I don't care what Capcom says, Leon not being in Resident Evil Requiem makes no sense

I have a bone to pick with my favorite studio. It's not that I think Capcom is lying about Resident Evil Requiem, but it's choosing its words incredibly carefully. After everything I've seen and read about the upcoming horror game so far, I get why Resident Evil 9's development was shrouded in secrecy for so long: it was always about making a dramatic entrance.

Capcom got its wish in the form of a suitably dramatic double fake-out at Summer Game Fest, where the new game was revealed minutes after viewers were promised more news "in the blink of an eye." Speaking in riddles like that was a sneaky little trick, and what do you know? The recent Capcom Spotlight showcase tried to pull the exact same bit of subterfuge.

The brief game overview gives us very little concrete newness to sink our teeth into, reiterating Grace Ashcroft's role as Requiem's protagonist and a redoubled effort to reclaim the fear factor that made Resi one of the best survival horror games ever, especially following Resident Evil 4 Remake being so action-heavy. But what game director Koshi Nakanishi failed to do while addressing rumors of Leon Kennedy's presence in Resident Evil Requiem is dispel them outright – and that smacks of lying-by-omittance.

Double trouble

Capcom loves to toy with us. That means I refuse to take any of the Resident Evil Requiem developers at face value.

Nakanishi neither confirms nor denies whether Leon will feature in the game – he simply states that the series' most skilled veteran would be "quite a bad match for horror," yet the game has also ben described as offering "pulse-pounding terror and high-stakes action." To me, that's as good as confirmation that Leon will be playing a part in RE9.

Hear me out before you dismiss my claim. I know there's an element of wishful thinking here, but if I know my Resident Evil – and trust me, your girl does – I know that we've never had a major Resi game where you play as only one person for its entirety.

The presence of a secondary protagonist is a given throughout the Resident Evil timeline. I'm not just talking about games where we have dual protagonists from the get-go like Resident Evil 1, 2, 5, and Code Veronica. Rather, each Resi game features at least one sequence where the player takes control of a non-lead character.

Think of Ashley in RE4, Sherry Birkin and Ada Wong in Resident Evil 2, Carlos in Resident Evil 3, Mia in Resident Evil 7, and Chris at the tail end of Resident Evil Village. The notion that Requiem will randomly break from that tradition is, as far as I'm concerned, out of the question entirely.

Of course, maybe I was right in theorizing that a playable Alyssa flashback (which may or may not be a baked-in Resident Evil Outbreak remake) could foot that bill, but given how much Capcom is skirting around giving a definitive yes-or-no answer to the Leon Kennedy question, I remain steadfast in my theory that he will show up eventually.

Daddy issues

How, you ask? Well, I have some ideas – my most bizarre being that Leon could be Grace Ashcroft's father.

I've gone over this before, but think about it: Capcom has confirmed that Resident Evil Requiem is set eight years after Alyssa died, and 30 years since both she and Leon witnessed the destruction of Raccoon City in September 1998. That means Requiem likely takes place in 2028 – not 2026, as you might have erroneously guessed, since Resident Evil 1 came out in 1996 but is set two years later.

Anyway, if Alyssa and Leon had somehow met shortly after the city's destruction and conceived a child, that would make Grace around 29 years old in Requiem and perhaps 20 or 21 when her mother died. Maybe Leon had a child he didn't know about, even last time we saw him in 2012's Resident Evil 6, and upon Alyssa's death, perhaps the young would-be agent set off to reconnect with her father? Or maybe, he tracked her down and stepped up to the plate as a dad?

To me, it makes sense. Fans love to joke about Leon's failed romance with Ada, as well as his unwilling father figure status when it comes to babysitting Ashley. But if The Last of Us has taught me anything (aside from mushrooms = bad), it's that angsty dad-daughter duos can be very powerful figures in a horror game – and it would certainly mean plenty of character growth for Resident Evil's resident yearner.

I need a hero

However, in the off-chance that Leon is not the fated secondary protagonist in Resident Evil Requiem, I would settle for literally any of them to show face. If not for pure fan service, then for what Requiem means for the franchise as a whole.

Capcom explained the game's title as a "requiem" for Resident Evil itself, a "eulogy" for those affected by the Raccoon City Disaster. It's also launching a month before the first game's 30th anniversary, and I cannot bring myself to believe that Capcom would willingly omit the very characters that made this franchise so iconic from something that's supposed to celebrate it.

To that end – the Resident Evil 30th anniversary, I mean – I think Jill would also be an excellent pick. Eagle-eyed fans have already drawn comparisons between the horrifying monster shown in the trailers and Lisa Trevor, last seen in 1998 tussling with Wesker at Spencer Mansion and again in Wii spin-off The Umbrella Chronicles. Maybe there's more to her story, as well as Jill's – and maybe Jill will come back to finish the job and save the day.

Ultimately, yes. I know I am keeping a tin foil hat clasped tight around my deaf ears. I know that Capcom is doing its darndest to discourage fans from getting their hopes up for Leon or Jill or any of our other fan favorites to make an appearance in Requiem, repeatedly reminding us that Grace is the protagonist.

But until I roll credits on RE9, I refuse to be disheartened. Grace will not be alone when she goes back to the Wrenwood Hotel, even if Requiem wants to zero in on the mutual terror shared by player and character. I mean, can you picture the gallant Leon S. Kennedy letting his daughter wander into peril by herself? I think not.

There are plenty of other upcoming PS5 games you need to keep an eye on this year while we wait for RE9