A long-standing Resident Evil Requiem rumour appears to have finally been confirmed, ahead of a likely reveal at The Game Awards 2025.
For what feels like forever, there has been a persistent rumour that Resident Evil Requiem will mark the return of Leon S. Kennedy, the fan favourite protagonist of Resident Evil 4.
Capcom has refused to confirm this, whenever asked, with game director Koshi Nakanishi even providing reasons for why Leon won’t be playable in Requiem. And just yesterday, a retail leak gave away that while there is a secret second playable character, besides newcomer Grace Ashcroft, it’s not Leon.
However, this didn’t necessarily rule out Leon appearing in a support role and, sure enough, another accidental retail leak has given the game away.
Updated artwork for Resident Evil Requiem was recently spotted on the PlayStation Store and while it features Grace front and centre, you can see what it is clearly an older, more grizzled looking Leon looming behind her.
It seems the art only appears for those who’ve pre-ordered the game and try to start pre-loading it. However, as you can imagine, that’s quite a few people and so social media is filled with screen grabs of fans who saw the image.
Someone was also able to extract the artwork and upload an HD version of it, making it even more apparent that it is Leon. He sports a beard now, but his hair is a dead giveaway. He even has a fur trim jacket, similar to the one he wore in Resident Evil 4, bringing him back to his more iconic design – after Resident Evil 6 saw him ditch it for a black leather jacket.
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There was an alleged leak back in September that claimed to show how Leon looks in Requiem, though while he had a beard, he also sported an eyepatch, which the newer artwork lacks. That was widely dismissed as being AI generated, with producer Masato Kumazawa describing it as ‘fake news.’
Capcom won’t be able to deny today’s leak, though. And given the timing, it seems almost certain Leon’s appearance is being saved for The Game Awards 2025.
Last week, the official X account for The Game Awards posted that a ‘terrifying new look at Resident Evil Requiem’ will take place during the show. It also shared a version of the leaked artwork that only features Grace.
As a reminder, The Game Awards is scheduled for Friday, December 12 at 12:30am GMT.
Leon’s inclusion makes a lot of sense, as Requiem is not only launching as part of Resident Evil’s 30th anniversary next year, but the trailers have also explicitly teased a return to Raccoon City – the setting of Resident Evil 2, where Leon debuted.
One key visual is the ruins of the city’s police department, where Leon’s story began. Although this begs the question of whether he’s secretly a third playable character or if he will simply assist Grace. Since there’s only artwork to go on, there’s no way to tell at the moment.
It’s possible he’ll be playable but only for a specific portion of the game, since Capcom did something similar with series regular Chris Redfield in Resident Evil Village.
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