Resident Evil Requiem Review: Is RE9 the Best in the Series?

This sentiment captures what the entire gaming world has been buzzing about since Resident Evil 9 release date arrived on February 27, 2026. After years of speculation and anticipation, Capcom's ninth mainline entry — officially titled Resident Evil Requiem — has not only landed, but arguably redefined what a survival horror game can be.

In this Resident Evil Requiem review, we'll break down every dimension of the game: its dual-protagonist story and core mechanics, the breathtaking RE Engine visual fidelity, an honest pros and cons breakdown, the hardware you'll need to run it, the technical bugs to watch out for, and — critically for PC players — how to recover your save files if disaster strikes.

Part 1. Game Introduction: Story, Protagonists & Core Mechanics

Before diving into every detail of this Resident Evil requiem review, it helps to understand what Requiem fundamentally is — and why it feels like nothing the franchise has produced before.

Overview and Release Date

Resident Evil 9 review — Resident Evil Requiem is a single-player survival horror game developed and published by Capcom, released on February 27, 2026 for Windows PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch 2 — the first Resident Evil game designed natively for ninth-generation consoles. It is the ninth mainline installment in the series, following Resident Evil Village (2021), and was directed by Koshi Nakanishi, the same director behind the widely beloved Resident Evil 7: Biohazard. The game carries a Metascore of 88 and has earned the distinction of being the highest-rated game of 2026 so far — and, remarkably, the highest user score ever recorded on Metacritic.

The Dual-Protagonist Story (Spoiler-Free)

What makes this Resident Evil requiem review so unusual to write is that Requiem is, in essence, two games in one. The story alternates between two protagonists:

• Grace Ashcroft — A rookie FBI analyst who wakes up captive inside a sprawling, nightmarish research complex. She has no weapons, no backup, and no clear way out. Her story is about survival, terror, and a desperate hunt for answers.
• Leon S. Kennedy — The franchise's beloved veteran hero, now 51 years old, haunted by decades of bioweapon battles and bearing a slow-spreading black mold that may be killing him. He's hunting for Grace — and for the mysterious figure who set this all in motion.

The villain, Victor Gideon, is introduced immediately: a man who looks like a walking corpse, yet speaks calmly about a bizarre mission he calls "Elpus" — a concept that drives the entire narrative and whose true nature unfolds over the course of the game. The storyline officially declares the remake games (RE1, 2, 3, and 4 Remake) as the singular canon continuity.

Core Gameplay Mechanics

The genius of Requiem's design is that each protagonist plays with a completely different rulebook:

Grace's Gameplay — Classic Survival Horror Redefined

Grace's sections channel the spirit of the original Resident Evil trilogy. Her missions take place across sprawling, non-linear environments — vast hotel complexes and research labs that she must navigate by piecing together puzzles in flexible order. She begins with zero weapons, forced to sneak past enemies and hide under furniture while an unkillable stalker monster pursues her through walls and ceilings. Her unique upgrade system, called "The Bloods," lets her craft bio-bombs and even transmute zombie blood into ammunition — but resources are strictly limited.

A particularly innovative element: Requiem's zombies are not mindless. They are roughly 90% zombie, 10% still human — meaning a janitor may still be mopping, a butler still turning off lights, and some will even apologize or beg you to run before attacking. Every zombie has a unique model, unique behavioral patterns, and unique attack styles.

1. Non-Linear Exploration – Vast labs and hotel floors with multiple objectives that can be approached in different orders — echoing the freedom of Resident Evil 2.
2. Stealth & Distraction – Collect glass bottles to distract enemies, crouch to sneak, and hide under tables. The stalker monster can pursue Grace through walls and ceilings.
3. The Bloods Upgrade System – A crafting-based progression path: craft bio-bombs, convert zombie blood into bullets, and use biology-based tools to outmaneuver enemies strategically.
4. Resource Scarcity – Ammunition is intentionally insufficient to kill every enemy. Grace must choose her battles carefully, skipping many encounters to survive.

Leon's Gameplay — Veteran Combat Unleashed

Leon's sections are a ferocious counterpart. Where Grace tiptoes, Leon thunders through. He wields chainsaws torn from zombie hands, fights with axes in the streets of a ruined Raccoon City, and mows enemies down with shotguns and heavy hand cannons. His upgrade system is built around kill count, rewarding relentless aggression. Often, Leon passes through areas Grace already explored — seeing her puzzle solutions intact, and blasting through the zombies she left behind. This is also a more introspective Leon than fans have seen before: returning to the ruins of Raccoon City, reading the final newspaper clippings and evacuation notices, he carries visible trauma that makes him arguably the most compelling portrayal of the character in franchise history.

Perspective Flexibility

Players can switch between first-person and third-person perspective at any time — a franchise first. First-person is the default for Grace's horror sections (delivering "tense, realistic gameplay" per Capcom), while third-person is default for Leon's action sections ("ideal for people who enjoy action-packed gameplay"). Both modes are fully implemented, not retrofitted.

How to Fix Resident Evil Requiem Crash

Resolving Fatal D3D Crash, re9.exe 0x140000000, and "An Unhandled Exception Occurred" Errors.

