RE9’s Leak Would Be a Double-Edged Sword for Its Choice of Protagonists

Posted by By our-little-miss-is-home November 30, 2024 49 Views 5 Min Read
RE9’s Leak Would Be a Double-Edged Sword for Its Choice of Protagonists

For better or for worse, Resident Evil is inherently campy. Its survival-horror gameplay is often tense and epic, but its grandiose storytelling stakes and bizarre, comedic dialogue have almost always kept it from taking itself too seriously. Likewise, the whimsy, charm, and bravado of Resident Evil’s legacy characters are staples of its protagonists with Ethan Winters only beginning to inherit such traits in Resident Evil Village. It’s undeniable, though, that characters like Leon S. Kennedy, Chris Redfield, and Jill Valentine have all been portrayed as confident soldiers armed with witty one-liners and impressive acrobatics.




Each new entry in Resident Evil’s mainline continuity begs the question of who its protagonist(s) will be, and not without good reason. Resident Evil’s choice of protagonists is paramount as it basically decides the tone of the game, at least regarding how players are able to interpret its events; Resident Evil 4 might’ve been a terrifying experience if not for Leon suplexing ganados and joking that they all ceased attacking him in the village ambush to go play bingo, for example. That’s why recent rumors suggesting that Leon and Jill could be lead protagonists in Resident Evil 9 come with trepidation as well as celebration.

every resident evil 9 leak so far

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Every Resident Evil 9 Leak So Far

A series of leaks about Resident Evil 9 have surfaced on the internet, suggesting a major new chapter in the horror franchise is coming.

Resident Evil 9 Going All-Out with Legacy Mascots Must Be Fan Service Done Right


The implication Resident Evil 9’s latest rumors make is that Capcom is finally willing to indulge in fan service that many players have demanded concerning legacy mascot characters and their lack of appearances or closure in recent mainline titles. Resident Evil 7 and Resident Evil Village feature Chris Redfield, ensuring that these characters’ stories aren’t all necessarily retired yet.

Still, with as many beloved mascots as Resident Evil has who have either led their own game or had a recurring role, there are tons of fan favorites in the bunch with a die-hard community hoping to learn what’s become of them. Jill Valentine has long deserved a follow-up in-game after the physical and psychological torment she endured in Resident Evil 5, for example, and with Chris being so prominent in Resident Evil’s latest mainline games it would be exciting to learn what his sister Claire is up to in the present day, too.

Such closure is earned at this point, and if legacy characters are brought back at all it could be a wonderful opportunity to supply them with noble send-offs.


Resident Evil’s Horror Potential Skyrockets with New Protagonists

It’s only an odd lateral move on Capcom’s part if it goes with legacy mascots in Resident Evil 9 rather than new protagonists because of how definitive and bold the latter choice was for Resident Evil 7 and its direct sequel. Of course, the direction two entries make aren’t necessarily an indication of what any future game will look like.

That said, Ethan Winters played a huge role in revitalizing the franchise as it gave Resident Evil the opportunity of a brand-new lens. That’s not to say legacy characters have no more interesting stories to tell, but Ethan being an everyman archetype worked greatly in Resident Evil’s favor as it could finally revel in deep survival-horror tropes that actually had stakes for the protagonist involved, unlike a battle-hardened veteran armed to the teeth and unafraid of any bioweapon they came across.


That’s all stripped away again if Resident Evil 9 reverts back to legacy mascots. Even though there’s a wealth of potential to be had with these characters in new games, mascot familiarity and fan service could come at the cost of Resident Evil maintaining the degree of genuine horror that Resident Evil 7 and Village were able to sustain. Only time will tell how true that ends up being, let alone how true Resident Evil 9’s rumors turn out to be.

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