Resident Evil 5

Resident Evil 5 is the forthcoming seventh installment (including Zero and Code: Veronica) in the Resident Evil survival horror series for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, and was first announced on July 20, 2005. The official release dates are to be announced. According to Capcom's fiscal year report at Jeux-France, both Resident Evil 5 and Devil May Cry 4 are expected be released before March 31, 2007 which ends their current fiscal year for the PlayStation 3. It is noteworthy that their was no news on a possible release date for the Xbox 360 version of the title during the report

Taking over producer duties from Hiroyuki Kobayashi is Jun Takeuchi (director of Onimusha, character designer for the original Resident Evil and animator for Resident Evil 2). Several staff members who also worked on the original Resident Evil are involved in development. According to Takeuchi, the game will utilize the same gameplay model introduced in Resident Evil 4, while implementing thematics from the original Resident Evil into the game. The game will be a full-fledged sequel taking place after the events in Resident Evil 4, and is said to be a major turning point in the series', overall storyline.

No official release date has been announced. In an interview with executive producer Keiji Inafune published in the Japanese publication Xbox 360ism states that both versions of the game will be released simultaneously if possible, depending on the launch date of the PlayStation 3, which has now been confirmed as early November 2006. The game will have online features that have yet to be disclosed.

It is noted that Resident Evil 5 and Devil May Cry 4 were not shown at E3 2006. Capcom supposingly reasoned that the company doesn't want to unveil the titles until they are available in a playable form. This could mean that it will be sometime before any new information will be released although it is speculated that the titles will make a appearance at the upcoming Tokyo Game Show later this year prior to the Japanese launch of the PlayStation 3. According to the fiscal year report at Jeux-France, RE5 is expected to be released sometime before March 31, 2007.

No details have been released about the game's storyline other than the fact that it is set after the events of Resident Evil 4 and that it will take place in a desert setting (an idea inspired by the movie Black Hawk Down).

The main character's identity has not been officially released, but an article in the August 5, 2005 issue of Weekly Famitsu suggests the possibility of the protagonist being Chris Redfield by pointing out a resemblance, as well as hinting that the protagonist is a character the developers are "very fond of" (with most of the team having worked on the original Resident Evil, including Takeuchi himself). Chris Redfield was the main male hero in the original Resident Evil and later the main male hero in Resident Evil: Code Veronica.

In the September 2005 issue of Famitsu Xbox, Takeuchi commented that the production is in its early stages and many plot details are still in the air.

It has been rumored that the game is shaping up to be a true sequel to Resident Evil Code: Veronica. Although with the demise of Flagship's Noboru Sugimura, the team itself will be handling the story. Kenji Inafune, who served as promotional producer for Resident Evil 2 is overlooking the project; he served as the executive producer for the PlayStation 2 version of Resident Evil 4.

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