If you have questions about Resident Evil lore, you ask TheBatman – a mega-fan who once put together a 2700-page document all about the canon timeline of the Capcom horror series (H/T Eurogamer).
The series' unofficial loremaster, though, is preaching patience for those concerned about the timeline and conflicting canon of Zach Cregger's upcoming Resident Evil movie.
Already, there has been controversy over Resident Evil being set parallel to the game events of Resident Evil 2, despite there being snow and smartphones in Raccoon City.
Speaking to IGN, TheBatman commented, "To be fair to Zach Cregger, he admitted early on that his movie would not abide to the strict storyline or canon to the games and the trailer certainly reinforces that. It is evident his focus is on recreating the feeling of being in a Resident Evil game or playing one for the first time rather than adapting any storyline… I think this is going to be largely unrelated to any of the games."
They added, "I would urge people not to get riled up about 'canon' and just enjoy the ride."
Resident Evil follows Austin Abrams' Bryan through, as the first trailer shows, a mad dash across a Raccoon City populated by the undead. Those nasties even include creatures pulled from the controversial Resident Evil 6, often derided by fans as the weakest mainline entry in the series.
"You'll see a lot of Resident Evil 4, Resident Evil 6," production designer Tom Hammock says during a set visit attended by GamesRadar+. "So Zach and I went through and pulled specific creature elements that we like from the games, whether it's tentacles, the teeth integration, and then tried to take that language and move it over to these creatures."
Resident Evil hits cinemas on September 18. For more, check out our list of upcoming video game movies.
