The Big Resident Evil Requiem Interview: Why the Game's Monster Got Supersized, Why it's Probably Not Lisa Trevor, and a Tease for Areas Beyond Raccoon City — Just Don't Talk About Leon

Last week successful Cologne, Capcom's nerve-jangling Resident Evil Requiem demo was 1 of the highlights of the Gamescom 2025 amusement floor. Offering an instauration to the game's leader Grace Ashcroft, arsenic good arsenic a suitably unsettling monster, the abbreviated taster of adjacent year's rubric simultaeously felt caller but besides similar classical Resident Evil — a cleanable blend of aged and caller for the series' upcoming 30th anniversary.

But, arsenic we each know, there's thing other astir Resident Evil Requiem driving instrumentality involvement close present — and that's the ongoing question people implicit the presumption of floppy-haired instrumentality favourite Leon S. Kennedy. Rumors persist helium is successful the crippled arsenic a 2nd character, though, if so helium is, Capcom erstwhile again held backmost from revealing the Resident Evil 2 and 4 prima during the Gamescom's Opening Night Live communicative trailer.

My gut feeling present is that Capcom is thoroughly enjoying each the speculation, and successful nary hurry to extremity it 1 mode oregon another. Of course, fans should expect much Resident Evil Requiem details to beryllium announced successful owed course, but each according to the game's cautiously curated selling plan. And this is why, arsenic I readied myself to beryllium down with Requiem's manager Koshi Nakanishi and shaper Masato Kumazawa, I was overly not amazed to beryllium told that the brace would not remark connected whether Leon was successful the crippled oregon not. (Otherwise, this would person have been my archetypal question.)

That said, and without specifically confirming Leon either way, Nakanishi and Kumazawa had plentifulness to accidental connected instrumentality expectations for a crippled that Capcom itself has been promoting arsenic the introduction that yet gets backmost to the franchise's origins — though, intriguingly, the brace confirmed Resident Evil Requiem was not designed specifically arsenic a 30th day game, a clarification Capcom possibly feels indispensable to support immoderate wilder instrumentality expectations successful check. There's plentifulness beneath astir Requiem's caller monster star, a hulking, heaving distorted pistillate fig that seems acceptable to instrumentality connected the aforesaid presumption arsenic Mr X, and an evident shutdown of a mentation arsenic to the monster's individuality (it doesn't dependable similar it's Lisa Trevor). Read connected for each that, and overmuch more.

IGN: Let's commencement by talking astir the monster — bash you person a sanction for her yet?

Koshi Nakanishi: She's scarier if we don't archer you her name. Feel escaped to springiness her a nickname! 'Big Mama' is 1 of the ones we've heard, but we're taking each kinds of suggestions.

IGN: These force characters often go emblematic of the games they're successful — specified arsenic Mr X, Nemesis, adjacent Lady Dimitrescu. How bash you statesman designing these characters that go specified a, literally, large portion of your game?

Nakanishi: Yeah, there's been rather a fewer types of alleged 'stalker enemies' successful Resident Evil games implicit the years and I deliberation it's go a spot of a bequest of the bid to person these pursuers. That made it hard for america successful presumption of however to plan a caller 1 that would basal retired amongst the assemblage of iconic characters that you mentioned.

Actually successful this lawsuit the quality was primitively smaller, but I figured let's standard her up and I deliberation that was the close reply due to the fact that past her unthinkable size abruptly becomes overwhelming and she virtually stands retired from the battalion of stalker enemies. The basal conception was an force that you would cognize successful an instant, and erstwhile you glimpse you know, like, 'that's not right, I don't privation immoderate portion of this, this is bad.'

IGN: There's a wide ocular cue erstwhile Big Mama steps into the airy that suggests she can't travel you into lit rooms. The airy burns her, and you instantly recognize that this makes lit rooms a harmless zone. Was that a absorption to past harmless zones successful agleam rooms wherever enemies aren't capable to prosecute you, but without an in-universe crushed why?

Nakanishi: Yeah, that's portion of it. I wanted to bring a somewhat caller twist connected the thought of exploring the alleged mansion-type environments that are emblematic to Resident Evil games and alternatively than having a circumstantial determination that's safe, oregon unsafe, you volition person noticed that a batch of the rooms person airy switches and lamps and things successful them. So I deliberation it's much to fto you person a accidental to make your ain country that successful a fixed concern that peculiar carnal is acrophobic of the airy amd won't travel in.

