🧟 Resident Evil 9 Originally Started as an ‘Open-World Multiplayer Game,’ Sources Say

Resident Evil 9 is one of the most anticipated survival horror titles in recent memory—but according to new reports, the game fans will eventually play is very different from what Capcom originally had in mind.

Insiders close to the project have revealed that Resident Evil 9 began development as an open-world multiplayer experience, with an emphasis on cooperative gameplay and a persistent horror sandbox. The project, internally codenamed “Outrageous”, was initially intended to experiment with live-service elements and shared world mechanics—before being reworked into the single-player-focused title fans are expecting today.

🎮 Resident Evil Meets… DayZ?

• Early versions of the game reportedly included:

• A massive open-world island setting

• Four-player co-op survival gameplay

• Base-building mechanics and inventory sharing

• Real-time weather and day/night cycles that affected enemy behavior

• Enemy factions, infected wildlife, and random player encounters (a la Escape from Tarkov)

Capcom was said to be exploring ways to fuse survival horror with modern multiplayer design, similar to what Resident Evil Outbreak hinted at years ago—but on a much larger scale.

🧪 Why Capcom Walked It Back

Sources claim that internal playtests in 2022 and 2023 revealed significant issues:

Difficulty balancing horror atmosphere with multiplayer chaos

Narrative pacing breakdown due to non-linear player actions

Concerns about resource investment vs player expectations

While the open-world multiplayer framework showed potential, Capcom reportedly paused development to rework the concept into a more focused, narrative-driven game, returning to the strengths of Resident Evil Village and Resident Evil 4 Remake.

By mid-2024, the project was re-scoped, and most live-service elements were removed or heavily scaled back.

🧟‍♀️ So What Is Resident Evil 9 Now?

As of 2025, Resident Evil 9 is expected to be:

A single-player, semi-open-world survival horror game

Set in a coastal region with forested islands and ancient ruins

Featuring a new protagonist and links to both RE7 and Village

Built in RE Engine with support for next-gen platforms and PC

Launch targeted for late 2025 or early 2026

Multiplayer modes may still be offered as separate content, possibly in the form of a standalone co-op survival spin-off or an optional PvE experience similar to Resident Evil Resistance.

🧠 Final Thoughts

Capcom’s decision to pivot from a multiplayer-focused Resident Evil 9 may be a relief for fans who value atmosphere, tension, and narrative above all. Still, it’s fascinating to glimpse what could have been—a massive, social, horror survival sandbox unlike anything the series has attempted before.

For now, though, it seems the undead are sticking to solo scares.

Stay locked to NoFallDamage.net for official reveals, gameplay previews, and developer interviews as Resident Evil 9 creeps closer to launch.

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