Last June was a big month forResident Evilfans, thanks to Capcom finally confirming the long-rumored remake ofResident Evil 4and unveilingthe first teaser trailer forResident Evil Village’sDLC. With those still in development and not coming out for quite some time, it’s worth taking a look back on the long list ofResident Evilspin-off games.
Given thatResident Evilhas existed for over two decades, it is unsurprising that Capcom has already released a long list of entries in the franchise. While most fans are focused on the mainlineResident Evilgames, the franchise has since produced several spin-off titles to varying degrees of success.
RELATED:A History of Resident Evil Spin-Off Games
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Resident Evil Revelations 1 & 2 -One interesting thing aboutResident Evil Revelationsand its sequel,Resident Evil Revelations 2, is that most fans don’t really consider them spin-off titles. Apart from featuring popular characters from the mainline franchise, theRevelationsseries also featured new storylines with events that played an essential role in the mainline games. In addition, it is worth noting thata third game in theResident Evil Revelationssubseriesis rumored to be in development.
The firstResident Evil Revelationsgame was released in 2012 for the Nintendo 3DS and starred Jill Valentine. The game gave playersthe vital history of the Bioterrorism Security Assessment Alliance(B.S.A.A), covering how it was formed and how it became an essential organization in the world ofResident Evil.Three years later, a sequel was released featuring Claire Redfield. Similar to its predecessor, the game revealed important information on the organization TerraSave and the mysterious villain Alex Wesker, who was part of the same eugenics project as Albert Wesker.
Resident Evil Outbreak -Although the Resident Evil franchise is primarily played in single-player, the series is no stranger to offering players co-op and online multiplayer gameplay, andResident Evil Outbreakwas the first game to do just that. Taking place from the point of view of several civilians during the Raccoon City disaster,Resident EvilOutbreakoffered fans a new way to playResident Evil.While the game was a massive success, its online functionality was ahead of its time, given that online multiplayer modes via consoles were still rare. Nonetheless,Resident Evil Outbreakwas praised for its graphics, story, and multiplayer experience.
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Resident Evil Outbreak: File 2 -Given the success ofResident Evil Outbreak, a standalone sequel was released shortly after featuring the same eight characters, and it is also set in the zombie-infested Raccoon City. Five new scenarios were added to the game, offering players new storylines to pursue and even more locations to explore in the iconic city. Unfortunately,Resident Evil Outbreak: File 2received mixed reactions from fans and critics.A third game in theOutbreaksubserieswas rumored to be in development but was believed to be scrapped due to the game’s low sales performance.
Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles and The Darkside Chronicles -Throughout its long history, it is no secret thatResident Evildoesn’t shy away from experimenting with various play styles, and this is prevalent in the light gun shootersResident Evil: The Umbrella ChroniclesandThe Darkside Chronicles.
Story-wise, both games don’t offer much in terms of storytelling, given that they are basically a retelling of the mainline entries in the franchise.Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chroniclessummarized the events ofResident Evil 0, 1,and3, whileThe Dark Side ChroniclescoveredResident Evil 2andCode Veronica. However, both games do offer original scenarios. InResident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles,players witnessed Chris Redfield andJill Valentine’s encounter with Project TALOS, whileThe Darkside Chroniclesexplored Leon Kennedy and Jack Krauser’s relationship, serving as a prequel toResident Evil 4.
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Resident Evil: Survivor -While first-personResident Evilgames are nothing new, thanks toResident Evil 7andVillage, it wasResident Evil: Survivorthat first strayed away from the traditional third-person perspective. Launching in the year 2000,Resident Evil: Survivorfollows the story of an amnesiac pilot who was investigatingthe Umbrella Corporation. Unfortunately, althoughResident Evil: Survivoroffered players a new way to play aResident Evilgame, it did not live up to expectations and received mixed reviews.
Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D- One gameplay element that has beena staple in severalResident Evilgames is the Mercenaries mode, andResident Evil: The Mercenaries 3Dis the culmination of this unique gameplay mechanic. Released in 2011 for the 3DS,Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3Dfeatured the mini-games inResident Evil 4and5, where players must defeat as many enemies in a set time limit. While its play style isn’t technically akin to traditionalResident Evilgames,The Mercenaries 3Doffered players a fun shooting game featuring their favorite characters and enemies from the franchise.
Resident Evil: Resistance- Several years ago, asymmetrical-multiplayer survival games became popular, and it is no surprise thatResident Evilimmediately jumped on the bandwagon. Serving asthe online component ofResident Evil 3 Remake,Resident Evil: Resistancedivides players into four survivors and one mastermind. The main task of survivors is to survive each level, which is made difficult by the mastermind who must create traps, dispatch enemies, and fill each level with all sorts of hazards. Unfortunately, whileResident Evil: Resistancepiqued some players' interest, the overall reception was mixed due to the repetitive gameplay.
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Resident Evil Dead Aim- In 2003, Capcom released another entry in theResident Evil Gun Survivorsubseries calledResident Evil: Dead Aim. Similar to its predecessors,Dead Aimfeatures light-gun shooter gameplay matched up with a combination of first and third-person perspectives. In addition, the game features the new character, Bruce McGivern, who was a member of a U.S. government task force dedicated to taking down the Umbrella Corporation. Unfortunately, just like most characters fromResident Evilspin-off games, Bruce wasn’t received well by players and has since disappeared from the franchise.
Resident Evil Gaiden- Similar toResident Evil Revelations 1and2,Resident Evil: Gaiden, released for the Game Boy Color, also featured characters from the main franchise. Taking place on a passenger ship that has succumbed to a viral outbreak,Leon Kennedyand Barry Burton join forces as they attempt to contain another incident from happening. While fans would have no objection to seeing Leon and Barry together in a game, the story ofResident Evil: Gaidenis considered non-canon, given that its plot contradicted the story of the main franchise.
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Resident Evil Survivor: Code Veronica -Despite the mixed reviews received byResident Evil Survivor,the game did receive a sequel in the form ofResident Evil Survivor: Code Veronica.It is worth noting that the sequel’s story doesn’t have any ties to its predecessor and is merely a summarized retelling ofResident Evil: Code Veronica, but in a light-gun shooter style. Unfortunately,Resident Evil Survivor: Code Veronicawasn’t received as well since the story made it appear that the whole thing was justClaire Redfield’snightmare. Its limited release in only a handful of countries and its extremely short playtime averaging 1-2 hours did not help matters.
Resident Evil Operation Raccoon City- After the successful release ofResident Evil Revelationsin 2012, Capcom also launchedResident Evil: Operation Raccoon City. However, unlikeRevelations, which brought the franchise back to its survival horror roots,Operation Raccoon Citydid the opposite. It reinforced the action-heavy gameplay that displeased core fans of the franchise. However, despite its action-shooter gameplay,Operation Raccoon Citydid something interesting by offering fans a different perspective during the Raccoon City incident. Still, the game allowed players to alter the events ofResident Evil 2and3, which did not sit well with fans and made its story non-canon.
Not a Resident Evil Game
Umbrella Corps -Despite the mixed reception ofResident Evil: Operation Raccoon City, Capcom decided that it was not through with action-heavy shooters, and thus,Umbrella Corpswas released in 2016. Interestingly enough, it seems that Capcom was anticipating the negative receptionResident Evilfans would eventually hurl atUmbrella Corps,given that the studio didn’t even put theResident Evilname in its title. Unsurprisingly, fans of the franchise rejected it as a trueResident Evilgame, which was reflected inUmbrella Corps’negative review scores.
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