A new mainline Resident Evil game is always a huge deal. Ever since the launch of Resident Evil 7: Biohazard back in 2017, it feels like every new release sees the franchise grow. Even the Resident Evil 3 remake, which some were mixed on, managed to be a huge commercial success, and that is thanks in no small part to Capcom continuously pushing bundles, discounts, and bringing the games to more platforms. It feels like the last five years of building up the series has led to this moment: Resident Evil Requiem.
Resident Evil Requiem (aka RE9) is notable for being the first mainline entry in the series to arrive simultaneously on all current platforms. This is also the first mainline game to launch day one on Nintendo hardware since Resident Evil 4’s debut decades ago. All that taken into account, we have decided to do something different for our Resident Evil Requiem review. You might have gotten a taste of it a few days ago with Resident Evil 7: Biohazard and Resident Evil Village, where we had a dedicated port review and a comparison for both games. Pre-release restrictions prevent a comparison, but this Resident Evil Requiem Switch 2 review will cover both the game itself and the technical aspects since a visually stunning current-generation game arriving day one on Nintendo Switch 2 within its first year warrants it.
After Raccoon City survivors are found dead under mysterious circumstances across the United States, FBI intelligence analyst Grace Ashcroft is sent from the Midwest Field Office to investigate The Wrenwood Hotel, where the latest victim was discovered. Welcoming guests from all walks of life since opening its doors in 1928, the building has remained abandoned since it became the scene of Grace’s mother’s tragic murder eight years ago.
To no one’s surprise, what starts out as a straightforward crime scene investigation soon escalates into harrowingly unsettling events. Creaking noises, jump scares, maggot-infested toilets, and stalkerish photos of Grace pale in comparison to the horrors that await her. Former Umbrella Corporation employee Victor Gideon has lured her to the location, and, knocked unconscious, he takes her to Rhodes Hill Chronic Care Center where he is continuing his experiments with a mutated T-Virus strain. It’s a strong opening, and that’s Capcom only just getting started.
Grace’s anxiety-ridden disposition and introverted nature are at the polar opposite of Leon Kennedy, now a seasoned Division of Security Operations (DSO) agent, who is back with his witty quips and one-man army heroics as he separately pursues Victor Gideon. The plot is masterfully interwoven among each protagonist, switching between them at intervals as the game’s heart-pounding storyline plays out and isn’t ever afraid of leaving you in suspense.
Before playing through the main story, you must choose how challenging you want your experience to be. There are three difficulty modes for you to choose from that cover familiar bases: Casual, which lets you “relax while enjoying the story and puzzles,” Standard (Modern), which offers “a balanced experience of suspense and accomplishment at the standard difficulty found among modern Resident Evil games,” and Standard (Classic), which is pitched as “a traditional experience with a difficulty similar to classic Resident Evil games. Recommended for long-term fans of the series.” This caters to every angle of Resident Evil’s diversifying audience, letting you tackle the game how you wish and helping everyone to push through it in its gripping entirety.
Green Herbs to mix into more potent healing salves. Keycards and ID Wristbands needed to be recovered to gain access to new areas. Crates to roundhouse kick open for supplies. Hidden Mr. Racoon trophies to destroy. We all know and love the playbook by now. It’s tried and true at this point, but it is how Capcom brings together past and present that is remarkably effective. The team anticipates you will play Grace’s gameplay sections in a first-person perspective in line with Resident Evil 7: Biohazard and Resident Evil Village, whereas Leon’s action-oriented approach makes the third-person perspective preferable, as seen most recently in the Resident Evil 2, Resident Evil 3, and Resident Evil 4 remakes. However, you aren’t restricted to these and can freely choose to play as both characters in either first or third-person perspectives if you wish.
Where Grace’s survival often relies on keeping to the shadows and jabbing unsuspecting infected with makeshift knives or a zombie-popping Hermolytic Injector, Leon leaps into danger, swinging his hatchet with reckless abandon or shoving his shotgun in a helpless zombie’s mouth before pulling the trigger to unload a devastating shot. This frequent change in gameplay style proves a success for Resident Evil Requiem, resulting in a game that never failed to lose my interest progressing through its substantial runtime. There’s so much more that I would like to say, but also so much that should rightly be left for you to discover for yourself.
Resident Evil Requiem on Switch 2 runs at an unlocked frame rate, whether playing docked or handheld. It also heavily relies on DLSS upscaling, but the end result is good for the most part when it comes to image quality. The inventory items and some reflections indoors are where the cracks start to appear. Early on, Grace is exploring a kitchen and opening a metal drawer. The reflection from the flashlight here is very wobbly, and it almost looks like the game is glitching out in that section in how the reflections are displayed. Barring that, hair is still an issue even in the full game. This is more noticeable in the in-engine cut-scenes.
