When is the Resident Evil 9 launch date? 2026 marks the thirtieth anniversary of Capcom’s beloved survival horror collection, and it stands to motive that the following installment is as a lot a glance again at what got here earlier than as it’s one other step ahead. The official reveal at Summer time Recreation Fest was nearly as good a affirmation as any.
RE9, in any other case generally known as Resident Evil Requiem, takes us again to Raccoon Metropolis for the primary time following its destruction on the finish of RE3. It is one of the vital iconic horror recreation places and holds numerous recollections for Resident Evil’s characters, historical past, and followers. Put together for this zombie-infested journey down reminiscence lane with every part we all know in regards to the RE9 launch date, together with the most recent trailers, information, and theories.
Resident Evil Requiem launch date
The Resident Evil 9 launch date is Friday, February 27, 2026. It is accessible on PC through Steam, together with PlayStation 5 and Xbox Collection X/S for console customers.
Resident Evil 9 was formally confirmed throughout Summer time Recreation Fest in a shock reveal trailer. “After I first bought a glimpse of this undertaking final summer time, I used to be completely blown away by the dimensions, scope, and ambition of this developer’s imaginative and prescient,” host Geoff Keighley stated in his preamble to the trailer.

Resident Evil 9 trailers
The RE9 reveal trailer was brief however candy, portray the broad strokes of Requiem’s story by way of a collection of cutscenes. The three-and-a-half minutes we bought had been notably with out gameplay, however the footage appears to be like to be operating in-engine with post-processing results. This is not too dissimilar to what we noticed for the RE Village announcement trailer, which was adopted by a full gameplay trailer a number of months later.
Resident Evil 9 characters
Our newest protagonist is Grace Ashcroft, an FBI technical analyst and daughter of Resident Evil Outbreak’s Alyssa Ashcroft. As a survivor of Raccoon Metropolis, Alyssa was the investigative reporter who uncovered Umbrella’s bio-organic weapons testing and was liable for the Raccoon Trials that ultimately buried the corporate.
It is a powerful act to observe, however Grace is about to observe in her mom’s footsteps to the Wrenwood Resort, the place she was supposedly murdered throughout an investigation. We are saying supposedly, as a result of it isn’t like RE characters getting back from the useless would not have precedent. We’re you, Wesker. And Ada. And Krauser. And – you get the purpose.
On this case, getting trendy audiences reacquainted with Alyssa Ashcroft can be the right preamble for a Resident Evil Outbreak remake. Outbreak was the primary RE recreation particularly designed for co-op, however its on-line performance struggled, and most gamers have solely skilled it with AI companions. It is unlikely that we’ll see devoted co-op help in Requiem, however Capcom will possible construct upon companion behaviours we have seen in Ashley, Carlos, and Jill.
We hear quite a few character voice strains in the course of the reveal trailer, so we already know Requiem will not be a lonely affair. Some followers even swear that they’ll determine these voices as Leon, Jill, Carlos, and even Chris. Leon Kennedy and Raccoon Metropolis go collectively like viruses and shady pharmaceutical corporations, and we have even seen some hypothesis floating round that Requiem might spell his finish.
Resident Evil 9 story
However cling on, did not we see Raccoon Metropolis get nuked within the remaining cutscene of Resident Evil 3? Not fairly. Whereas it was engulfed in a mushroom cloud, RE3 author Yasuhisa Kawamura clarified that it was an experimental thermobaric bomb within the official guidebook. The mom of all bombs, sure, however not a nuclear one. Whether or not you’d contemplate this established canon or a blatant retcon, the actual fact stays that Grace is about to enterprise into the cratered stays of Raccoon Metropolis with no Geiger counter. Sorry, Stalker followers.
It is unclear if the Wrenwood Resort is even within the neighborhood of Raccoon Metropolis, however odds are that it will be the primary location we’ll go to in RE9 as Grace investigates beneath FBI SAIC Dempsey’s orders. Its dilapidated corridors and exterior counsel a cross between RE7’s Baker home and Silent Hill 2’s Wooden Facet Residences. Little doubt that loads of scares are in retailer as Grace comes head to head with Resident Evil’s shambling hordes for the primary time.
The most important thriller of RE9 is the identification of the hooded man who seems within the reveal trailer. He is probably Requiem’s primary villain, however let’s not get forward of ourselves – the probabilities of it being Albert Wesker are slim to none. The reveal trailer features a shot by which Grace is strapped to a gurney, a bloody bandage wrapped round her chest as blood is drawn from her arm with an IV. This tells us three issues: whoever has her tied down clearly has a medical background, a vested curiosity in protecting her alive, and an obvious use for her blood.
Since we all know that Grace’s mom was contaminated by the T-Virus and subsequently cured, there is a risk that she handed down traces of the virus to her daughter, identical to Rose Winters in RE Village. Provided that our thriller man calls Grace the “chosen one,” it is clear there’s extra to her than meets the attention. Maybe he is one other Outbreak survivor searching for a treatment, or Oswell E. Spencer as much as his outdated methods. Positive, we did see Wesker put a knife by way of his chest, however what they are saying: you’ll be able to’t maintain a megalomaniacal bio-terrorist down.
Ed, our resident (ahem) professional, has his doubts that Requiem is “rooted within the playful, horror-movie-double-bill tone of the originals.” Nevertheless, like me, he stays hopeful that Capcom will not go too far down the self-serious path laid by RE9’s reveal trailer. Grace’s ongoing investigation into an “unidentified illness” within the reveal trailer locations extra emphasis on the Progenitor Virus as a type of bio-terrorism, relatively than only a enjoyable excuse to pit our human heroes in opposition to zombies, mutants, and tyrants. Regardless, if Requiem can provide us greater than only a nostalgia shot of Raccoon Metropolis, we’ll be seated.
Resident Evil 9 gameplay
The RE9 reveal trailer may need been gentle on gameplay, however the Resident Evil formulation is long-established by now, and we do not anticipate there to be any main divergence in Requiem. We needn’t see a gameplay trailer to know there will be sufficient stock administration, esoteric puzzles, and speedrun potential to fulfill essentially the most informal RE fan.
Going by the reveal trailer, Requiem is sticking to the first-person perspective that we have loved from the mainline entries since RE7. With the horror entrance and middle on our screens, we would not be shocked to see Capcom lean into the spookiest moments in RE7 and Village. Brace for jumpscares.
Now that you simply’re ready to return to Raccoon Metropolis in RE9, hop into a few of our favourite zombie video games to get the following neatest thing earlier than it arrives. We have additionally bought a whole listing of the most effective PC video games to play when you wait.