As a ninth Resident Evil game lurks in the future, the franchise's community is buzzing with speculation regarding what the next game will hold. Both Biohazard and Village took the series into a new era with its protagonist, Ethan Winters, but after the events of Village, the protagonist for the ninth game in the franchise is a mystery. With rumors that Resident Evil 9 has a massive budget and many story possibilities, a lot of fans want to know which character from the franchise will be leading the game.

As one of the most iconic horror franchises in gaming, Resident Evil has brought to life some great protagonists who have become beloved by fans of the game. One of the most notable characters from these games is Resident Evil's Chris Redfield, and recent rumors have suggested that he may be the one to star in Resident Evil 9. Although this is a likely protagonist for the ninth game, the future of Resident Evil may be more exciting by subverting expectations with its main character choice.

RELATED: Horror Concepts That Resident Evil Still Hasn't Covered

Chris Redfield Playing a Support Role May Be Best For Resident Evil 9

Although Chris Redfield is one of the coolest characters the franchise offers, a new Resident Evil game may be more exciting with a different protagonist at the wheel. Ethan Winters may have been the protagonist of the last two games, but Chris was featured heavily throughout the events of Village. Chris should still be featured in the ninth game, of course, but either making him a side character or using him in a multi-narrative story structure may be a more exciting take on the next game.

One interesting direction could be featuring Rose as a playable character again. Village's DLC Shadows of Rose put the spotlight on Ethan's daughter, Rose, sixteen years after the events of the eighth game. The DLC showed that Rose had come under the care of the U.S. government as she struggled to accept her Megamycete powers. Chris sees the potential in her powers and wants her to join his squad. The next game exploring the dynamic between these two working as a team could be a compelling way to show Rose gain a new father figure while also diving deeper into her abilities.

However, if Rose doesn't appear as the main character, a great addition would be to bring back Chris' sister, Claire Redfield. Although Rose is an interesting character in her own right, Claire is iconic, and a dual narrative where players could switch between Claire and Chris would be a great way to continue the trend set by Resident Evil 2 and Resident Evil 3. Watching a sibling dynamic under the shroud of action-packed horror could be an interesting story for the series to explore. Resident Evil found itself becoming more sentimental with Ethan and Rose Winters, and repeating this sentimentality while looking into a sibling relationship would be a great way to continue the theme of family dynamics.

As of now, there is only rumor and speculation on the progress of Resident Evil 9, but after the unique takes the last two games ventured into, the next Resident Evil has a high bar to clear. Follow-ups are hardly ever an easy feat, but if the franchise continues to go down the path of exploring interesting relationship dynamics in a horror setting, then it could really help flesh out a new era for the world of Resident Evil. The landscape of horror games has been changing, and many developers are realizing that horror is a fantastic template for exploring complex themes. As great as Resident Evil has been through the years, the games can sometimes be shallow in their overall narratives, so it would be great to see deeper relationships and character dynamics explored in this world.

Resident Evil

Resident Evil is a long-running survival horror franchise developed by Capcom. Spread across numerous mainline and spin-off entries, the series is known for it’s third and first-person action horror, zombie-related monsters and references, and challenging puzzles.