Resident Evil 3 Remake - Release Date, Resistance Multiplayer Beta, Demo, Gameplay, And What We Know So far

Update: Resident Evil 3's multiplayer component, Resident Evil Resistance, is currently in its final open beta, which you can download now. However, it's only available for download for Xbox One right now, as it's been delayed on PS4 and PC. Still, if you're rearing to try RE3, you can download the free demo, which was also recently made available for PS4, Xbox One, and PC. We've updated the feature below with more information, as well as a story recap. For more how about the game is shaping up, you can read our Resident Evil 3 preview detailing our impressions of the two hours we played.

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Resident Evil 3 is real. After a bout of rumors and leaks, the Resident Evil 3 remake was officially announced during Sony's final State of Play presentation of 2019. The game is, obviously, a remake of Capcom's Resident Evil 3: Nemesis from 1999, and it's coming packaged with another game too--which producers Masachika Kawata and Peter Fabiano spoke more about following the trailer reveal.

It's crazy to think that a remake for Resident Evil 3 is coming so soon, but apparently Capcom always knew it wanted to revisit the classic game for a while--as long as Resident Evil 2, it seems. This may not mean much to you if you're a series newcomer, so if you're not sure what to expect with this upcoming remake, stay with us!

We've collected all the information we have about the RE3 remake and its companion game Resident Evil Resistance, including platforms, release date, gameplay details, information on story and characters, and more. We'll continue to update this story as we find out more.

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Resident Evil 2 was one of our Best Games of 2019--read our thoughts on why we loved Resident Evil 2 and what makes it more than just a remake.

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Announcement, Reveal, And Character Trailer

Rumors of a Resident Evil 3 remake began in early December 2019, with cover art appearing on the PlayStation Store. Since the leak occurred prior to The Game Awards, some speculated that an official announcement would be coming then.

Instead, Resident Evil 3 was announced during Sony's State of Play presentation on December 10, 2019. Despite the rumors, it was a bit of a surprise reveal--the announcer introduced the trailer as the "unannounced campaign portion of Capcom's Project Resistance." Project Resistance is Capcom's 1v4 asymmetrical multiplayer survival horror unveiled at Tokyo Game Show 2019, but with no ties to Resident Evil 3 at the time. Well, surprise--Resistance is coming packaged with RE3.

The Resident Evil 3 reveal trailer gave us an intense first-person POV sequence of a character fleeing from the series' iconic tyrant, Nemesis. That character was eventually revealed to be Jill Valentine, one of the last remaining S.T.A.R.S. members still in Raccoon City during the deadly zombie outbreak, which players last experienced in the Resident Evil 2 remake. (Despite the brief first-person part of the trailer, Resident Evil 3 will continue in the vein of the Resident Evil 2 remake with its over-the-shoulder third-person action.)

A follow-up character reveal trailer took a much closer look at the heroes of the game. In it, we got a closer look at Nemesis stalking Jill Valentine, along with the other primary protagonist of the game and various tertiary characters. If you've never played the original and you're confused about the chronology of the series and how Nemesis fits next to the Resident Evil 2 remake, look to the Story and Characters section below. Or stay away if you want to go in blind!

Story and Characters

According to the producers, Resident Evil 3 "leans more towards action" compared to the Resident Evil 2 remake. It's set right before and then eventually simultaneous to the events of Resident Evil 2. You control Jill Valentine, one of the last remaining members of S.T.A.R.S. still in Raccoon City. S.T.A.R.S. is a specialized branch of the Raccoon City Police Department which received quite the shake-up during the events of the first Resident Evil game (both the original and the remake)--after the Mansion incident, Jill stayed behind in Raccoon City to continue investigating Umbrella. Not only does she get caught in the middle of the t-Virus outbreak, but she will also be pursued by RE3's iconic Nemesis tyrant, designed especially to eliminate the remaining S.T.A.R.S. officers before they can whistleblow on Umbrella's activities.

Mr. X was perhaps one of the most popular elements from the Resident Evil 2 remake (he was in the original game too, but only the "B" scenario) and it turns out Capcom probably has some more surprises in store for us with Nemesis too. According to RE3's producers, Nemesis will have "more ways than Tyrant from Resident Evil 2 to track down his target Jill Valentine." Nemesis is definitely an entirely different beast than Mr. X, but considering some of the liberties Capcom has taken with these remakes/reboots, who knows what new horrors they're referring to? You can get a brief taste of how they're going about it in our impressions section below.

Other returning characters, based on the reveal trailer, include Umbrella Biohazard Countermeasure Service mercenaries Carlos Oliveira, Mikhail Viktor, and Nikolai Zinoviev, though only Carlos was pointed out by name in a video by the producers following the initial reveal. S.T.A.R.S. Alpha Team member Brad Vickers also makes a brief appearance in the reveal trailer.

For a full recap of the Resident Evil story, be sure to read our story recap feature, which details the essential information you need to know to jump into the game.

