Resident Evil in Order (2026 Guide)

If you want to play Resident Evil in order, the short answer is this: start with Resident Evil 7: Biohazard if you want the modern first-person survival horror experience, or start with the Resident Evil (2002) remake if you want to follow the story from the very beginning. The series has two valid orders — release order and chronological story order — and they diverge sharply because Capcom loves prequels.

Below is a complete breakdown of both orders, plus which entries you can safely skip, which remakes replace which originals, and how the timeline actually fits together after nearly thirty years of Umbrella conspiracies and bio-organic weapons.

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Resident Evil in Order: Release Order vs Story Order

Release order is how the series was designed to be experienced. Each game assumes you played the last one, so cliffhangers, character reveals, and villain returns land the way Capcom intended. The mainline release order runs: Resident Evil (1996), Resident Evil 2 (1998), Resident Evil 3: Nemesis (1999), Code: Veronica (2000), Resident Evil Zero (2002), Resident Evil 4 (2005), Resident Evil 5 (2009), Resident Evil 6 (2012), Resident Evil 7 (2017), and Resident Evil Village (2021). The remakes of RE2, RE3, and RE4 arrived in 2019, 2020, and 2023 respectively, and Resident Evil Requiem landed in early 2026 as the ninth mainline entry.

Chronological order is different because Zero is a prequel and RE3 brackets RE2. The story order is: Zero (July 1998) → Resident Evil (July 1998) → Resident Evil 3‘s opening hours → Resident Evil 2 (September 1998) → the back half of Resident Evil 3 → Code: Veronica (December 1998) → Resident Evil 4 (2004) → Revelations (2005) → Resident Evil 5 (2009) → Revelations 2 (2011) → Resident Evil 6 (2012–13) → Resident Evil 7 (2017) → Village (2021).

Which Order Should a First-Timer Pick?

Play in release order, with one modification: substitute the remakes for the originals. Tank controls and fixed camera angles are an acquired taste, and the 2019 and 2020 remakes preserve the plot beats while modernizing the feel. If you are setting up a horror-friendly rig for these, our roundup of the best gaming PCs for horror games covers what you actually need to hold 60fps in the RE Engine.

The Raccoon City Trilogy Is the Real Starting Point

Resident Evil, Resident Evil 2, and Resident Evil 3 form one continuous week of catastrophe. The Spencer Mansion outbreak in the Arklay Mountains leaks into the city, the city collapses, and the government sterilizes it with a missile strike. Play these three back to back and you get the cleanest emotional throughline in the franchise — Jill and Chris in the mansion, Leon and Claire in the police station, then Jill again fleeing the ruins with Nemesis on her heels.

Where Code: Veronica Fits

Code: Veronica is the forgotten fourth chapter and it matters more than its low profile suggests. It picks up Claire Redfield three months after Raccoon City, reunites her with Chris, and delivers a major status change for Albert Wesker that Resident Evil 5 pays off directly. Skipping it makes Wesker’s arc feel like it has a missing reel. It has never received a full remake, so you are playing the classic version — a good gaming controller buying guide helps here, because the twin-stick classic controls benefit from a solid d-pad.

Resident Evil 4 Is the Pivot Point

After Code: Veronica, the series pivots from survival horror to over-the-shoulder action. Resident Evil 4 drops Leon into rural Spain six years after Raccoon City, replaces zombies with the parasite-controlled Ganados, and rewrites how third-person shooters work. The 2023 remake is the version to play: it keeps the pacing and the merchant, sharpens the knife-parry system, and expands Ashley into an actual character rather than an escort-mission obstacle.

The Chris and Sheva Era: RE5 and RE6

Resident Evil 5 takes the RE4 formula co-op, sends Chris to West Africa, and resolves the Wesker storyline with a genuinely absurd volcano fight. Resident Evil 6 splits into four campaigns and is the most divisive entry in the series — heavy on quick-time events, light on horror. Neither is essential to enjoy RE7 onward, but RE5 is a genuinely fun couch co-op game if you have a second pad and a big screen. Pairing them with one of the best gaming monitors for console play makes the split-screen mode far less painful.

The Ethan Winters Duology: RE7 and Village

Resident Evil 7 reboots the tone entirely. First-person perspective, a Louisiana plantation, the Baker family, and almost no connection to prior games until the final act. It is the single best entry point for someone who has never touched the series. Village continues Ethan’s story three years later in a snowbound European village, and while it leans more action-forward, it delivers the strongest set-piece variety in the franchise. Headphones matter enormously for both — directional audio is how you survive — so it is worth checking a gaming headset buying guide before you start.

Spin-Offs You Can Skip (and Two You Shouldn’t)

The light-gun Chronicles games, Operation Raccoon City, Umbrella Corps, and Resident Evil: Resistance are all optional and mostly forgettable. The two worth your time are Revelations, which bridges RE4 and RE5 aboard a derelict cruise ship, and Revelations 2, which reunites Claire and Barry Burton in an episodic prison-island story. Both run well on modest hardware, which makes them ideal candidates if you are shopping around a budget gaming laptop guide rather than a full desktop.

A Practical Playthrough Plan

If you want the most efficient run through the series in order, do this: RE7 → Village → RE2 Remake → RE3 Remake → RE 2002 Remake → RE4 Remake → Code: Veronica → RE5. That gives you the modern hook first, then the foundational stories, then the action era. Most of these games run 8 to 15 hours, so the whole set is a comfortable two-month project. If you are replaying on a console, load times matter — an SSD upgrade guide for consoles cuts RE2 Remake’s respawn waits noticeably.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to play the older Resident Evil games before the remakes?

No. The remakes of Resident Evil 2, Resident Evil 3, and Resident Evil 4 are complete standalone retellings that cover every important plot beat from the originals. Playing the originals afterward is rewarding for the differences in tone and level design, but nothing in the modern games assumes you have.

Is Resident Evil 7 a good place to start the series?

Yes, it is arguably the best starting point available. Resident Evil 7 introduces a brand-new protagonist and an isolated setting with almost no reliance on prior lore, and it only ties back to the wider Umbrella storyline in its closing minutes. Newcomers can follow every plot development without any background knowledge.

How many mainline Resident Evil games are there?

There are nine numbered mainline entries counting Resident Evil Requiem, plus Code: Veronica and Zero, which are widely treated as mainline despite lacking numbers. Adding the two Revelations games gives you thirteen story-relevant titles, with roughly a dozen further spin-offs that sit outside the core narrative.

Does playing Resident Evil in chronological order spoil anything?

It can. Playing Resident Evil Zero first spoils a significant reveal about a character whose identity the original Resident Evil saves for its final act. Release order preserves those reveals, which is the main reason most long-time fans recommend it over strict chronological order for a first playthrough.