Resident Evil 6

2012 is a great year for Resident Evil fans.  Revelations arrives in just a few short weeks on the Nintendo  3DS while March sees the alternate reality story of Operation Raccoon City.  In yet another depressing year of absent horror titles these two (yes, ORC can make you jump) are islands in a desolate sea for those looking to lose control of their bowels.  For the core portion of the franchise however fans have been without a numbered game in the series for almost three years now but that looks to be changing quite soon.

Quietly announcedbehind closed doorsat TGS last year,Capcom showed off the first trailer for Resident Evil 6.  With little more than a flashing screenshot, some text and a title image, there's very little known about the game at this time.  There is no officially available version of the trailer either save for a couple brave souls who sneaked in their video cameras to capture it off-screen which I've included below.  EDIT: it turns out that I didn't do my due dilligance unfortunately as it turns out the trailer was a fake.  Still, it was quite convincing in my opinion.

While the game is relatively unknown at this point signs are now pointing to a full reveal of the game tomorrow, January 19th.  Evidence for this comes two fold, the first of which seems to be a supposed viral campaign called NoHopeLeft.com. The site, which details appearances of "mysterious symbols" popping up along with the date of "19.01.12" has a creepy vibe to it and includes a video (newly subtitled by the way) showing a Chinese woman being attacked by something off-camera.  This supports previous rumors about a Chinese setting for the gamedespite the GPS coordinates listed in the leaked trailer (48.415802, -89.2673) point to Thunder Bay, Canada.  I don't know if that means anything but you never know with this franchise.  The Chinese setting is further supported by voice actress Wendy Mok who listed Resident Evil 6 on her credits list as a "Chinese Villager/Zombie Islander."  The listing was removed shortly thereafter being discovered but that only adds more fuel to the fire.

The second, and probably largest viable piece of evidence comes in the form of an outing Capcom "coincidentally" has planned for January 19.  Tomorrow, a public event in San Francisco set up by Capcom will be showing off Revelations and Operation Raccoon City.  As beloved a franchise as Resident Evil is, a full public unveiling certainly isn't out of the question.

If you are in the San Francisco area tomorrow and attend the event keep your eyes open: Capcom may just have a delightful undead surprise for you.

One thing I will say (and I know I'm going to get flak for this) is that I hope this is a proper conclusion to the core Resident Evil series.  With Umbrella all but dead, Wesker no longer a threat and the series' apparent abandonment of the term "survival" in survival horror in Resident Evil 5 I really don't see the series as worthwhile as it used to be.  I want a horror-oriented title to scare me and that didn't happen once during Chris and Sheva's adventure.  Sure, it was fun (I played it through about 4 times) but I never really felt like I was in danger during the story.  The series needs to get back to its roots: limited ammo, tight corridors, little to no hope and frightening enemies. The plot of RE titles is approaching the point to where it's predictable and even if you start killing off characters (whether off-screen or in-game) there's not much that you can surprise your audience with.

What do you guys think?

Comments

  • Avatar
    MilkyAlien
    12 years, 2 months ago

    The first trailer was said to be fake by Capcom and the second seems to be a viral campaign for RE: Revelations on the 3DS IMO. I think E3 may be a better guess on RE6.

  • Avatar
    falc0npunch
    12 years, 2 months ago

    Chris i don't want to rain on your parade but..... Milla Jovovich tweeted that the New Resident Evil movie teaser would be released tommorow (jan 19th) . sooooo maybe thats what this is. I hope to god that this is not the case but you never know.

  • Avatar
    Dimensaur
    12 years, 2 months ago

    I agree they need to start wrapping up this series. What is left really? I like the looks of Operation Raccoon City and Revelations so here's hoping they keep that level of apparent quality present when this game is finally released (if at all). Also something I noticed at the end of the video in the bottom left corner of the screen is a symbol. It resembles a scorpion or perhaps a rudimentary drawing of a Plagas parasite. Could mean something.

  • Avatar
    drake and his fortune
    12 years, 2 months ago

    I think the GPS thing means it is going to be in Alaska, I mean it IS snowing at the end of the video. If you look at Thunder Bay, the Great Lakes are right beside it, and if you were to mirror them a 6 would kind of form. Im probably over-thinking it.

  • Avatar
    Aged Milk
    12 years, 2 months ago

    I think the franchise is in strong need of a reboot. It needs an excuse to get back to its roots.

    I'd personally like to see a more serious effort to further realize some concepts brought to the table by Outbreak. But that's just my opinion, I'm still dreaming of an openworld, zombie survival game with emphasis on seeking shelter & resource gathering.

  • Avatar
    Resident Evil 6 Outed by Leaked Marketing Assets,
    12 years, 2 months ago

    [...] we brought you word that the reveal of the inevitable sixth entry in the Resident Evil series would take place today, January 19th.  I pointed to a viral marketing site run by a firm contracted with Capcom and a [...]