Capcom’s Goal Is To Release A Resident Evil Game Every Year
Capcom producer Masachika Kawata has confirmed the company aims to release a major Resident Evil title every year, with remakes of older games used to fill gaps between new mainline entries. Speaking to Game Informer, Kawata said this approach lets Capcom hit its annual release target while also allowing the development team to refine its skills, stressing that remakes are considered just as important as new mainline instalments.
Kawata added that the steady release cycle also helps fund entirely new franchises, such as Pragmata. He noted that spin-off titles are currently taking a back seat, with the team fully focused on new entries and remakes instead. This follows February's release of Resident Evil Requiem, with attention now turning to the next remake, Resident Evil Veronica, due in 2027.
In short
- Capcom aims to release a Resident Evil game annually
- Remakes help meet that target and fund new IP
- Resident Evil Veronica remake is due in 2027
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Advocates of Capcom's approach argue that a steady annual cadence, mixing new mainline entries with well-crafted remakes, keeps the franchise commercially healthy and creatively sharp. Remakes let the studio hone technical and design skills on proven material with lower risk, while the reliable revenue stream funds ambitious new IP such as Pragmata that might otherwise never get greenlit. For players, this means a constant flow of content and reduced risk of long, franchise-damaging gaps between releases.
The case against
Sceptics of an annual release target worry that prioritising schedule over creative breathing room risks exactly the kind of fatigue, rushed development and crunch that has damaged other yearly franchises in the games industry. Leaning heavily on remakes to hit the target, while spin-offs are sidelined, could be seen as recycling nostalgia rather than genuinely expanding the series, and may leave less room for the kind of bold experimentation that made earlier Resident Evil entries memorable in the first place.
Explained simply
Resident Evil is one of gaming's longest-running horror franchises, made by Japanese video game company Capcom. The series has been popular with millions of players for decades and is one of Capcom's most important and profitable products.
Capcom has announced a strategy to release a major Resident Evil game every year, mixing brand new entries with remakes of older games from the franchise. This approach lets the company maintain steady releases whilst giving its development teams time to improve the quality of their work between major new instalments.
The strategy also serves a wider business purpose, as the annual revenue from Resident Evil releases helps fund entirely new franchises that Capcom is working on. This shows how established games can help pay for riskier new projects, allowing a company to balance creating something new with relying on games it knows will sell.
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