Resident Evil Requiem Switch 2 vs PS5, Steam Deck, and Xbox
When playing Resident Evil Requiem docked on my 1440p monitor, aside from the aforementioned hair-related issues, I think Capcom did a solid job in porting the game to Nintendo’s new hybrid console. It also compares quite favorably to the PS5 and Xbox Series X versions in how it still retains the atmosphere and look of RE9.
When looking at the portable side, RE9 holds up very well on Switch 2, and I’d pick that over the game on Steam Deck given the image stability on Switch 2, though the Steam Deck can offer a more stable experience when it comes to performance. Performance is also where the Switch 2 port falters compared to PS5 and Xbox Series X.
Performance is a mixed bag right now when playing docked, but it feels better in handheld mode thanks to VRR. Capcom’s insistence on uncapped frame rates in games like this and the upcoming Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection is good for future proofing, as we saw in Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of R,uin which runs amazingly on Switch 2 via backward compatibility. However, it is lacking in Resident Evil Requiem when played docked. The absence of VRR when playing on TV is very noticeable, and I had to swap to playing the game in handheld mode so that I didn’t get motion sickness in the game’s opening five minutes and in some other sections later on. If you look at the sky or ground, you get to see the upper limit of the frame rate cap, but it varies a lot early on, and does not feel good. Ideally, I’d love a 40 frames per second at 120hz docked option or a 30 frames per second cap option, because I would prefer that over the unstable performance now.
Moving over to the handheld side, I can tell VRR is doing heavy lifting, and I’m glad it is there for the less open areas. However, even VRR isn’t enough for the more open sections featuring Leon fighting on the street with a lot of particle effects, as an early example. Replaying the opening hours on Switch 2 handheld was a much better experience despite the softer image quality compared to docked play, but again, the performance can’t keep up despite the image quality cuts. It still is a great handheld experience, though.
All that taken into account, I am happy with how Resident Evil Requiem feels handheld in most parts of the game so far, but there are some elements in the environment and effects that don’t scale up well enough from the lower internal resolution. This also applies to docked play with situations involving a lot of reflection on metal with the flashlight or light rays and dust. You can see upscaled artifacts or shimmering in the distance, and it is quite noticeable compared to how modern RE games play on other platforms.
One more thing I want to make a note of is how good the HD Rumble 2 implementation is in Resident Evil Requiem. Capcom has made great use of HD Rumble before, but the implementation has never been as good as it is in Resident Evil Requiem on Switch 2. I liked it so much in the first five seconds that I went into the settings with the hope that I could turn up the intensity, and you can. I set it to strong, and it was superlative. This applies to not only combat and some cut-scenes, but also interactions like answering a phone call, opening doors, and thunder during gameplay.
Speaking of controls, Resident Evil Requiem does have motion controls, but the lack of mouse controls is disappointing for docked play. Given how much Nintendo and Capcom have been showing off and making a big deal about Resident Evil Requiem on Switch 2, I hope that it gets added in the future.
The final technical aspect of Resident Evil Requiem I want to cover is the load times. Resident Evil Requiem loads much faster than I expected on Switch 2 initially and into your save file, but the loading in-game between cut-scenes and other moments feels slightly long.
On the technical side, Resident Evil Requiem is lacking when played docked right now without a 30 frames per second cap, but the handheld experience ended up impressing me more, and the HD Rumble 2 implementation made it so I can absolutely recommend this for those wanting to play or replay Resident Evil Requiem on the go.
One last thing I want to say is that Resident Evil Requiem made me wish the Switch 2 screen was an OLED rather than LCD. The atmosphere with the sound design and rumble implementation is let down, thanks to the screen not being able to keep up and display proper blacks. I got used to it, but I can’t say I wasn’t disappointed here.
Resident Evil Requiem on Nintendo Switch 2 delivers an excellent handheld experience, even if its docked performance still has room for improvement. Despite that, it remains a solid way to engross yourself in the best non‑remake Resident Evil game in more than a decade. Resident Evil Requiem blends the best elements of modern entries while once again pushing the series forward with smart gameplay additions. That result strikes a confident balance between tension, horror, and full‑throttle action. Now, if you’ll excuse us, it’s time for yet another replay.
Review by Alex Seedhouse and Mikhail Madnani
Version Tested: Nintendo Switch 2
Review Copy Provided by Capcom
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