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After years of anticipation and rumors, Capcom finally announced the next mainline entry in the Resident Evil series at Summer Game Fest this year. The game, titled Resident Evil Requiem, is going to an entirely new protagonist named Grace Ashcroft, and it’s scheduled to come out in February 2026. As exciting as Requiem‘s reveal was, it’s not the only upcoming Resident Evil title that’s set to be released in the near future. Capcom confirmed earlier this week that it’s making yet another Resident Evil game; this one, however, is pretty different from those that came before it.
JOYCITY, Aniplex, and Capcom are teaming up to develop a new game called Resident Evil: Survival Unit, and it’s going to be launched for iOS and Android devices in most regions around the world. Because Resident Evil: Survival Unit is a mobile game, a lot of longtime Resident Evil fans will probably be deterred from trying it out. Regardless, though, the game has the potential to mark a significant turning point for the franchise, since it’s one of the first non-multiplayer Resident Evil spin-offs that Capcom has developed in ages. Resident Evil: Survival Unit may not be that exciting on its own, but it could be a sign that Capcom is testing the waters.
Resident Evil: Survival Unit Could Be the First of Several New Resident Evil Spin-Offs
Resident Evil: Survival Unit Takes the RE Franchise Into a New Direction
According to Capcom, Resident Evil: Survival Unit is a survival horror real-time strategy (RTS) game. Although Capcom hasn’t gone into much detail about how the game actually plays, this tidbit of information is fairly intriguing on its own. Since Resident Evil is mostly action-based, there aren’t a lot of RTS games in the franchise, let alone ones with survival horror elements. While Capcom did release a couple of obscure Resident Evil strategy mobile games during the mid-2000s (which were part of the Resident Evil: Confidential Report subseries), these titles were turn-based rather than real-time. Therefore, Capcom is kind of stepping into uncharted waters with Resident Evil: Survival Unit.
Capcom is going to host a showcase for Resident Evil: Survival Unit on July 10, where it may show off some gameplay of the game for the first time.
Capcom Hasn't Developed Non-Multiplayer Resident Evil Spin-Offs in Ages
Mobile games aren’t going to appeal to everyone, but the fact that Capcom is willing to experiment with the genres of the Resident Evil franchise again is promising on its own. While Capcom hasn’t been afraid to shake things up in the mainline Resident Evil installments, it has taken a considerably safer approach to its spin-off efforts for several years. In the last decade, the only Resident Evil spin-offs Capcom has released are online multiplayer games, like Resident Evil Re:Verse and Resident Evil: Resistance. These titles have all failed to attract a sizable audience, and they’re nowhere near as high-quality as some of the older spin-offs in the franchise.
During the PS2 and PS3 generations, Capcom released a number of Resident Evil spin-offs, many of which were in a variety of different genres. In the 2000s, the company launched the Resident Evil Outbreak duology, two survival horror games that featured full cooperative multiplayer support. At around the same time, it also launched several Resident Evil light gun shooters, such as Resident Evil Survivor, Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles, and Resident Evil: Dead Aim. In 2012, Capcom even released a squad-based third-person shooter with single-player and multiplayer components, called Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City.
Resident Evil: Survival Unit's Potential Success Should Encourage Capcom to Experiment More With the RE Franchise
While not all of these Resident Evil spin-offs were great, it was at least nice that Capcom let its developers try new things with the franchise. The Resident Evil series is incredibly popular right now, but Capcom could get even more people interested in it by making more single-player spin-offs in different genres. Maybe it could develop an XCOM-inspired Resident Evil strategy game, or perhaps a Resident Evil stealth game. If Resident Evil: Survival Unit is intended to be the start of a more experimental era for the Resident Evil franchise, then hopefully, the game performs well so that Capcom becomes more inclined to create other unique spin-off titles.
