Resident Evil 2 Leon Redesign and More Discussed at SDCC

Capcom hosted a Resident Evil 2 panel at San Diego Comic-Con this year, and used the panel as a vehicle to introduce the game’s lavish collector’s edition. But beyond that, some interesting information about the upcoming remake’s production was discussed, including what went into updating the look of the game, including the “new” character designs, and Raccoon City itself.

As we know from the game’s reveal content, Leon S. Kennedy looks markedly different from his previous incarnations, and it’s not just because of better technology. As explained during the panel by Capcom’s Kellen Haney, a deliberate decision was made to make Leon look extremely young in the new Resident Evil 2. He’s a pixelated mess in the original of course, and in the later games he’s a seasoned veteran/smarmy anime cop.

But in his debut appearance, he’s supposed to be a rookie cop on his first day. So while the technology of the day led to face-scanning an actual person to help create the design, the choice of style and model was a part of that thought process. It’s also noted that both Claire and Leon were designed in part by actual, physical clothes being made and scanned for the game’s models.

In addition to the character designs, the panel also brought attention to another important part of the Resident Evil mythos, Raccoon City itself. Themes of being afraid of the dark and, um, “wetness” drive the environmental design, and the team believes that today’s technology will help drive that home, as well as make the game closer to the original concepts from the 90s. The whole wetness thing, of course, not only refers to the weather during the infamous Raccoon City outbreak, but also much of the aftermath. I can imagine things get pretty wet when zombies are involved.

[Source: Comic Book/WWG]