- Dual protagonists allow horror and action to thrive without compromise
- Grace delivers pure survival horror while Leon defines peak combat gameplay
- New systems expand combat and traversal without losing identity
- Requiem feels like a culmination of 30 years of Resident Evil design
I’ll admit it up front. Calling Resident Evil Requiem the potential best entry in the franchise is a bold claim. This is a series with towering highs, generational classics, and a fanbase that doesn’t forgive lightly.
But the more we learn about Capcom’s ninth mainline entry, the clearer it becomes that Requiem isn’t just another sequel. It feels like a deliberate attempt to unify everything the franchise has learned over nearly three decades.
With its launch set for February 27, 2026, Capcom’s silence has been calculated rather than careless. The restrained marketing, followed by the Leon S. Kennedy reveal at The Game Awards 2025, wasn’t about surprise alone. It was about expectation control.
And that confidence matters.
Requiem doesn’t appear interested in reinventing Resident Evil. Instead, it wants to refine it.
A Dual Protagonist Structure That Actually Makes Sense
The decision to pair Leon S. Kennedy with newcomer Grace Ashcroft isn’t just fan service or narrative symmetry. It’s mechanical and thematic. Leon represents the franchise at its most confident. Grace represents vulnerability in its rawest form.
Grace’s gameplay, according to director Koshi Nakanishi, is heavily influenced by survival horror fundamentals. Limited resources. Uncertainty. Fear as a constant companion.
Early footage already suggests her segments channel the tension-first philosophy that made Resident Evil 2 Remake so effective. You aren’t meant to dominate encounters as Grace. You’re meant to endure them.
Leon’s sections, by contrast, are built on the action-forward backbone established by the Resident Evil 4 remake. Fluid movement. Aggressive melee options. Precision gunplay. This isn’t a downgrade in fear. It’s a different flavor of it. When a fully capable character is pushed to the edge, the danger feels earned rather than imposed.
The brilliance here is contrast. Capcom isn’t asking one character to do everything. It’s letting each protagonist embody a different pillar of the franchise.
Where Horror and Action Finally Coexist
Resident Evil has always struggled with balance. Lean too hard into action and tension evaporates. Lean too far into horror and pacing can stall. Requiem looks poised to solve that problem not through compromise, but separation.
Grace’s fear-driven segments heighten vulnerability. Leon’s combat-heavy sections provide release without trivializing the threat. When those experiences intersect, the impact is stronger because the player has felt both extremes.
Leon being described as “at his peak” is more telling than it sounds. Peak competence means Capcom can push him harder than ever before. New melee systems, martial arts inspired combat, and expanded enemy interaction suggest this could be the most expressive combat model the series has seen.
The rumored ability to temporarily use enemy weapons isn’t a gimmick. It’s a natural extension of the improvisational combat philosophy that RE4 introduced.
Meanwhile, Grace’s arc is just as important. Watching a frightened, underprepared character gradually gain confidence has always been effective in Resident Evil. The difference here is that Capcom appears committed to making that transformation mechanical, not just narrative.
New Ideas Without Forgetting the Past
What’s encouraging about Requiem is how it introduces new systems without abandoning identity. Vehicle sections, expanded traversal, and even unexpected brand collaborations feel integrated rather than indulgent. They suggest scale, not spectacle for its own sake.
More importantly, Requiem seems aware of its place in the franchise timeline. It’s positioned as both a culmination and a statement. A reminder of where Resident Evil came from and a signal of where it can still go.
This isn’t nostalgia bait. It’s synthesis.
If Capcom executes on what it’s shown so far, Requiem won’t just be a great Resident Evil game. It will be the clearest expression yet of what the franchise has always tried to be.
And that’s why the claim doesn’t feel reckless anymore. It feels earned.
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