Capcom shocked The Game Awards 2025 tonight by confirming a huge return. Leon S. Kennedy is playable as the second protagonist in Resident Evil Requiem. The cinematic trailer revealed Leon alongside Grace Ashcroft, an FBI analyst driving a new narrative. We have already been previously covering supposed leaks and rumor supposed leaks and rumors of the aforementioned, but it looks like they turned out to be true.
The footage split focus cleanly between Grace’s investigative, survival-horror beat and Leon’s grittier, combat-forward sections, to include a throwback to Resident Evil 4 with chainsaw combat. Grace’s scenes leaned into tense, methodical investigation and atmospheric dread, while Leon’s segments showcased tight third-person combat and gunplay.
Additionally, a brand-new villain, the “old man” from our previous coverage (rumored to have been a possible Ozwell Spencer or Albert Wesker) was revealed as being named Victor Gideon, with additional information on him likely to follow in the coming days.
Fans cheered the return of Leon, older, sharper, and still very much the franchise’s tactical anchor, while social feeds now filling with speculation about how his storyline will connect to Grace’s more investigative probe. The official reveal positions Requiem as both a nod to the series’ past and a step into a new, character-driven future.
For longtime Resident Evil fans, tonight felt like a homecoming: Leon’s back, and he’s not just a cameo, but an actual playable protagonist in what looks to be one of the franchise’s most ambitious, and dark, entries yet.
Resident Evil Requiem releases across consoles and PC on February 27, 2026. You can watch the TGA trailer below.