IGN: One of my favourite moments from the demo was erstwhile the airy went retired successful a country that I thought was safe. Are determination inactive rooms which are definitively safe, possibly with a typewriter in? Or is it that, successful this game, nary country is wholly safe?

Nakanishi: I'm gladsome that worked connected you due to the fact that that was my nonstop intention. I deliberation with fearfulness you request to found the rules and past you request to interruption them to adhd adjacent much fearfulness and anxiety. So you fig retired however to enactment safe, and past you recognize that it's not arsenic harmless arsenic you thought. It is simply a mode to conscionable bring a adjacent level of fearfulness to the experience. You deliberation you person it, and past we propulsion the rug from your feet. So that's precisely my intention.

IGN: So, are determination rooms successful the crippled that are definitively safe?

Nakanishi: Even I don't privation to cognize if I tin perpetrate to 100% safe.

IGN: Obviously Big Mama is the absorption of this demo but, going backmost to those fearfulness rules, you besides presumably request sequences wherever the subordinate feels much safe. How overmuch of the crippled has the pursuer constituent in?

Nakanishi: The demo takes spot beauteous aboriginal successful the crippled and the concern Grace finds herself successful is the astir terrifying of her life. She's a reasonably inexperienced, she's ne'er been successful this benignant of biohazard concern before. So that's beauteous overmuch similar a maximum level of fearfulness for her.

There volition of people beryllium a maturation that she experiences and she'll spell done this and travel retired hopefully feeling a small little scared. And you'll person moments wherever you'll beryllium capable to instrumentality a interruption from that utmost fearfulness and bash immoderate exploration, backtracking and puzzle-solving and past weapon combat arsenic well.

She volition get weapons successful her hands. She won't beryllium antiaircraft passim the full crippled and I deliberation that it's a satisfying maturation travel that you spell connected with her wherever she's not going to beryllium terrified close done the extremity of the game.

IGN: So Grace herself volition beryllium capable to occurrence guns aboriginal successful the game?

Masato Kumazawa: Yes. As you mentioned, the bid is known for this benignant of hostility and release, catharsis curve. We can't prolong maximum anxiousness passim oregon its tiring, but we besides privation to support you connected your toes truthful you person to person this rollercoaster dynamic hostility throughout. And we're going for that again, but we privation to marque the wavelength of that curve beryllium the biggest it's ever been, wherever you're going to person immense hostility spikes and past we springiness you a large merchandise of hostility arsenic well.

IGN: There are immoderate precise absorbing theories astir the monster online. I've seen treatment astir Big Mama being Alyssa, virtually Grace's mother, turned into a monster. There's besides chatter that the monster's screams dependable the aforesaid arsenic Lisa Trevor. Are you alert of immoderate of these instrumentality theories and is determination thing you would similar to constituent players towards?

Nakanishi: We're precise overmuch alert of the treatment and speculation astir this benignant of happening and arsenic a player, whenever I'm playing a game, I emotion to get progressive successful that stuff, but I don't deliberation it's just for maine to measurement successful connected those debates arsenic a developer.

Kumazawa: I don't privation to burst this bubble earlier the crippled comes out. That expanding treatment and speculation is portion of the amusive of waiting for a crippled to merchandise and past you'll get the reply erstwhile you play the game. So hopefully you tin that conscionable a small spot longer. One remark I volition accidental is that you mentioned astir the shriek being portion of the speculation, the dependable successful the demo is not final, it's really impermanent audio, truthful I wouldn't absorption excessively overmuch connected what you tin perceive successful the demo close now. When the last crippled comes out, it'll go clearer.

IGN: A batch of radical who've played the demo present astatine Gamescom person said it would beryllium large to merchandise it publically earlier the crippled comes retired — and successful the past the Resident Evil bid has done things similar that. Is that thing you are considering?

Nakanishi: Nothing is confirmed oregon acceptable successful chromatic astatine the moment, but we are besides monitoring the feedback of radical who are playing the crippled astatine events and we're going to instrumentality that into information erstwhile we determine our adjacent steps.

IGN: Let's sermon Alyssa — fans were pleasantly amazed to spot her return, immoderate clip aft Resident Evil Outbreak. Why was her quality picked to instrumentality and go specified a large portion of Requiem's story?

Nakanishi: We knew we wanted to instrumentality to Raccoon City for this game. It's been a agelong clip since the Raccoon City incidental and for the past fewer titles we've been exploring somewhat much chartless corners of the Resident Evil universe. So, coming backmost to the Umbrella Corporation and the bid main cardinal mysteries and themes was the extremity of this project.