Learn More

Part 2. RE Engine Performance — How Good Does RE9 Actually Look?

One of the biggest question marks heading into this Resident Evil requiem review was technical performance. Capcom explicitly promised that RE9 would not repeat the disastrous launch performance of Monster Hunter Wilds. It delivered on that promise decisively.

Visual Fidelity on PS5 Pro and Consoles

On the PlayStation 5 Pro, Resident Evil Requiem achieves something genuinely stunning: full ray tracing at a locked 60fps. Every puddle reflects the flickering hotel lights overhead. Every splash of gore catches the light. Dark corridors plunge into genuine, oppressive blackness. Digital Foundry called it "brilliant on PS5 Pro," noting that performance on 120Hz mode is consistently high with proper VRR support. On standard PS5 and Xbox Series X, the game maintains solid performance at high visual quality. The Nintendo Switch 2 version — the most surprising technical achievement — runs smoothly with DLSS-powered upscaling, earning dedicated praise from Digital Foundry.

PC Performance Across Hardware Tiers

The PC version of Resident Evil Requiem is arguably the most feature-rich RE Engine release to date. For the first time in the series, it includes:

• DLSS 4 (with Multi Frame Generation 2x and 4x) and FSR 4 upscalers
• Full Path Tracing — extremely demanding, for high-end GPUs only
• Ray Tracing at Normal, High, and Max levels
• Frame Generation support — works as a luxury (not a crutch) because the base performance is already strong
• Nvidia Reflex Low Latency and Hair Strands technology

Here is how real-world benchmarks break down across the GPU spectrum:

💡 Pro Tip on Settings: Keep Ray Tracing at "Normal," enable DLSS/FSR 4 at Quality mode, set Shadow Quality to Normal (not Max), and keep Hair Strands on if your GPU can afford the ~7fps cost. Motion blur can be safely disabled. Path tracing is an enthusiast-only option — even the RTX 5080 is cut in half at 4K.

Part 3. Resident Evil Requiem Pros and Cons

Every Resident Evil 9 review needs an honest reckoning. After a 14+ hour playthrough covering every side objective, hidden note, and secret upgrade, here's how the game stacks up:

Part 4. Hardware Requirements: Can Your PC Run RE9?

One of the best pieces of news in this Resident Evil requiem review is that Capcom has made Requiem surprisingly accessible. The hardware requirements are modest by 2026 AAA standards, reflecting the efficiency of the RE Engine.

Minimum PC Specifications

Recommended PC Specifications

What Do These Specs Actually Mean?

• Windows 10 users: Capcom lists Windows 11 as minimum, but real-world testing confirms the game runs fine on Windows 10 — Capcom is simply being cautious.
• Older GPUs: Even a GTX 1070 (older than the listed minimum) achieves ~49fps on Lowest + FSR Quality at 1080p. The specs are conservative.
• Storage: A full installation requires approximately 73.33 GB of SSD space. An SSD is mandatory — the game will not function properly on a traditional HDD.
• Ray Tracing: Available from the GTX 1660 class upward, best experienced from RTX 2060 Super or above. Full path tracing requires RTX 4080-class hardware or better for a stable framerate.
• Handheld PCs: The Steam Deck (original LCD) achieves approximately 40–45fps on Low + FSR. Newer handhelds like the Lenovo Legion Go 2 sustain ~50fps.

Part 5. Common Technical Faults & How to Fix Them

Despite a generally strong PC launch, some players encountered technical issues in the first days after release. Here are the most reported problems and their solutions, gathered from community reports and developer acknowledgment.

Fault 1: Game Crashes at Launch / Won't Start

Cause: Outdated GPU drivers, corrupted game files, or missing DirectX 12 runtime components.

1. Update your GPU drivers – Download and install the latest drivers via NVIDIA GeForce Experience or AMD Adrenalin. This resolves the vast majority of launch crashes.
2. Verify game files in Steam – Right-click the game in your Library → Properties → Installed Files → Verify integrity of game files. Steam will replace any missing or damaged files automatically.
3. Run as Administrator – Right-click the game's shortcut → Properties → Compatibility tab → check "Run this program as an administrator" → Apply → OK.

Fault 2: Fatal D3D / DXGI_ERROR_DEVICE_REMOVED

Cause: VRAM exhaustion or DirectX 12 conflicts — particularly common on cards with 6–8 GB VRAM running high settings.

1. Disable or reduce Ray Tracing – Change RT from High/Max to Normal, or disable it entirely. Ray tracing dramatically increases VRAM consumption.
2. Lower Texture Quality – Drop from High to Medium. This frees significant VRAM headroom on cards below the 8 GB threshold.
3. Disable background overlays – Turn off Discord overlay, Xbox Game Bar, and GeForce Experience overlay. These seize GPU resources concurrently with the game.

Fault 3: Black Screen After Launch (Audio Playing)

Cause: The game's config.ini contains a resolution or display mode your hardware cannot render.