Gameplay Impressions: How's Resident Evil 3 Shaping Up So Far?

We recently got the opportunity to play more than two hours of the Resident Evil 3 remake at a preview event. So far, it's looking to reimagine the original in surprising and unexpected ways. Below you can find excerpts from GameSpot editor Matt Espineli's Resident Evil 3 preview about the newly reimagined Raccoon City, the renewed focus on action, and, of course, the Nemesis.

Reimagined Raccoon City: "RE3's Racoon City is larger in scale than RE2's labyrinthian environments, but the few pathways remaining in between the barricades still felt like cramped, dangerous corridors capable of trapping me as punishment for overconfidence and curiosity. It's unclear if more spacious areas await later on, but in the span of a few minutes, I made my way through several alleyways and shops, like a drugstore and a '50s era-inspired donut shop. Diverse areas like this already make Raccoon City stand out from the bleak damaged urban backdrop it was in the original."

Action-Focus: "There's a greater emphasis on action compared to RE2 with more zombies populating areas. It never approaches horde-level numbers, but the increase in the undead coming at you on all sides is enough to feel overwhelming. The ones you've killed (and not decapitated) are also more prone to getting back up over time. Fortunately, you seem to get just enough ammo and gunpowder to accommodate this shift in pace, as well as a diverse arsenal of weapons that become available far sooner than in RE2 to help deal with the substantial threats lurking in the city streets. There's also a multi-directional dodge maneuver that can help you slip past enemies, which, when timed right, allows you to perform a brief slow-motion headshot on the creature you evaded, should you choose to do so."

Nemesis: "Compared to RE2's Mr. X, Nemesis is faster and more aggressive. He can and will catch up to you if you try to run for it. Any beelines you attempt can be instantly halted by this behemoth swiftly jumping ahead of you, carelessly trouncing any unfortunate zombies that happen to be in the way. He frequently grabs you with his tentacles to drag you back towards him, and when he does corner you, it only takes a handful of punches from him before you're down for the count. Nemesis is intimidating and unpredictable, often quickly popping out and assaulting you from directions you least expect."

Free Demo

Like Resident Evil 2's remake, a demo was released for Resident Evil 3 and it's available now. Unlike the Resident Evil 2 demo, the Resident Evil 3 demo has no time limit. However, you cannot save, so you'll have to beat it in one shot. Good luck!

Release Date

The first reveal trailer for Resident Evil 3 also gave us a release date of April 3, 2020 for PlayStation 4, though just like previous Resident Evil games, you will also be able to get it on PC and Xbox One. Check out our Resident Evil 3 pre-order guide for details.

Platforms

As stated above, Resident Evil 3 will be available on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC via Steam.

PC Specs

Resident Evil 3 is coming to PC via Steam. We know RE3's minimum system requirements for PC so far, which is very similar to that of the Resident Evil 2 remake.

Resident Evil 3 Remake Minimum System Requirements

• Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
• OS: WINDOWS® 7, 8.1, 10 (64-BIT Required)
• Processor: Intel® Core™ i5-4460 or AMD FX™-6300 or better
• Memory: 8 GB RAM
• Graphics: NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 760 or AMD Radeon™ R7 260x with 2GB Video RAM
• DirectX: Version 11

We don't know the recommended requirements just yet.

Pre-Order and Collector's Edition

You can pre-order Resident Evil 3 now--if you pre-order before its April 3, 2020 release date, you'll get an exclusive Classic Costume Pack which includes Jill Valentine's original RE3 outfit and Carlos Oliveira's original hairstyle.

Base game pre-orders are $60 USD at major retailers. North American fans can grab the limited GameStop-exclusive Resident Evil 3 Collector's Edition for $180, which comes with a physical copy of RE3 for PS4 or Xbox One, an 11" statuette of Jill Valentine, a hardcover collector's artbook, a double-sided Raccoon City map poster, and a digital RE3 soundtrack. The Jill figure is the same scale as the Leon statuette from the Resident Evil 2 Collector's Edition. It's also limited, so if you want one, you should pre-order the RE3 Collector's Edition now, while it's still in stock!

Head to our Resident Evil 3 pre-order guide for more details and links.

Multiplayer (Resident Evil Resistance)

Resident Evil 3 will have a multiplayer mode, which (as it turns out) is actually Resident Evil Resistance, the 1v4 asymmetric multiplayer game revealed at Tokyo Game Show 2019. Capcom originally lead fans to believe Project Resistance was a standalone Resident Evil spin-off, but it will come with Resident Evil 3.

In the RE3 reveal, its producers refer to Resident Evil Resistance as "an asymmetrical battle between 4 survivors and 1 mastermind," where the mastermind can control creatures and set traps and the survivors must try to escape. The final open beta is currently available right now on Xbox One, but unavailable on PS4 and PC due to apparent issues. We'll be sure to update this feature with more details as soon as they become available.

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