It has been a little over a month since Capcom announced Resident Evil Village at Sony's PlayStation 5 event that showcased some of the games to be released on the console. However, despite having a short teaser trailer along with the announcement, there is still not much information known about Resident Evil Village except that it will star Ethan Winters and Chris Redfield, and the appearance of enemies such as a witch and werewolf-like creatures.
Moreover, the overall premise of the game is still unknown, especially the character or organization that will serve as the game's villain. Throughout Resident Evil's 24-year history, the franchise featured several organizations, from the Umbrella Corporation to The Connections, as those behind the horrifying outbreaks that threatened global security. So which organizations are the likeliest to serve as Resident Evil 8's foe? And will the upcoming entry introduce a new evil corporation?
The Connections
To the uninitiated, The Connections is the mysterious organization behind the events of Resident Evil 7 and is the likely villain in Resident Evil 8, given that Capcom has been saying that the upcoming game would continue the story of its predecessor. In Resident Evil 7, players discover that The Connections is the crime syndicate that is behind the development of the bioweapon E-001, also known as Eveline, who served as the main antagonist in Resident Evil 7.
The company's history began in 2001 when it collaborated with deceased villain Albert Wesker to develop a revolutionary new weapon created via a fungus. The Connections' plan is to develop bioweapons by creating genetically-modified humans, who have mind control abilities allowing them to take over regions without using traditional bioweapons. In Resident Evil 7, players witnessed how Eveline, who is the first bioweapon from the E-Type line controlled and destroyed the Baker family. After infecting several members of the Baker family, Eveline demonstrated the threat of The Mold, which is the fungal infection developed by The Connections.
Given that the true identity of The Connections was never revealed in Resident Evil 7, it is likely that Resident Evil Village will delve deeper into the company's history and motives. During the events of RE7 and its DLCs, the only connection players had with this organization is via Lucas Baker. Towards the end of RE7, Blue Umbrella was able to neutralize both Eveline and Lucas, though they were unable to identify anyone else from The Connections, which is the reason why this particular organization could play a huge part in Resident Evil Village.
Blue Umbrella
Another organization that could likely serve as Resident Evil Village's antagonist is Blue Umbrella. Similar to The Connections, Blue Umbrella was introduced in Resident Evil 7 as the successor to the original Umbrella Corporation. However, unlike its infamous predecessor, Blue Umbrella was created by former employees to make up for the atrocities of the original company by developing weapons that would eliminate bio-organic weapons.
Although Blue Umbrella is claiming that it is now leading the battle against bioterrorism, no one really knows the true intentions of this organization. In Resident Evil 7, Blue Umbrella enlisted the help of BSAA operative Chris Redfield to lead the mission to eliminate bio-organic weapons in the Baker's Mansion. During the Not a Hero DLC, it was revealed that Chris was reluctant to accept the task, given that he himself does not trust Blue Umbrella.
Of course, although Blue Umbrella brands itself as a reformed version of the Umbrella Corporation, there is reason to believe that its intentions may not be as pure as they claim. First, Blue Umbrella is made up of former Umbrella employees, and it is not unlikely if the company is just pretending to be in the business of developing weapons to eliminate bioterrorism. It is likely that Blue Umbrella is just using this as a front to obtain BOW research from other pharmaceutical companies, without raising suspicion. Of course, this wouldn't be surprising if it turns out to be true, given that the original Umbrella also did this when it used its operations as a pharmaceutical company as a front to hide its illegal bioweapons research.
A New Organization
Lastly, Resident Evil Village could also introduce a new organization to serve as the game's villain. Throughout the reveal trailer, it was shown that Resident Evil 8 will be featuring new enemy types such as supernatural creatures such as witches and werewolves. Although it is worth pointing out that the origins of these "supernatural" creatures are still unknown, so it is possible that they could just be new types of bioweapons that players haven't seen before.
Of course, if these new enemies are indeed bioweapons, then Resident Evil Village could very well introduce a new organization that has developed a virus or parasite that spawned these supernatural-like creatures. Of course, given that there is still very little information on Resident Evil 8, no one really knows where Capcom plans to take the series next. However, players should expect more details and trailers to be released in the coming months leading up to Resident Evil Village's 2021 release window.
Resident Evil Village is currently in development and is scheduled to release in 2021.