From Tofu to the big vampire lady, these 12 Resident Evil Requiem Easter eggs had me pointing at my screen, Leo DiCaprio style

I knew two things for certain going into Resident Evil Requiem: first, that Leon S. Kennedy would be co-starring. Secondly, if this were true, we'd be treated to a whole bunch of Easter eggs.

With Capcom bringing one of the best survival horror game series back to Raccoon City – where Leon's journey began – and celebrating 30 years of Resident Evil, it would be impossible to resist dropping one or two little nods along the way. Some are more pointed than others, while others might not have even crossed your mind. I'm sure I've missed a handful out (some intentionally – enough of us know about the gas station and Jeep sighting from the trailer already), but here are all the homages to the Resident Evil timeline and beyond that I've spotted while playing Requiem so far.

1. Alyssa's lockpick skill from Outbreak

In truth, I only caught this RE9 Easter egg because I checked my challenges fairly early on, but the Resident Evil Requiem lockpicks used by Grace are a direct call-back to her mother's special item from Resident Evil Outbreak. These can be found throughout the Rhodes Hill Chronic Care facility, used to pick simple locked drawers found throughout Gideon's hospital of horror as Grace takes a leaf out of Alyssa Ashcroft's investigative journalism book to uncover secrets – and bullets. Lots of bullets.

2. More bathtubs with questionable contents

When Leon peers into a blood-filled bathtub, a curious feeling of déjà vu comes over me. That's when I realized that goopy bathroom facilities are kind of a mainstay in all the Resident Evil titles, from the mould soup Ethan had to drain out of one in Resident Evil 7: Biohazard to the one we see in the first ever Resident Evil game. It's a subtle but clever little trope that is just enough to make your nostalgia senses flare up – which brings me to a more obvious mainstay.

3. Bolt cutters, wire edition

Ah, the infamous bolt cutters return! Resident Evil Requiem features a pair of wire cutters just the once, right near the start of Grace's visit to the now-derelict Wrenwood Hotel. They might have a different name this time around, but any self-respecting fan of the best survival horror games knows that it's simply not Resi without a hefty lock-breaking tool.

From the ones we use to explore the village in Resident Evil 8 to the hefty set we carry with us for quite some time in Resident Evil 2 Remake, a cutting tool of sorts was an expected Resident Evil Requiem Easter egg from me.

4. Lady Dimitrescu's wine

Lady Dimistrescu might have been killed back in Resident Evil Village, but she still casts a (very) tall shadow over Requiem – at least in one part of it.

While rifling through an office next to the Care Facility's helipad, Grace can inspect a bottle of fine wine with a very familiar label. Sanguis Virginis – Latin for "blood of the maiden" – is the precise vintage concocted by tall vampire mommy Alcina Dimitrescu, and features in a few puzzles in the series' eighth instalment. No prizes for guessing what her special ingredient might've been.

5. Leon fighting in a chapel (again)

So maybe I only got this vibe because I recently replayed Leon's campaign in Resident Evil 6, but watching the RPD's finest rookie wreak carnage in a place of worship immediately reminded me of a very similar encounter in a very different chapel. Funnily enough, it only highlighted how similar the two games' combat can feel at times in terms of Leon's dynamic moves, a far cry from a simple bullet to the kneecap or even a chainsaw dodge. When he chased Victor down on a motorbike and has to shoot flammable barrels to clear a path... well, let's just say those RE6 vibes are palpable (in the best of ways) throughout.

6. Familiar enemies

If I had to list every recurring sight, sound, or location from Resident Evil 2 Remake in Requiem, this list would be a lot longer – but I can quickly summarize some of the biggest returning beasties among my favorite RE9 Easter eggs.

Suffice to say that long-time fans of Capcom's series will pick these out from a mile off, but just to sum up: Plant 42 (here called 43), as seen in Resident Evil 1, rears its many ugly sharp-toothed faces. Lickers are back in all their icky blind glory. There's also a nasty huge spider, the return of chainsaw zombies as per Resident Evil 4 Remake, Crimson Heads reborn as the far more aggressive Blisterheads…. Honestly, fans are in for one shotgun blast from the past.

