I’m not sure Capcom even needs it
Following the reveal today that Resident Evil Village is actually tied for the ninth spot overall with Street Fighter V in terms of Capcom’s all-time software sales, it kind of changes your whole perspective of Resident Evil Re:Verse.
In case you missed it, Re:Verse was originally supposed to come out as a multiplayer companion piece to Resident Evil Village in July of 2021. Then it was delayed to 2022. And it still isn’t out yet. Funnily enough, this decision came so late, the physical versions of Village actually had download codes that Capcom recommended owners keep close by or “redeem now.”
Given the Babylon’s Fall-esque reactions to the visual style, which Capcom quickly added a toggle for, it was very likely that this experiment would bomb at launch and potentially take away from the good word of mouth of Village. Well, this week it was rated in Europe on Stadia, which is some sort of movement that this thing will actually come out. But do you still even want it?
At this point, Village has cemented itself as a proper entry in the series, and the sales speak for themselves. It was able to arrive and be greeted with open arms without the potential baggage of Re:Verse. Now, I’ve played every Resident Evil multiplayer offering going back to Outbreak. There are a few good ones: I’ll even count the light-gun games! But by and large, especially in the last 10 years, if they aren’t specifically Mercenaries-related, they’re skippable.
It boggles the mind why — instead of projects like Re:Verse and Resistance — the focus isn’t on raid mode or a proper mercenaries add-on. If Capcom needs to monetize it with DLC, I’m sure it would be a small price to pay for a lot of fans who are yearning for more mercs. At least the VR side is preserving that storied part of Resident Evil history.
In the meantime: we can continue waiting for Re:Verse. I’m sure a lot of you out there, at best, will boot it up, play a few matches, then never play it again. Maybe it’ll be good. In any case, it’s tough to feel that strongly about it after all this time.
Published: May 11, 2022 12:30 pm