Resident Evil 8 Rumours: If, When, What, How?

Being one of the biggest franchises in the entire industry, Resident Evil attracts more attention with each new turn. Sequels, movies and them remakes all did well. But will there be a Resident Evil 8? What happened to the world (and to Umbrella Corporation) next? Will there be new heroes, or will Ethan Winters and Chris Redfield still remain the protagonists? Will it feature the first-person view once again or return to third-person mode?

These questions kept hanging on until recently. And now, due to some leak, there is even clearer evidence that Resident Evil 8 is in production. But nothing is for sure so far. The best thing we can do is trust the insider named AestheticGamer (a.k.a. DuskGolem) who posts leaked information on Twitter.

All the following is based either on leaks or on common sense, illustrated by precedents from the franchise’s history. Not a single hypothesis from these is confirmed by Capcom or any other officials who might develop or publish the game. Sometimes silence speaks the loudest, though.

Does Resident Evil 8 Exist at All?

Briefly: the answer is affirmative. Though the franchise seemed to drown in remakes and remasters recently, Capcom doesn’t want to go in circles forever. But it doesn’t run through production as smoothly as it could.

The new installment may get a different name, though. Instead of the expected Resident Evil 8, it may get an extended name. It seems logical, as numbers are now left for the remake series. But, as we’ll see later, it can be even more complicated, resulting in two different games. Intrigued?

What Will Resident Evil 8 Be About?

The previous rumor wave had it that the game would be set neither in the US nor in Japan, but in some unnamed (maybe even fictional) European country. It’s hard now to stay away from disaster if you dwell in Europe, and the theater of Resident Evil 8 is no exception. The country is full of monsters, the modern werewolves created during experiments on creating new biological weapons. Nothing is incredible under the Umbrella logo.

Yet the leak by AestheticGamer tells that these rumors have got obsolete, as the project has been rebooted, with most (maybe all) of its ideas ditched. In theory, it could be anywhere, from the Moon to Raccoon City. Still, it doesn’t mean that European snowy slopes are lost forever.

What about Visuals and Gameplay?

There have been shifts in the seventh installment, as it’s the first game of the series that involved first-person view. More than that: it was the first VR-ready installment that allowed players to enjoy the best possible immersion with PS VR or PC VR headsets. On the other hand, a story was quite a small one, with obvious back-to-the-roots reference. The new protagonist was quite an ordinary man, and the mission had nothing in common with saving the world.

As an unknown insider told BiohazardCast, Resident Evil 8 will also feature Ethan Winters, and the environment would be a snowy winter somewhere in Europe. As for Chris Redfield, he will probably appear as a non-playable. There will also be an unclear female antagonist, but she is obviously not one of the zombie horde and not a werewolf of the potential enemies. The canonical zombies will appear too, though; Europe is quite traditional there. The rumors have it that in 2019 the game was already in testing.

This contradicts the inside information from AestheticGamer, who said that the described version of RE 8 had been in production since 2016; but then, in late 2019, it was cancelled, and the work restarted from scratch. If so, the actual RE 8 has less than one year until new generation consoles hit the stores. But it may be just at that time that we learn the official Resident Evil 8 release date, or maybe even see the Resident Evil 8 trailer.

Another Resident Evil Game to Come?

It would be logical to continue the story with the two protagonists of the seventh installment, as both Ethan Winters and Chris Redfield are alive by the time the story ends. But suddenly, they are meant to appear in another RE game. This “another RE game”, neither a remake nor the RE 8, is mentioned by AestheticGamer; but if not this or that, then what?

Probably it will be a purely VR product; but if so, its chances suddenly depend on the reception of Half-Life: Alyx (scheduled in March 2020). If AAA franchises root down well in this new ground, VR experiments in the Resident Evil universe may continue. If not, the game can be either made a traditional one or canceled at all.

So, it seems the most realistic that the upcoming Resident Evil sequel is split in two for a reason. There will be a conditional Resident Evil 8 that continues the story – a first-person survival featuring Ethan Winters again. Its production was restarted in late 2019, so there’s no need to expect it soon. Probably it happened because of the hiatus caused by the development of RE 2 remake and DLC for RE 7. It might make the developers drop the original concepts and drafts in favor of new ones.

Along with it, a separate VR game may appear that features other modes, probably the most immersive multiplayer in the Resident Evil universe ever. It will hear a different name and maybe utilize some ideas that were pushed away while restarting RE 8. The fact of its existence is confirmed by AestheticGamer; the rest, including its VR focusing, is just guessing.

Don’t Believe the Hype, It’s a Sequel?

The information about the “European story” has been sent through tips line on BiohazardCast, and it’s publicly available. Anyone could do it, in fact. So it may be just somebody’s wish, expressed publicly in order to influence the actual development, or for any other reason. The source of this info remains unrevealed.

On the contrary, AestheticGamer has already published some leaks that finally proved right. So it was with the previous installment, Resident Evil 7, as well as with its expansions and RE 2 remake. So if he or she says about some game that had been in production until cancellation in late 2019, we better believe it and not expect a new installment as soon as the new consoles arrive. On the other hand, AestheticGamer said no other remakes are now in production, so the team is focused on a new game (or two games).

Realistic Expectations? Revealed Emotions? Rough Encore?

What do you expect from the sequels to come? We have come to the conclusion that, instead of remakes, Capcom prepares a fully-fledged sequel and a VR spinoff; but maybe you have a different point of view? What can you say about the franchise in general? Drop a comment if you will, and we’ll be glad to hear.