Resident Evil 4 is perhaps the most famous survival title of all time. Its lasting impact on gaming is still seen today, and players are currently enjoying a refreshed experience in Resident Evil 4 Remake. Before the official version of Resident Evil 4 was finalized, its development period explored four unique concepts. Known collectively as Resident Evil 3.5, these concepts explored different evolutions of the series' horror-focused gameplay. The collection is essential to the series' legacy, as Resident Evil 3.5's unique concepts spawned not only one of the most popular video games of all time but also gave birth to entirely new properties.
Resident Evil 3.5 is the name given to the collection of concepts created for Resident Evil 4. Development on Resident Evil 4 was quite extensive, and each concept produced a completely fresh take on the series' direction. Resident Evil 3.5 consists of four unique builds, referred to as Canceled Biohazard 4, Castle Concept, Hallucination Concept, and Zombie Concept, which were followed by the official Resident Evil 4 that players know today. Over the course of each build's development, Capcom began to introduce original concepts, while slowly tweaking the balance between horror and action. Some concepts would return in later Resident Evil entries, while others produced entirely new series.
Resident Evil 3.5: Canceled Biohazard 4
In 1999, development began on Biohazard 4, a sequel to Resident Evil 3, with series director Shinji Mikami handing control of the series over to Capcom's Hideki Kamiya. Kamiya came up with a concept in which the title's protagonist Tony Redgrave and his twin brother, Paul Redgrave, would receive superhuman abilities from the Progenitor virus. Tony, the son of Oswell E. Spencer, would explore an Umbrella facility on Mallet island. The title proved too big a departure from the core concepts of the Resident Evil series. Rather than scrap the title, Kamiya's setting and hero were reworked into a brand-new concept, giving birth to the original Devil May Cry for PS2.
Resident Evil 3.5: Castle aka Fog
The version of Resident Evil 4 developed between 2001-2002 is referred to as the "Castle", though some also refer to it as "Fog" today. In this version, an infected Leon S. Kennedy would return after the events of Resident Evil 2 and participate in a raid on Oswell E. Spencer's castle, the supposed headquarters of the Umbrella Corporation. During the events of the game, Leon would encounter a young woman and her B.O.W. Companion. Together they would discover the origins of the Progenitor virus and uncover Spencer's creation of Umbrella Pharmaceuticals as a tool to achieve immortality.
The concept featured a central "fog" enemy that would pursue Leon throughout the new title, much like Mr. X and Nemesis from earlier Resident Evil entries. The creature would appear similar to the smoke monster from the tv series LOST in addition to protruding tentacles. However, the fog monster proved too taxing on the Gamecube hardware, so the concept was scrapped. Work then began on a concept that could feature multiple enemies while relieving the risk of hardware limitations. The script written for the Castle concept was donated to another developer, Production Studio 1, where it would eventually lead to the final version of Haunting Ground.
Resident Evil 3.5: Hallucination
"Hallucination" is the name for the 2003 concept for Resident Evil 4, commonly referred to as "Hook Man", due to the Hook Man enemy heavily featured in its promotional material . The script itself was scrapped before completion but was said to take many elements from the "Castle" build. Leon was once again infected, but this time the enemies would be a direct side effect of his mental health. In a return to the series' horror roots, Leon would hallucinate enemies, such as possessed dolls and humanoid monsters, that would appear throughout the game's setting unexpectedly.
Despite a script going unfinished, the "Hallucination" build of Resident Evil 3.5 was presented at E3 2003. Fans watched as Leon explored the rooms of a derelict building before being confronted by the Hook Man hallucination at the presentation's climax. Of all the scrapped concepts from Resident Evil 3.5, Hook Man is perhaps the most famous, as players actually saw the figure in action. In fact, the recent Resident Evil 4 Remake featured an easter egg about the Hook Man, which can be seen while players navigate Ashley through the Castle setting.
Resident Evil 3.5: Zombie
In the Autumn of 2003, a new concept, "Zombie", began development, but didn't get far. No concept art or materials for this phase in development are known to exist. "Zombie" was created in hopes to return to the classic Resident Evil formula and featured human-like enemies called dabamen. The concept was quickly scrapped, due to fears that it would bore long-time fans of the series. However, the dabamen would go on to serve as the foundation for Resident Evil 4's Ganados.
Resident Evil 3.5's Transformation Into Resident Evil 4
Following years of development, with only scrapped concepts to show for it, a brand-new team took over the development of the final version of Resident Evil 4. Once again under the direction of Shinji Mikami, the team took many of Resident Evil 3.5's concepts and combined them into a single title. This team was told by Capcom that their build would be the title's final chance at seeing release. With the mounting pressure from Capcom to produce results, Mikami made the controversial decision to transition Resident Evil 4 to an action horror game.
Mikami relied heavily on Resident Evil 3.5's ideas, overhauling the third-person camera system to better suit the new action-oriented gameplay and adapting assets to create an experience worthy of this new direction. Casting aside the shambling zombies and boxed-in locations of prior titles, Mikami's new setting, Resident Evil's Valdelobos, and its resident Ganados could match Leon's pace and quickly overwhelm the player if they over-relied on strategies from early titles. When the title was released in 2005, these risks paid off, with Resident Evil 4 now considered by many to be the best title that the series has ever produced.
Resident Evil 4 Remake was released this March, giving long-time fans the opportunity to experience a modernized version of the title. Like the original, the remake demonstrates the fusion of ideas from Resident Evil 3.5. Had development on Resident Evil 4 not included this long and complicated history, Resident Evil 4 would likely not have been the incredibly unique experience fans love today. Furthermore, players would never have experienced the Devil May Cry series or the cult-classic Haunting Grounds. In light of its contributions to the gaming landscape, Resident Evil 3.5 has cemented itself as some of the most important games that were never released.
Resident Evil 4 (2023) is available on PC, PS4, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.