EXCLUSIVE: Resident Evil 3 concepts and development – Cut content; Outbreak expansion

The information contained in this article has been collated from multiple sources familiar with the planning, development, and marketing of Resident Evil 3 and Resistance.

Resident Evil 3’s Remake was released on PS4, Xbox One, and PC in April 2020, and when compared to 2019’s Resident Evil 2 fell short of expectations on a number of fronts.

The remake of the third title in the numbered series was greenlit and on the cards while the RE2 was in development, so much was said by its producer Pete Fabiano. RE3 was in active development for three years before its release, marking a slight overlap with its predecessor. In fact, the ‘Mr X’ stalker-enemy in Resident Evil 2 greatly influenced ‘Nemesis’ in the third.

However ‘Nemesis’ felt like a shell of RE2’s stalker. Although he would stalk you in certain instances, the scenarios were at fixed stages early in the game and stopped when ‘Nemesis’ morphs into his quadrupedal second stage.

When compared to ‘Mr X’, ‘Nemesis’ was a bitter disappointment for fans. Even sources familiar with the planning and development of the game have revealed that he underwent drastic changes when compared to the original concept and pitches.

One source said that the original concept would have seen the Raccoon City setting of the game expanded with the big bad stalking the player exactly like ‘Mr X’. Another said that they were under the impression the stalker would be “Mr X but can run and use weapons” which would prove to be semi-true in the game’s final release. ‘Nemesis’ made use of a Rocket Launcher and Flamethrower at differing stages of the title, although these were once again fixed events in the story.

It wasn’t just the main antagonist of the game that underwent changes either. The total run-time of Resident Evil 3 approximates six hours, which when compared to RE2’s eight-and-a-half-hour story doesn’t sound too bad. But RE2 features multiple campaigns as well as additional chapters with tertiary protagonists.

A number of sources have shared differing experiences on this front. One source familiar with marketing the title said: “When Project Resistance was teased we set the bar alarmingly high, what had been intended as a multi-player addition to the franchise was expected to be Resident Evil 3.” Although never explicitly stated, this does lend to the suggestion that Resistance had not been planned as a multiplayer addition to RE3 but rather its own standalone title.

When further quizzed the same source said RE2’s success gave birth to a number of pitches and ideas. “Resident Evil 3 was always on the way, but perhaps we could have taken longer to flesh it out if not for the negative reaction to Resistance.” It’s important to note this source had no involvement in development and had been speaking from a marketing standpoint.

Another source, also involved with marketing, stated that from their viewpoint “Project Resistance was originally pitched to be an Outbreak remake or sequel of sorts” but they were adamant that was purely “workplace chatter”. Project Resistance was originally teased in September 2019, with a fully-fledged trailer launching for Resistance a few days later. RE3 was finally announced in December 2019.

The game itself suffered a number of cuts made to stages like the Clock Tower from the original game too. It was confirmed by a source that there had been talks about including the stages early on, but the team went for a different “creative direction” and the decision was made not to bring them to the Remake.

Regardless of the stories to arise from RE3’s development, the title has found itself re-released on next-generation consoles and available on Nintendo Switch via Cloud Gaming. Resident Evil 4’s remake is on the way with a March 2023 release date.

Vendetta Sports Media intends to pursue official comment from Capcom on this report.

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