the team have build on Kennedy’s Resi 4 moveset to mirror how his skills and mindset have evolved since his last appearance. Altogether, Nakanishi reckons the juxtaposition of spooks and shoots will help Requiem deliver “a kind of exhilaration and satisfaction that past Resident Evil titles didn’t offer”.
We’ll see if that’s the case when the Resi spa opens up on February 27th, 2026.