Resident Evil 8 is the next entry in the survival-horror franchise from Capcom. The next title in the series has alreadydrawn fan attention for its continuation of the first-person style gameplay from the last numbered entry and cryptic trailers that tied the next game directly back to previous storylines with the involvement of Chris Redfield. While there will almost surely be new elements incorporated into the game, one new enemy shown off in the last trailer are likely the continuation of the Umbrella Corporation's wicked manipulations of genetics.
The last trailer for Resident Evil 8 unveiled a new enemy type for the franchise, werewolves. While the franchise had almost gone down a supernatural road with the early development of Resident Evil 4 and there was a werewolf in one RE3 comic, this may seem like uncharted territory. After all, Capcom course-corrected in RE4 and ended up continuing the story of the Umbrella Corporation and its bioweapons research with the introduction of the Las Plagas parasite in RE4 which has been retconned as having been the progenitor of what would become Nemesis. So, it's more than likely that these werewolves are a continuation of Umbrella's manipulation of animal DNA, as it has done in the past via the T-Virus in order to create horrific monsters.
A History of Mutation
Umbrella is no stranger to using viruses to manipulate animal DNA in order to create some of the now iconic enemies players have faced throughout the Resident Evil franchise. In the 1996 Resident Evil. there are multiple examples of both intentional and unintentional monstrous creations. The giant snake boss in the attic of Spencer Mansion is a less-grotesque example of gene tampering, but no less threatening. On the accidental side are the zombified dogs that will crash through windows and chase players relentlessly. Infected by the T-Virus, these canine creatures are disgustingly altered versions of man's best friend.
But deeper through the franchise are examples of even more hideous monsters created by Umbrella. The Chimera bioweapons were created by the fusion of fly and human DNA via the T-Virus. With small, vestigial wings and a partially formed exoskeleton, these disgusting creatures were deemed a failed experiment and abandoned as a project by Umbrella. Throughout the franchise, the various viruses and parasites that Umbrella developed were used to infect and change many different breeds of both animals and plants in its attempts to develop biological weapons.
Other notable animal and plant monsters from RE include the Albinoids, infant salamanders infected with the T-Virus that grew into grotesque lizard-like monsters able to manipulate electricity. Eliminators are primates exposed to the earliest strain of what would later become the T-Virus. Exposure to this Progenitor virus expanded muscle growth to the point that the tissue rips through the primate's skin becoming visible. The number of these different mutations are as many as there are games in the Resident Evil franchise, and the werewolves coming in Resident Evil 8 are likely the continuation of this theme.
With the return of series mainstay Chris Redfield in RE8 and the allusions to the Umbrella Corporation throughout the trailers, it seems likely that these werewolves are not pure lycanthropes in the supernatural sense. It seems more likely that these werewolves are another experiment in gene manipulation through some type of virus, whatever it may be. Likely the combination of canine DNA and human DNA, it seems that these new werewolves are likely the next in a long line of grotesque bioweapons developed by the Umbrella Corporation.
Resident Evil 8 is set to launch in 2021 for PC, PS4, and Xbox Series X.