Since the release ofResident Evil Villageback in 2021, Capcom has been keeping fans well-fed, delivering fully fleshed-out and re-realized remakes of their classic titles. While gamers have been thoroughly enjoying the newREremakes, fans can’t help but wonder what thenext mainline titleof the series will bring to the table. It’s been a few years since Capcom decided to show what the rest of the belovedREcast has been up to during Ethan’s tragic arc.
There have been tons of fan theories about what the next mainline game will be about, what kind of biological threat will manifest, and who will be the lucky (or unlucky) protagonist who has to deal with it. Here are a few playable duos that could potentially take the spotlight in the next mainlineREtitle.
Playable In: (Chris) RE1, RE5, RE6, RE8 & (Claire) RE2
Resident Evil
Racoon City. A secluded mountain community, plagued by a storm of vicious attacks, is completely overrun. Mutant beasts and blood thirsty zombies infest the landscape. You are S.T.A.R.S. - Special Tactics and Rescue Squad. Your mission; investigate the ominous mansion at the core of the horrific disaster. Uncover secrets behind a radical genetics research facility. With all new graphics, new puzzles, extra features, anfd zombies lurking around every corner, the ultimate test may just be to make it out alive!
There’s no doubt Chris and Claire are some of the biggest names in theREfranchise. However, the unstoppable Redfield duo have never gotten the chance to truly fight side by side in any of the main titles. The only time fans ever got to seebig brother Christeam up with baby sister Claire was in the filmDeath Island.
At the moment, the Redfields haven’t even had the chance to appear in the same (mainline) game together. It isn’t too unlikely for the BSAA and TerraSave to cross paths in the future after the situation that happened with Ethan and his family.
Jake Muller, son of long-time antagonist Albert Wesker, made his one and only appearance inRE6back in 2012. Since then, Jake hasn’t really been mentioned or seen, despiteRE6establishing that his blood could hold the solution to the C-virus outbreak (and potentially more).
InRE6, Jake teamed up with Sherry Birkin, now an adult, working for the U.S. government to contain the C-virus outbreak. Sherry, since then, has been working for the DSO (Division of Security Operations) and hasn’t made a mainline game appearance since her debut. It’s quite possible thatmercenary Jake Mullerand “Supergirl” Sherry Birkin could make a comeback in an upcoming title as both their stories were left open-ended.
Claire Redfield and Jill Valentine are thekick-ass female duothat serve as the main faces of the series (sorry, Rebecca). However, they have yet to get the chance to meet and team up in one of the mainline games.
A storyline that involves the BSAA and TerraSave teaming up to take care of any loose ends that may have been left at the end ofRE8or perhaps to take on an entirely new bioterrorist threat/infection could easily allow Claire and Jill to finally take the spotlight as partners.
Mia is stuck playing the role of the damsel in distress for most ofRE8after being captured by Mother Miranda at the very beginning, but her role in the previous game carries a much heavier burden. Although Mia is now committed to her life as a mother for little Rose, before the birth of her daughter, Mia was secretly working for The Connections.
Mia is no stranger to handling a gun and fighting against bio-chemically made monsters as seen at the end ofRE7. It’s known that little Rose has now inherited special powers, thanks to her molded super-dad, Ethan, and it’s quite possible that a shady company could become interested in kidnapping Rose to use her as a biological weapon in war. An angry anddetermined Momma Miaand boulder-punching Chris Redfield could make a formidable team for an upcoming title when trying to recuse Rose from a captor once again.
Leon and Chris have had their time in the spotlight, albeit separately. Fans were excited to see the unstoppable (yet stubborn) duo finally team up back in 2017 during the cinematic release ofResident Evil: Vendetta. Outside ofCode Veronica, Chris and Leon hadn’t really had the opportunity to get well acquainted until working together inRE: Vendetta,with Rebecca Chambers playing the role of the irritated parent, constantly having to break up a fight between two hardheaded kids.
InRE6, Chris and Leon do cross paths, but only for a brief moment. Fans have yet to seea mainline gamewhere these two take the leading roles and finally work together as a team.
TerraSave’s Claire Redfield and former STARS Bravo team member Rebecca Chambers got their chance to finally work side by side in the cinematic release ofRE: Death Island. However, Claire has only been featured as a protagonist inRE2(countingCode VeronicaandRevelations 2not mainline titles) and hasn’t really been seen since. Meanwhile, Rebecca had her one and only time to shine inRE0alongside Billy Coen.
Although Rebecca doesn’t often take to the frontlines of battle, a tag team of Rebecca hanging back and taking care of technical details while Claire fights the good fight withrevolver and grenade launcherin hand against a new biohazardous threat would certainly make for a uniqueREtitle.
Whether or not Jill likes it, she and Carlos Oliveira made for a great team inRE3. There is only a small handful of people who have faced the terror of bio-organic weapons and lived to tell the tale; Carlos is one of the lucky few. While most NPCs are fair game and can get munched by a zombie at any time, Carlos had luck on his side asRE3Rmade him a playable character alongside Jill, giving him the plot armor he needed to help get Jill the vaccine she needed just in time and survive the night.
Although Carlos has since settled down somewhere in South America, it would be a treat for long-time fans to see him team up with"super cop" Jill Valentineagain after all these years.
The last time fans saw Chris, he was looking after a now-teenage Rose after Ethan’s untimely death. Rose has already proven herself worthy of being aREprotagonist in theRE8"Shadows of Rose" DLCwhere she was front and center as the playable character. It’s no secret that Rose has powers (thanks to Ethan) and, despite her young age and lack of combat skill/training, she can still easily defend herself from any threats that may come her way.
AREtitle that features a worried Chris getting separated from Rose and having to fight their way back to one another (and eventually teaming up) could very well be an exciting possibility for the future of the series.