1. Locate the config file – Navigate to: C:\Users\[Username]\AppData\Roaming\CAPCOM\Resident Evil REQUIEM
2. Delete or rename config.ini – Delete or rename the file to config.ini.bak. The game will regenerate it with safe defaults on the next launch.

Fault 4: Game Freezes During Shader Compilation

Cause: First-launch shader compilation is intensive. On mid-range CPUs or if the game was somehow installed on an HDD, this can cause extended freezes.

1. Be patient on first launch – Shader compilation can take 5–15 minutes on mid-range hardware. Do not close the game during this process. If the freeze persists beyond 20 minutes, close via Task Manager, verify files, and relaunch.

Fault 5: Stuttering in Dense Environments

Cause: CPU bottlenecking in specific high-NPC areas (particularly the Raccoon City street introduction), or background shader compilation still in progress.

1. Cap your FPS – Set an FPS cap to 60 or 120 via the in-game settings or NVIDIA/AMD control panel to reduce CPU/GPU spikes.
2. Confirm SSD installation – Verify the game is installed on an SSD. Streaming data from an HDD in dense environments causes severe stuttering.

📌 Official Support: Capcom's official troubleshooting thread on Steam covers additional edge cases. Visit the Steam Community Discussions for the latest community-verified fixes and patch notes.

Part 6. How to Recover Lost RE9 Saves With Recoverit

You've invested 10, 14, maybe 20 hours into Resident Evil Requiem. You've found every note, unlocked every upgrade, and you're closing in on the platinum. Then — a system crash, an accidental deletion, a corrupted save. It happens. Here's everything you need to know.

Where Are RE9 Save Files Located on PC?

Like previous Capcom titles, Resident Evil Requiem stores its PC save data in the Steam userdata folder. The exact path is:

C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\userdata\[Your Steam Numeric ID]\3764200\remote\win64_save

The folder 3764200 is Requiem's unique Steam App ID. Inside it, under remote\win64_save, you'll find individual save files in BIN format. The game supports multiple save slots, so you may have several BIN files corresponding to different playthroughs.

💡 Best Practice: Back up the entire 3764200 folder rather than individual BIN files. This captures every save slot and configuration file at once. Sort your userdata folder by date modified to locate it quickly. Note that Steam Cloud saves sync automatically when you close the game — but a corrupted file can sync to the cloud before you notice the problem, so local backups remain essential.

What Causes RE9 Save File Loss?

• Game crash during an autosave — interrupts the write process and corrupts the BIN file
• Accidental manual deletion of the win64_save folder
• Disk failure or SSD errors on the drive where Steam is installed
• Accidental overwrite — saving over the wrong slot (common with multiple save slots)
• Ransomware or malware encrypting your game data files

How to Recover Lost RE9 Saves Using Recoverit

Wondershare Recoverit is one of the most reliable tools for recovering deleted or corrupted game save files. It supports over 1,000 file formats (including BIN files), can scan for deleted files across SSDs and HDDs, and allows you to preview recoverable files before committing to a restore. The free version recovers up to 500 MB of data — usually sufficient for most save file scenarios.

Key Features of Recoverit

• Recovers 1,000+ file formats including BIN, photos, videos, documents, and more
• Deep Scan Mode for severely corrupted or formatted drives
• File Preview before recovery — verify your save file before you restore it
• 500 MB free recovery — usually more than enough for game save files
• Supports 1 million+ device types including SSDs, HDDs, USB drives, and SD cards

Step-by-Step Guide to Recovering Lost RE9 Game Saves

1. Select the Storage Location – Launch Recoverit and navigate to the "Hard Drives and Locations" panel. Select the drive where your Steam installation is located — typically the C:\ drive or whichever drive holds your Steam library. Click Start to begin the scan.

   

2. Filter and Locate the Save Files – Once scanning completes, use the filter function to search for BIN files, or navigate to the path Steam\userdata\[ID]\3764200 within the scan results. Select the save files you want to recover.

   

3. Preview and Recover to a Safe Location – Preview your selected files to confirm they are intact, then click Recover. Always save recovered files to a different drive from the one being scanned to prevent overwriting unrecovered data.

   

Conclusion

This Resident Evil requiem review arrives at a verdict that is nearly impossible to argue with: RE9 is a masterpiece, and very likely the best game Capcom has ever made. It earns its near-universal critical acclaim by doing something that seemed nearly impossible — combining two radically different survival horror experiences into a single, cohesive, emotionally resonant package.

Is Resident Evil requiem good – Emphatically and unambiguously yes. Grace Ashcroft emerges as one of the franchise's finest protagonists. Leon Kennedy receives the career-defining portrayal he always deserved. The puzzles, combat, atmosphere, and pacing all work together to create something that will be discussed for years. The Resident Evil 9 release date of February 27, 2026 marked a watershed moment — not just for the Resident Evil series, but for survival horror as a genre.

For PC players, the technical performance is a genuine relief: efficient, well-optimized, and accessible to a wide range of hardware. Just be sure to update your GPU drivers before launching, keep your save files backed up at Steam\userdata\[ID]\3764200, and know that Wondershare Recoverit is there if the worst should happen to your progress data.