The remake of 2000’s Resident Evil Code: Veronica was announced during the Summer Game Fest Showcase live show. But luckily, Temple of Geek was able to attend a behind-closed-doors Q&A session for the game. During the Play Days portion of Summer Game Fest, select press were treated to a story recap video leading up to the story of Veronica. We then participated in a roughly half hour-long panel to ask about the game. Resident Evil producer Yoshiaki Hirabayashi was onsite to answer questions about the upcoming remake.
“The Game Will Be Fully in Third-Person”
Resident Evil Veronica is a remake of the original title from 2000, the fourth mainline game in the series. Despite it not being numbered, it’s still considered a crucial entry in the overarching story. It’s also part of why the remake drops the “Code” moniker from the original. When asked why they wanted to remake Code Veronica instead of something like Resident Evil 5, Hirabayashi confirmed they were interested in filling the gaps in the story and deliver a remake on the quality of 2019’s Resident Evil 2 remake. Giving Veronica the same care and attention as previous remakes was crucial.
One journalist asked the producer how design feedback from players on the Resident Evil 4 remake informed Veronica’s design. Hirabayashi said that the development team is always aware of player feedback and pays close attention to it. They look at feedback from every entry, not just from 4. Veronica will be its own experience while continuing to build on what’s come before. Additionally, the reveal trailer was in the first-person perspective. This lead to fans believing it may be a hybrid perspective akin to how this year’s Resident Evil Requiem plays. The game will be fully in third-person; Hirabayashi says the first-person trailer was only to maintain the element of surprise.
“Veronica Has Been in Development Since Work on 4 Remake Settled Down”
The previous Resident Evil remakes included both minor and major plot changes. Hirabayashi was asked if Veronica will offer any significant changes. He confirmed there will be some minor alters to the narrative to better fit the continuity of the remakes and modern games. He also mentioned playing previous entries isn’t required, but recommends doing so for a fuller experience. The remake of Resident Evils 2 and 3 were completely from-the-ground-up remakes, whereas the Resident Evil 4 remake still maintained the same camera perspective as its source material. The original Code Veronica had the same fixed camera and tank controls, but this remake’s priority is to both respect players’ memories of the original while reimagining the game for today’s audience.
In terms of development, one journalist was curious about how many teams at Capcom are working on Resident Evil games at any given time, citing the relatively short months-long wait between Veronica’s reveal and the launch of Requiem. Hirabayashi declined to comment on specifics, but confirmed that the Veronica team was previously involved in the remakes of 2 and 4 and is a different team from those who worked on Requiem. The producer also confirmed that Veronica has been in development since work on 4 remake settled down.
Resident Evil Veronica launches in 2027 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, PC, and Nintendo Switch 2 in 2027.
