Summary
Earlier this year,Resident Evil 4hit shelves and digital storefronts worldwide and reminded fans everywhere why Leon Kennedy is the most beloved character in the franchise. Leon was introduced to gamers inResident Evil 2and became a fan favorite thanks to his role in the original version of the fourth game. This makes it all the more bizarre that, even after theResident Evil 4remake, the series seems committed to keeping Chris Redfield the center of attention.
While not the main character ofResident Evil 7: BiohazardorResident Evil Village, Chris Redfield still played a major role in both games. He originally appeared at the end of the seventh game, aiding Ethan Winters in his struggles before starring in a separate piece of DLC. His character had a larger role inVillage, but it wasn’t really clear what he was up to until much later in the game. WithResident Evil 9reportedly set to center around Chris Redfield, it begs whether the franchise is betting too much on the character.
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Chris Redfield’s History in the Resident Evil Franchise
Chris Redfieldwas originally introduced in the firstResident Evilgame back in 1996. He was one of two playable characters available and became a reoccurring protagonist in the series with appearances in seven additional canonical games. His antagonistic relationship with franchise villain Albert Wesker informed a big part of the game’s story as did his friendship with Jill Valentine.
Unlike many otherResident Evilcharacters,Chris Redfield is inconsistent in his designbut fairly consistent in characterization. By the timeResident Evil 5was released, the developer seemed to have settled on making him the tough but tortured soldier. He is a very serious character going on dangerous missions and treats everything with a sober and downbeat resolve. The games likewise seem to make his arcs all about soldiers and comrades he’s lost over the years and how he deals with this constant heartache and grief. This is ultimately the main thing that separates Chris from Leon Kennedy.
How Leon Kennedy Contrasts Chris Redfield in Resident Evil
Like Chris Redfield,Leon Kennedy has appeared in manyResident Evilgames. His appearance in the fourth game solidified him as the series favorite, thanks to an upbeat and snarky attitude that made the character fun to watch in cutscenes and play throughout the game.Resident Evil 6, unfortunately, made the character a little too serious for his own good and was one of many elements within the game that didn’t work. Capcom would later bring the character back into the spotlight with the remakes ofResident Evil 2andResident Evil 4. It is in the latest remake where Chris and Leon are both similar and completely different.
The remake ofResident Evil 4changes a lot about Leonand, at first, it seemed like the game might be taking itself too seriously for its own good. Leon’s demeanor was not unlike Chris' in the later games where he seemed to approach everything with a serious and dower disposition. As the game goes on, however, he gradually begins to lighten up, throws out more punchlines, and begins to resemble the Leon Kennedy of the original game.
While the character is still fairly serious compared to the 2005 version, the characterization comes off as a kind of blending of the Leon ofResident Evil 6and the campy Leon ofResident Evil 4. This sort of tonal blending overall comes off as more appropriate for theResident Evilfranchise than Chris' constant somber mood. The tone of the franchise makes it all the more bizarre that it has continued to bet on Chris as the series' face.
The Campy Horror Tones of Resident Evil
TheResident Evilfranchise is overall quite a bizarre series. For as scary as nerve-wracking as the games can be, they are just as often very goofy and campy. The first game effectively invented the survival horror genre, but the franchise would find ways to make everything that was creepy funny and campy too. Overall, the series had a bit of a difficult time reconciling these tones, which is often part of the charm.
Someplayers tend to have less regard forResident Evil 5andResident Evil 6than other installments precisely because they took themselves a tad too seriously. Both games starred a dower Chris Redfield withRE6co-starring a significantly less fun version of Leon Kennedy, among others. It wasn’t until the release ofResident Evil 7andVillagethat the developer seemed finally went back to the idea of making the games with a blend of horror and campy comedy.
The Baker family ofResident Evil 7is a horrific,Texas Chainsaw Massacre-style group that is terrifying to be around but also hilarious to listen to and fun to interact with. Likewise, some of thebest characters inResident Evil Villageknow how to blend the scares and the laughs. Lady Dimitrescu and Heisenberg are incredibly over the top in design and personality but are also among the most terrifying characters the franchise has ever put to code.
WhileChris Redfield works as a supporting character inVillage, these sorts of characters and tones make his overly serious soldier character stick out like a sour thumb. It also makes having him as the go-to legacy character for the newer games quite bizarre. It’s even stranger when the blend of camp and horror seemed to have been better executed with Leon in the remake ofResident Evil 4.
As of this writing, it’s not entirely clear what the franchise intends to do with either character. It is very likely that thelegacy characters ofResident Evilare in dangergiven their advancing ages and the 9th game will likely see at least one meet their end. Given Leon’s continued popularity, however, it’s odd that the franchise seems intent on keeping Chris as the franchise’s main mentor and may overall be betting too much on the character.
Resident Evil 4is available on PC, PS4, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.