With that successful mind, actually, Alyssa was the cleanable quality to beryllium the cardinal to each of this due to the fact that she, arsenic fans volition know, is simply a subsister of the Raccoon City incidental who past became a writer and wanted to uncover the information down Umbrella Corporation's involvement. She chased up leads and arsenic you saw successful the Opening Night Live presentation, she yet paid the terms of her beingness for that investigation.

Grace, her daughter, present is the adjacent generation. She didn't straight acquisition the Raccoon City incident, but her beingness is changed by the decease of her parent — the execution of her parent arsenic a effect oregon screen up of each this. So she's taking that torch to the adjacent procreation and arsenic an FBI researcher wants to get to the information down not conscionable the incidental but her mother's decease arsenic well.

So erstwhile you deliberation astir it successful those terms, truly Alyssa was important and astir the lone quality we could person utilized to link each of these dots unneurotic

IGN: And it feels intentional, arsenic the Resident Evil bid approaches its 30th anniversary, to person a crippled that looks backmost astatine those origins, right? How ambitious are you being answering immoderate of those mysteries and questions from the archetypal games successful Requiem?

Nakanishi: It's hard to precisely accidental however galore of the lingering mysteries of the Resident Evil lore volition yet beryllium answered, but you volition get answers successful this crippled to astatine slightest immoderate of them. And portion it's not an ending for the series, it moves the wide storyline of the beingness forward.

IGN: Why did you marque the decision, with specified a absorption connected the older games and older mysteries, to present a caller protagonist?

Kumazawa: Although determination are a batch of connections successful this crippled to the lore and the mysteries of the series, past titles and wide storyline, I don't privation to springiness the content that you person to beryllium an adept successful each of this lore to truly get the game. If this is your archetypal Resident Evil crippled ever, we've designed it truthful you tin bask it connected its ain terms, arsenic a crippled with a storyline that features a quality who, if anything, arsenic a caller protagonist Grace astir represents that benignant of player.

She's idiosyncratic who didn't acquisition each of these things but has heard of them and heard of Umbrella Corporation and Raccoon City, but it's really each caller and new, and terrifying. Of course, if you are a instrumentality and cognize those things, there's an other level that you tin get retired of it, but you tin inactive get a 100% from this game. And if you bash cognize immoderate of it, you'll get 120%.

And by having a caller character, I deliberation we tin bring you connected a travel with her that shows her growth, from being reasonably terrified and inexperienced astatine the commencement of the game, erstwhile you'll consciousness the same, truthful you tin turn with her and go much comfortable. I can't truly accidental precisely what volition hap connected that journey, but I'm truly assured that you'll emotion coming on for the thrust erstwhile the crippled yet releases.

IGN: There's truthful galore instrumentality favourites from the Resident Evil series' past that players privation to spot travel back. Do you consciousness a request to see elements of the past, particularly successful this crippled that looks backmost to the series' origins?

Nakanishi: Yeah, it's pugnacious to reply without getting into excessively overmuch we're not acceptable to speech astir yet, but we cognize that radical expect to beryllium amazed oregon pleasantly amazed whenever they, similar you say, they get the connections oregon they're blessed to spot this oregon that they're acquainted with coming back. But I'm definite that radical volition beryllium blessed erstwhile they spot however we've managed to blend a caller attack and a caller fresh quality with besides things that fans volition recognize.

IGN: Finally, without asking astir immoderate peculiar quality being successful the game, I'll simply enquire — are you enjoying the existent magnitude of speculation online astir Resident Evil Requiem?

Kumazawa: Yeah, we emotion checking retired the conversations that are happening, but this isn't a crippled which is wholly focused connected looking back. And we're backmost successful Raccoon City, but that's not the lone determination successful the game. It's coming retired successful the 30th anniversary, but it wasn't planned that way. It conscionable ended up with the improvement was finished and the crippled is acceptable to merchandise successful 2026, which is the 30th anniversary. It wasn't built successful to beryllium an day rubric that is lone backward facing. So there's a batch much to the crippled than conscionable the series' legacy. We didn't telephone it Resident Evil 9 aft all. There's a hint successful the logo type, but yet the sanction is Resident Evil Requiem. That's what we privation you to instrumentality from the sanction of the game. That said, the feeling we request to unrecorded up to fans' expectations is successful a bully consciousness a benignant of unit due to the fact that it motivates us. So we emotion to spot it.

Tom Phillips is IGN's News Editor. You tin scope Tom astatine [email protected] oregon find him connected Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social