Much to the delight of fans of the classic style Resident Evil games, Resident Evil HD Remaster released worldwide earlier this year on January 20th. While not offering much in the way of new content, the game is one of the few true survival-horror titles released in recent years, and its enhanced graphics, online leaderboards, and achievements galore make the purchase worth it even for veterans of the Mansion Incident.

The Resident Evil remake was originally released in 2002 on the GameCube, but later saw a Wii port, with added motion controls. However, Resident Evil HD Remaster marks the first time that this version has been available on non-Nintendo platforms, as it released for PC, PlayStation, and Xbox systems.

Bringing Resident Evil to the HD era has proven to be a smart bet on the part of Capcom, as the game is smashing digital sales records. For example, the game is now the fast-selling day one digital game in the history of the PlayStation Network. Furthermore, it is the fastest-selling digital game in the history of Capcom across both Europe and North America.

Not only that, but Resident Evil HD Remaster has officially reached a total of 1 million units sold worldwide, making the game a tremendous success for Capcom by any sense of the word.

After the generally poor reception of Resident Evil 6, it's refreshing to see classic survival-horror not only be a hit with fans, but a commercial success as well. Hopefully this encourages Capcom to invest in more genuine, high quality survival-horror experiences.

Even if a new survival-horror Resident Evil game isn't in the works, maybe the strong sales of this HD Remaster will convince Capcom to finally create the often fan-requested Resident Evil 2 HD Remaster.

'Resident Evil HD Remaster' - Chris attacked by zombie

In any case, recent evidence suggests that a new Resident Evil game is set to release in 2015. Considering the recent popularity of survival-horror experiences like this HD Remaster or titles such as The Evil Within (developed by the creator of the Resident Evil franchise, Shinji Mikami), it wouldn't be out of the question to believe that Capcom plans on returning the series to its roots with the next game, whatever that may be.

The most recent game in the series, Resident Evil: Revelations 2, is definitely a step towards a more survival-horror feel, but it's still not quite the complete survival-horror experience. Even so, Resident Evil: Revelations' existence shows that Capcom is willing to diverge from the action formula that they've utilized for the last few main entry games in the series, and perhaps a complete return to form is indeed in the cards. Revelations 2 also shows Capcom's willingness to experiment with their biggest franchise, as the game utilizes an episodic format for its content; perhaps Resident Evil 7 might do the same.

It's also possible that Capcom plans on rebooting the franchise, as the plot has become convoluted more or less to the point of no return, and such a possibility has been rumored in the past. At this stage, the stories in Resident Evil games are openly mocked by most, even by fans of the series, so starting over with a clean slate might be the best move Capcom can make.

Resident Evil HD Remaster is available to download on PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.