Resident Evil is one of the most famous on-going horror game series currently out there. Officially starting in 1996 and having over 50 games including remakes and Pachinko machines, the franchise is massive with the next game slated for a 2021 release.
With that many games, its likely for even hardcore Resident Evil fans to not have played every single title. Some titles were mobile exclusive or just simply never released, so here are some of the most obscure Resident Evil titles out there that likely won't be getting any fan-resurgences or remakes any time soon.
Resident Evil (GameBoy Color)
Back in 1999, a GameBoy Color port of the original Resident Evil was planned for release after a prototype was developed by HotGen Studios, but it was cancelled in 2000. Fans online have recovered ROMs for two different versions of this cancelled port with one being an older build of the other. However, both ROMs are incomplete and stop at the Lab Elevator section with other details in the area additionally remaining unfinished.
This game was likely cancelled due the the difficulty of completely replicating a PlayStation title on an 8-bit console. While the classic fixed camera angles of Resident Evil could have helped with the backgrounds and was likely the reason development could even at all, it ultimately would've just been an inferior version of the original game.
The BIO HAZARD Mobile Titles
Throughout the early 2000s, there were multiple mobile games released under the Biohazard title, which is the original Japanese title for the Resident Evil series. Many of these were Japanese-exclusive and could only be bought through a subscription service that's now defunct and not compatible with most modern phones.
The one shown above is known as BIOHAZARD ASSAULT THE NIGHTMARE. It was first released in 2002 with it later getting an international release under the title of Resident Evil Assault the Nightmare. The goal of the game is to save the survivor that is being guarded by the licker at the end of the game, and the game functions as a first person shooter where they must explore a mansion and shoot zombies and crows that attack them.
Other mobile titles took the form of puzzle games, action games, and even turn-based strategy games. Many of these titles are extremely rare due to public downloads for them being down and them only being available for specific phones. Unlike the released ROMs for Resident Evil for the Game Boy Color, many players wouldn't even be able to play a pirated copy of these games.
Resident Evil Gaiden
Resident Evil Gaiden is where the production ideas from Resident Evil for the Game Boy Color ended up going, despite the title becoming non-canon over the years with any events occurring in it being ignored by all other games in the series.
In this title, players control Barry Burton, who has been sent out to find Leon Kennedy on a ship known as the Starlight as well as find out about Umbrella's newest bio-weapon. The game has players explore the Starlight in a top-down perspective, which switches to a first person perspective when close to enemies. Players then have to time their gun's aiming reticle so they shoot without missing.
After release, it wasn't very positively received, citing unfun puzzles and the game not looking as scary as other Resident Evil titles. Due to this and its aforementioned removal from Resident Evil's canon, not too many people know about Resident Evil Gaiden.
Resident Evil Survivor
Resident Evil Survivor is a first-person shooter that uses the PlayStation's light-gun known as the GunCon45 to shoot the various enemies. Despite what some players might think from this description, Resident Evil Survivor is not an on-rails shooter and players have full control over their movement as they play. Players have to balance between using their normal controller to move while picking up the gun to shoot. However, there was an option to just use the controller to shoot as well.
While Japanese and PAL versions of this title allowed for the light-gun compatibility, the American version of the game cannot be used with any sort of light gun. There really isn't a deep plot to this title with it playing a lot like an arcade title despite it not being on-rails. Players cannot save unless they either die or beat the game, but this doesn't save their actual progress, so players need to start from the beginning of the game with every playthrough. It was re-released in 2001 in Japan and released on PC for Taiwan in 2002, but the PC version is infamously buggy with some enemies even missing their AI scripting.
Resident Evil: Outbreak
Resident Evil: Outbreak was a spin-off of Resident Evil that was a survival horror title with online cooperative multiplayer released back in 2003. Servers for online gameplay were shut down for USA servers in 2007 and shut down for Japanese servers in 2011.
Players can choose between playing five different scenarios and choosing a difficulty level of choice. If played in single-player, players would be accompanied by two AI partners. However, players can choose to create customized games in the online mode as well as complete the story scenarios with other players. If a player completes all of the scenarios and the event checklists that come with them, they can unlock Infinity Mode, which gives players infinite ammo. There were additionally hidden items that could be found around the levels that could unlock alternate costumes for the player characters.
While Resident Evil: Outbreak did get a sequel, it didn't do well at all, meaning that it is highly unlikely for Resident Evil: Outbreak to get revisited by Capcom. While some may argue that Resident Evil: Resistance is similar to Resident Evil: Outbreak, a pure non-asymmetrical horror game that players can team up and play at their own pace in could be a lot of fun if put in the right hands.
Resident Evil 8 is in development for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X.