For those who've been keeping score, Capcom has been knocking it right out of the park lately. Their last three Resident Evil titles have been nothing short of awesome, Monster Hunter is better than ever, and even Devil May Cry got a revival just last year. Things are definitely looking up, and it's our educated guess that Resident Evil 8 is cooking for sure. Better still, we've even come across a few rumors as to what it might be!

We do have to offer a reminder to keep a pinch of salt at hand. Much as was the case with our recent coverage of the GTA VI leaks, none of the stuff you're about to read is actually, officially confirmed. Now that that's out of the way, prepare for flashbacks to Leon's Spanish adventure with Resident Evil 8: Village!

Is Resident Evil 8 even being made?

This may surprise you, but Capcom has cheekily confirmed the fact that Resident Evil 8 is, in fact, being made! Jun Takeuchi, the Executive Producer of Resident Evil 7, spoke about his team's work on the game in a mini-documentary on the development process. "We want [Resident Evil 7] to be the start of a new kind of survival horror and of a new series," he said, adding that they're already thinking up plans for the follow-up release. "And so the current masterpiece is just the beginning. Plans for the next title are already in motion and, when you see that game, you may find that it is very different from Resident Evil 7 in some ways while still retaining that core survival horror concept of people overcoming the odds." As Takeuchi puts it: "Resident Evil will always retain that essence."

This is more than enough to get us started about the hypothetical Resident Evil 8 release, but we've got more! Since the release of Resident Evil 7 showed in plain terms that perspective isn't what makes the franchise - even when it comes to mainline RE games - we know that Capcom isn't afraid of experimentation. Will Resident Evil 8 be first-person, too? Almost certainly! However, Takeuchi makes it clear that we should expect more changes to the formula. The inevitable follow-up to RE7 will be different, but comparable.

To immediately assuage any potential concerns, we don't think Capcom is making another pivot towards Resident Evil 6 at all. Sure, Resident Evil 3 Remake may have been more dynamic than RE2R, but the company is still very much dedicated to maintaining the series' renewed sense of horror. We've no doubt in our mind that RE8 will further this notion. Especially if Resident Evil 8: Village leaks are true...

Is Resident Evil 8: Village real? Do we have a release date?

That's right, there are leaks! Really fresh ones, too! Posted just a few days back by a trusted RE leaker AestheticGamer, they offer a really interesting look at what RE8: Village might turn out to be. The story is more complex and there's more to it than it first might seem, or so the leak claims. Firstly, the game will supposedly be getting an official reveal later this month, and it's slated for a 2021 release date! However, this game isn't technically Resident Evil 8. Instead, it started its production as Resident Evil: Revelations 3, which opens an entirely different can of worms.

It was just a few months back that AestheticGamer proposed that RE8 is still years away from release. As it turns out, Capcom wasn't keen on there being a long gap between 7 and 8. Since internal testing showed incredibly positive reactions to Revelations 3, that game got a renewed focus and direction. This resulted in it turning into a sort of neo-Resi 8, according to Capcom's wishes. This recent leak has also given credence to a previous RE8 leak, which spoke about werewolf-like creatures and Ethan - the protagonist of RE7 - trying to survive in a snowy village. These are 100% true, says the new leak, but they're also outdated by now.

According to AestheticGamer, Resi-purists won't be too fond of this new RE8: "Hallucinations, Occultism, insanity, and not being able to trust others are huge thematics of the game," they said. Further, since it wasn't always a mainline Resi game, there's been some major changes to the story, the characters, and more. Exciting!

What does that mean, exactly?

At first, it did seem like Resident Evil 7 wasn't set in the same universe as its predecessors. At the very least, Capcom is working with a different timeline here. Blue Umbrella is a thing now, after all, and that doesn't come without a few caveats here and there. It's our guess that RE8 / Revelations 3 will follow a similar sense of revelation far as the story goes. The leaked werewolf creatures are definitely going to be a new BOW variant, and the occult features of the narrative will be explained away using PTSD and related psychological issues. It worked terrifyingly well in RE7, as yours truly can definitely attest.

