Resident Evil Requiem's dual protagonists will feature two styles of gameplay, which the developers describe as “jumping into a cold bath after a hot sauna.”
Last night at The Game Awards, Capcom has announced that Leon Kennedy will indeed be playable in the next main installment of the horror series, after much fan speculation and leak at the beginning of the week. Since then, director Akifumi Nakanishi and producer Masato Kumazawa have shed more light on how the dual leads will differ.
Grace is “the biggest scaredy cat in Resident Evil history,” Nakanishi said. Machineand “Leon is a seasoned veteran, so watching these personalities interact is part of the fun.”
He also confirmed that the two characters are “split almost equally” and have a similar structure to the 3DS game. Resident Evil: Revelations.
“I’ve said before that Leon doesn’t really lend itself to horror films,” Nakanishi said. “Because the quiet parts where you hide in front of monsters don't suit him, his chapters focus on intense, adrenaline-pumping action. On the other hand, parts of Grace are scarier. This time we are really highlighting the difference in their experience.”
He continued: “It's almost like two games with completely different types of tension mixed together. At first we were worried that 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. It was important to have a good mix of slow and fast segments, and Grace and Leon were the best combination for that. Leon also has a lot of new actions, giving you a strong sense of relaxation compared to Grace's sequences.”
In this way, Grace's sections resemble Resident Evil 2and Leon will be closer to Resident Evil 4. After all, these are arguably the two most popular games in the series.
Confirming the existence of two characters and their different playstyles also speaks to the “tension and release throughout the game.” Nakanishi previously told Eurogamer. “I think Resident Evil is really unique among horror games,” he said. “We don’t just scare you—we offer you a chance to relieve that stress by overcoming it all.”
Nakanishi also spoke with Automaton about Leon's design, which was transformed into an “ikeoji,” slang for a cool and attractive older man. “After all, there are also many Leon fans within the company,” Kumazawa said.
Nakanishi added, “Also, this is Leon's first return to Raccoon City since Resident Evil 2, so another major point of interest is how he reacts to 'the place where it all began' now that he's older.”
Resident Evil Requiem will be released on February 27 next year on PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Switch 2 and Steam. Resident Evil 7 and Village will also be released on Nintendo consoles.
