Resident Evil has been on a serious hot streak the last couple of years with the Resident Evil 7 redefining the series, and the Resident Evil 2 and 3 remakes bringing back beloved classics. Needless to say, Resident Evil 8 has some big shoes to fill, and rumors suggest it's going to be something wildly different.
While trying new ideas is important for Resident Evil, it could also return to form in certain ways. The end of Resident Evil 7 saw the potential return of Chris Redfield, and the next game could easily see more iconic characters make an appearance.
While heroes have cycled in and out, there's one villain that anyone and everyone knows from Resident Evil, Albert Wesker. It's high time that Wesker steps back into the spotlight, and Resident Evil 8 could be the game to start setting that up.
Wesker's Return Would Be Big For Resident Evil 8
At the end of Resident Evil 5, Chris Redfield and Jill Valentine kill Wesker, at least they appear to. Wesker has died before, namely at the end of the first Resident Evil, after which he vanished for years and multiple entries. Since Resident Evil 5 there hasn't been one mention of Wesker, although his son Jake Muller was one of the main characters of Resident Evil 6. On top of this Alex Wesker (not blood-related but a subject of Project Wesker) appeared as one of the masterminds in Resident Evil Resistance. It wouldn't be unbelievable to see Wesker have another trick up his sleeve that helped him survive the end of RE 5, even if that comes down to something ludicrous like cloning or uploaded consciousness; nothing is out of the realm of possibility in Resident Evil. This is especially true considering Wesker is one of the most powerful beings in the entire series.
There is, however, a little bit of evidence that could point to Wesker's return. The 2016 multiplayer game Umbrella Corps may not have been a success, but according to producer Masachika Kawata, it's actually canon. In an interview with GameSpot Kawata said "The game is not a hypothetical, "what-if" side scenario. Umbrella Corps is set in the present day of Resident Evil, which means it's after the events of Resident Evil 6." At the end of matches in Umbrella Corps players hear the voices of two members of The Organization, Abraham Jackson and Beatrice Bertrand. Depending on if they win or lose different voice clips play, but many of the voice clips are a conversation with what is obviously Wesker, played once again by D.C. Douglas who's confirmed his involvement. Datamining even found a line from the game where Wesker says "The rumors of my demise were greatly exaggerated." This could easily be dismissed as a fun Easter Egg, but considering Capcom went out of its way to say Umbrellas Corps takes place in the timeline, it seems like there's more to it.
The Baker family in Resident Evil 7 showed that Capcom can still craft masterful villains, and the remakes showed that the developer can reimagine iconic ones from the past. Albert Wesker is as integral to the series as Leon Kennedy or Jill Valentine, and his return could do fantastic things for Resident Evil 8.