After years of increasingly action-oriented entries, Resident Evil 9 Requiem is making a bold statement: pure survival horror is back. Director Koshi Nakanishi has been crystal clear about his vision for the upcoming title, explicitly comparing it to the horror-focused approaches of Resident Evil 7 and the RE2 remake rather than the more combat-heavy Village and RE4 remake.
But what does this really mean for players, and why is Capcom steering the franchise back toward its terrifying origins?
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The Action Problem
The Resident Evil series has always walked a tightrope between action and horror, but recent entries tilted heavily toward the former. Village, while critically acclaimed, often felt more like a supernatural action-adventure than a horror experience. Players could accumulate massive arsenals, mow down enemies with ease, and rarely felt the resource scarcity that defined classic RE games.
Even the RE4 remake, despite its masterful execution, leaned into its action roots. Leon’s knife parrying system and abundant ammunition made players feel empowered rather than vulnerable—the exact opposite of what survival horror should achieve.
“If I had to compare it to past titles, it’s more along the lines of Resident Evil 7 or the Resident Evil 2 remake,” Nakanishi explained in a recent interview. “You could call it so-called old school Resident Evil, you know, with exploration and backtracking and that kind of thing.”
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Grace: The Perfect Protagonist for Pure Horror
RE9’s return to horror starts with its protagonist. Grace Ashcroft isn’t a superhuman government agent or a mold-powered entity – she’s an FBI analyst thrown into a nightmare scenario she’s completely unprepared for.
“The start point for her is to be incredibly vulnerable and helpless,” Nakanishi revealed. “She hasn’t got any weapons on her and she’s completely unaccustomed to being thrown into this kind of intense situation.”
This vulnerability isn’t just narrative window dressing – it’s fundamental to the horror experience. Unlike Chris Redfield punching boulders or Leon performing superhuman knife combat, Grace represents genuine human fragility. Players will experience authentic terror because Grace herself is genuinely terrified.
The Gamescom demo perfectly exemplifies this approach. Grace wakes up strapped upside down in an unknown facility, with no weapons, no backup, and no idea where she is. She’s pursued by a towering creature that she can’t fight – only hide from or distract with light sources. It’s pure, distilled survival horror.
Learning from House Beneviento’s Success
Nakanishi isn’t shy about drawing inspiration from Village’s most celebrated sequence: the House Beneviento section. This weaponless, puzzle-focused segment was universally praised as the game’s scariest moment – precisely because it stripped away all player empowerment.
“There are similarities to that section for sure,” the director acknowledged. “I think each Resident Evil title has these sort of standalone parts where maybe you don’t have the weapons you’re used to and we can increase the horror feeling with that.”
But RE9 is taking this concept much further. Rather than relegating vulnerability to a single section, the entire game is built around Grace’s journey from helplessness to competence. Players will gradually find weapons and grow stronger, but the foundation remains rooted in fear rather than power fantasy.
The Return of Classic RE Elements
Beyond protagonist vulnerability, RE9 is bringing back several mechanics that defined classic Resident Evil:
Limited Inventory Space: Like RE7, players will face tough decisions about what items to carry, forcing strategic thinking over hoarding.
Resource Scarcity: Ammunition and healing items will be precious commodities, not abundant resources to be wasted.
Exploration and Backtracking: The interconnected world design rewards thorough exploration and requires players to revisit areas with new tools – a hallmark of classic RE design.
Puzzle-Focused Gameplay: Environmental puzzles take precedence over combat encounters, emphasizing brain over brawn.
Ink Ribbons: The return of save limitations adds tension to every decision and progress milestone.
Why the Shift Makes Perfect Sense
This horror renaissance isn’t just nostalgic pandering – it’s a smart business and creative decision. Resident Evil 7’s return to pure horror was both critically acclaimed and commercially successful, proving that audiences hunger for genuine scares. The RE2 remake similarly demonstrated that classic survival horror mechanics could work brilliantly with modern technology.
Moreover, Nakanishi understands that effective horror requires careful pacing. “You can’t keep the horror tension to the max through the whole game because it’s quite exhausting,” he explained. “So you need to have this kind of dynamic pacing curve.”
RE9 promises to perfect this balance, creating what the director describes as “a complete roller coaster ride between the different aspects of the series.”
The Dual Perspective Advantage
RE9’s innovative dual camera system also serves the horror mission. Players who find first-person too intense can switch to third-person for slight relief, while those seeking maximum immersion can stay locked in Grace’s terrified perspective.
“If you start the game off in first person perspective and you’re finding it’s too much, then third person is almost a way to step slightly back from that level of horror,” Nakanishi noted. This accessibility ensures that pure horror can reach a broader audience without compromising intensity for dedicated fans.
A Necessary Course Correction
RE9’s return to survival horror represents more than just a creative choice – it’s a necessary course correction for a franchise that had arguably strayed too far from its roots. While action-heavy entries have their place, the series’ identity lies in making players feel genuinely afraid and vulnerable.
By putting horror first, RE9 isn’t just returning to what made Resident Evil great – it’s potentially defining what the franchise can become in the modern gaming landscape. Grace’s journey from terrified victim to capable survivor promises to remind us why we fell in love with survival horror in the first place.
Sometimes, to move forward, you have to go back to what worked. For Resident Evil 9, that means embracing the darkness once again.
Sources:
GamesRadar+ Interview at Gamescom 2025: https://www.gamesradar.com/games/resident-evil/resident-evil-9-requiem-interview-gamescom-2025/
GamesRadar+ – “RE7 was possibly too scary”: https://www.gamesradar.com/games/resident-evil/resident-evil-7-was-possibly-too-scary-and-some-people-couldnt-handle-it-says-director-koshi-nakanishi-and-thats-why-resident-evil-9-has-a-third-person-mode-to-make-it-slightly-easier-to-deal-with/
GamesRadar+ – “Old School Resident Evil”: https://www.gamesradar.com/games/resident-evil/resident-evil-9-requiem-interview-gamescom-2025/
WCCFtech Coverage: https://wccftech.com/resident-evil-requiem-complete-rollercoaster-ride-never-before/
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