With the next Resident Evil Showcase fast approaching, offering new gameplay and details for the highly anticipated Resident Evil Requiem, it’s nearly time for fans to return to Raccoon City. While the development team was curious about exploring the city’s aftermath, fan feedback also played a significant role, according to producer Masato Kumazawa.
Speaking to GamesRadar, he noted how Resident Evil 7: biohazard and Village explored “different directions” for the series. “While we received many positive comments from players, we also received feedback expressing a desire to see the continuation of the main storyline of the series, so we considered a narrative centered around the Raccoon City incident.”
As has been pointed out before, however, this doesn’t represent “the entirety of the setting.” “For instance, the clinic playable in the event version is not actually in Raccoon City,” said Kumazawa, referring to the Rhodes Hill Chronic Care Center. It’s here that Victor Gideon is seemingly holed up and awaiting the likes of Leon S. Kennedy, if the previous trailer is anything to go by.
Of course, Raccoon City is fitting for many other reasons. It’s where several key characters’ fates changed, and it catalyzed the events that would lead to future titles (and disasters). Neo Umbrella, for example, probably would have never emerged in Resident Evil 6 if Derek C. Simmons had never obtained a sample of the G-Virus or suggested bombing Raccoon City to neutralize its outbreak.
Launching on February 27th for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, PC, and Nintendo Switch 2, Resident Evil Requiem is about Grace Ashcroft, who ventures to the Wrenwood Hotel to investigate a series of murders. It’s where her mother, Alyssa, was murdered, and it’s not long before she’s embroiled in Gideon’s sinister plot, which involves releasing something called Elpis.