Capcom is treading some really fresh ground with their renewed Resident Evil mainline. The action-packed monster-fest that was RE6 was fine, we feel, but the new games are far more interesting and immersive. We did fight a friggin' mold for the most part in RE7, after all. Who's to say what Capcom's A-team can do with a larger variety of BOWs? From what leaks we've seen, it sounds very much like Resident Evil 4!

"I know on paper "Occultism, Hallucinations," etc. may sound Silent Hill-esque to some, but in practice the actual game won't really be like that at all," said AestheticGamer. "The one gameplay sequence in the game that's been more fully leaked [...] is a sequence where you're in a village with multiple routes trying to make your way to a Castle, being attacked by Beast Men, zombies in armor with swords, and a Witch that laughs a lot." Honestly? We'd be lying if we said we weren't intrigued by the prospect.

Will there still be combat?

Continuing on the topic of the specific escape sequence above, it does sound like there will still be fighting. It's up to the player to barricade enemies behind them and try to push towards the castle, says AestheticGamer. To keep things interesting, the game will change between a slower, more psychologically-taxing horror and tense combat sequences quite a lot. That sure does sound like the Resident Evil 7 we know and love. The leak agrees, too! "It should still very clearly be a Resident Evil game, just a different kind of Resident Evil game tackling some different things than they usually do."

If you're worried whether Resident Evil 8 will turn into an Outlast game, we think Capcom is well aware of their niche. Even RE7, which dialed down combat significantly, still had plenty of fighting in-between its narrative beats. The village fight sequence sounds far tenser than anything RE7 had to offer. At least, as far as the sheer number of foes is concerned. There's no way Capcom would leave us unarmed in a situation like this. On a further note, it seems that RE8 will also have an unbeatable stalker-type enemy to deal with.

In fact, we'd even go so far as to say that Capcom confirmed that combat will always be a key part of the RE experience with the Not a Hero DLC for RE7. There, players step into the shoes of a resident badass - Chris Redfield - and gun down BOWs where they stand. It's great fun! We do enjoy the fact that it wasn't the main focus of the game, however.

Have we got any info about the Resident Evil 8 Release Date?

As of our latest update, Resident Evil 8 hasn't even been officially announced yet, so it goes without saying that its release date is a bit of an unknown. That said, we do have an all-new leak to talk about! It relates to enemy designs and the game's general subject matter, and it's provided by the same leaker who we got the rest of our RE8 information from.

"I don't know much on Silent Hill I haven't shared, but its apparently its revealed soon so I'm looking forward to it. I still believe it from what I was shown, but I do have a healthy skeptic in me," they said. "RE8 I'm excited for the reveal, it's by far the darkest & most gruesome RE yet."

The leaker also pointed out that Resident Evil 8 will have some of the most disturbing enemy designs in the franchise! With the game supposedly taking note from RE4, this is hardly odd. Remember, Resi 4 had bug-like creatures, blind berserker, undying horrors, and even Xenomorph wannabes, we've got plenty of ideas already.

That's not bad at all! But what about the next Resident Evil Remake?

If you've already made your way through Resident Evil 3 Remake, found all the weapons, and got all the unlockables, you may be interested by the prospect of the next Resident Evil remake. Sadly, Capcom hasn't shared anything yet. In fact, there has been no leaks, either, so it's a big guessing game right now. Our guess would be that Capcom will turn towards Code Veronica, but only time will tell.

To be fair, Resident Evil 4 is arguably also due for a major refresh. The latest Remakes show that Capcom definitely can pull off a badass gameplay update. This includes both quality-of-life improvements and actual moment-to-moment combat loop. RE4 feels stiff and tanky in 2020, so we'd hardly mind for it to be next in line for a Remake. We'll see how the situation develops, but either of these options is entirely possible, we believe.

As always, stay tuned for more updates on everything related to Resident Evil games new and old. Right here at 2Game!