7. HUNK and the Umbrella Security Service squad

Dubbed the "grim reaper" of his squad, HUNK is the tactical gear-clad Umbrella soldier featured in a Resident Evil 2 Remake additional game mode – and the red carpet gets rolled out for him and his iconic crew in Requiem, too.

Leon stumbles upon the soldiers' corpses while exploring the ruined streets of Raccoon City, and when he later faces off against one of them face-to-face, the Mortal Edge axe (seen above) looted from the body is a clear RE9 Easter egg alludes to HUNK's reaper nickname. Could it be the guy himself, or just another clone?

8. Jill Valentine's STARS cap

Part of Jill's uniform can be found in the STARS office at the Raccoon City Police Department. The iconic police headwear, last seen on STARS' finest in Resident Evil 1, sits atop a desk in the ruins of the RPD. It's covered in dust and detritus following the destruction of the whole city, but seeing that logo is sure to make some of Valentine's valentines swoon just a little. And hey, maybe that's the real reason why Capcom filed a trademark for the STARS logo a few years back?

9. Tofu in the windows of RPD

Once you have your first run in with the Tyrant (in Requiem, at least), you'll probably want to do what I did and have one last run around the RPD to say your goodbyes. But when you head through the reception along the western corridor, listen out for a strange "boing" sound and pay attention to the windows and walls. You might just see Tofu, the RPD hat-wearing big white block, bouncing his way around the perimeter. Tofu was born of a gag over at Capcom when a collision test went wrong, resulting in a character model representing a rectangular block of beancurd instead of a human.

It tickled the devs so much that Tofu now exists as a secret character in Resident Evil 2, with a Tofu run unlocked after the other bonus modes are completed. He's sort of an in-joke with everyone by this point, so it's nice to see him still hopping around the deserted city after all these years.

10. Dead by Daylight's crossover map

This is a bit of a hyper-specific one, but the fact that Leon can now jump down into the RPD main hall from an upper landing has to be a nod to Dead by Daylight. The police department building is a map in the asymmetrical horror game, which sees five Survivors fleeing Killers and using their wits to outrun them.

A fair few Resident Evil characters have been licensed to DBD already – Leon, Claire, Ada, Wesker, and Nemesis to name a few – and the feeling of leaping down into the hallway immediately reminded me that you can do the exact same thing in DBD's RPD as you can in Requiem's.

11. Mr. X 2.0

We all know Leon killed the stalker Tyrant (lovingly dubbed Mr X by fans) back in 1998, but there's a familiar surprise awaiting him at the Raccoon City Police Department for a truly special Resident Evil Requiem Easter egg. This Tyrant is not the same big brute as last time, but a monster of the same "line" of creatures produced by Umbrella like it's some sort of fast fashion brand.

Bonus fun fact: if you peep one of the computer screens at ARK, you learn that the Tyrants typically "come with a coat as standard for effective human disguise," which means I choose to believe that the very first Tyrant Leon fought in Resident Evil 2 Remake wanted to wear a trendy little hat as a signature statement. I feel bad for killing the diva, in hindsight.

12. Is that…Wesker?

Well, not quite. Albert Wesker has died more than once, reportedly, across the Resident Evil series. Most recently, he fell into a volcano in Resident Evil 5. So why does this Zeno character sport all of his trademarks?

White-blonde hair, cool sunglasses, a slick black leather trenchcoat… albeit the last being pinned to the shoulders of a very fashionable ivory suit, I just about lost my head when I realized that Wesker could well have been cloned or copied into another body in Resident Evil Requiem. Grace picks up lots of folders on her journey, with one relating to the transfer of memories via blood. It's daft, yes, but I am thrilled to report that Wesker is back, baby, though he's never referred to by that name.

See why i called RE9 a "soaring piece of survival horror theater" in my 4.5-star Resident Evil Requiem review