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Resident Evil’s chronological story order starts with Resident Evil 0, followed by Resident Evil, the overlapping Resident Evil 3 and Resident Evil 2 campaigns, and then Code: Veronica through Resident Evil Requiem. This guide covers the mainline narrative, explains where the two Raccoon City games overlap, and shows when to choose an original release, a remake, or an optional side entry. The final placement reflects the current 2026 timeline, including Requiem.
Play one version of each remake-era game rather than both if your goal is to follow the plot efficiently. Treat exact day-by-day dates as secondary timeline details: broad story placement is well established, while fan-maintained calendars are more precise than Capcom’s public franchise overview.
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| Name | Best for | Key spec | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| Resident Evil 0 | Earliest mainline incident | July 1998; prequel to the mansion case | November 2026 |
| Resident Evil | Starting the original survival-horror arc | July 1998; original or 2002 remake | November 2026 |
| Resident Evil 3: Nemesis | Opening the Raccoon City outbreak sequence | September 23–October 1, 1998; overlaps RE2 | November 2026 |
| Resident Evil 2 | Leon and Claire’s outbreak story | September 29–30, 1998; overlaps RE3 | November 2026 |
| Code: Veronica | Claire’s direct post-Raccoon City continuation | December 27–28, 1998 | November 2026 |
| Resident Evil 4 | Leon’s 2004 transformation into an agent | Autumn 2004 | November 2026 |
| Resident Evil: Revelations | Bridge between RE4 and RE5 | Primarily 2005; one episode in 2004 | November 2026 |
| Resident Evil 5 | Chris and Sheva’s 2009 campaign | March 4–6, 2009; Lost in Nightmares flashes back to 2006 | November 2026 |
| Resident Evil: Revelations 2 | Claire and Barry’s 2011 story | 2011, with an epilogue in 2013 | November 2026 |
| Resident Evil 6 | The series’ multi-campaign bioterrorism crisis | Late 2012 through July 2013 | November 2026 |
| Resident Evil 7: biohazard | Ethan Winters’ first-person story | July 2017 | November 2026 |
| Resident Evil Village | The direct continuation of Ethan’s story | February 2021; Shadows of Rose reaches 2037 | November 2026 |
| Resident Evil Requiem | The newest chronological mainline entry | October 2026 | November 2026 |
The dates and overlap notes above follow the detailed chronology compiled by Lore Fortress, which attributes day-level placements to a fan-maintained Resident Evil Wiki timeline. Capcom’s official series history supplies the franchise-level context and entry list.
What is the Resident Evil chronological story order?
The practical mainline sequence is Resident Evil 0 → Resident Evil → Resident Evil 3 → Resident Evil 2 → Code: Veronica → Resident Evil 4 → Revelations → Resident Evil 5 → Revelations 2 → Resident Evil 6 → Resident Evil 7 → Village → Requiem. The third and second games are not cleanly separated: RE3 starts before RE2 and ends after it, so placing the complete games in that order is a convenient approximation rather than an exact scene-by-scene chronology.
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This is a story order, not a release order. Resident Evil 0 and the 2002 remake of Resident Evil were released after the original RE2 and RE3, but their fictional events happen first. The modern remakes occupy the same broad narrative positions as their original versions.
Why does Resident Evil 0 come first?
Resident Evil 0 takes place on July 23–24, 1998, immediately before the mansion incident. Rebecca Chambers and convicted criminal Billy Coen investigate the Ecliptic Express and Umbrella’s training facility, while the game establishes people and experiments that matter in the first Resident Evil.
It was released later, so its tutorialized systems and dual-character structure can feel newer than the 2002 remake. Chronologically, however, it is the opening chapter. You can play the original version or its HD remaster; choosing one is enough.
Should I play Resident Evil or the remake first?
Play either the original Resident Evil or the 2002 remake after RE0; both tell the July 24–25, 1998 mansion story. The remake is generally the more approachable entry for readers who want modernized controls, presentation, and pacing, while the original preserves the first game’s historical design and tone.
Chris Redfield, Jill Valentine, Barry Burton, and Albert Wesker investigate the Spencer Mansion after the Bravo Team’s disappearance. The incident explains the biological research, police-team fracture, and corporate conspiracy that drive the next two games. Playing both versions adds alternate scenes and mechanical differences, not a new chronological event.
How do Resident Evil 3 and Resident Evil 2 fit together?
Resident Evil 3: Nemesis begins on September 23, 1998, before Resident Evil 2 starts on September 29. Jill Valentine’s escape from Raccoon City continues through October 1, after Leon Kennedy and Claire Redfield’s September 29–30 campaign has concluded. That is why a whole-game order of RE3 then RE2 is practical but not perfectly literal.
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If you want the simplest progression, finish RE3 first and then play RE2. If you prefer the opening hours to line up with the calendar, play RE3 until its extended pause, switch to RE2, then return to RE3 for its later chapters. The games’ internal checkpoints and route variations make a completely exact interleaving cumbersome, and neither approach changes the overarching outcome.
The 1999 Resident Evil 3: Nemesis and the 2020 Resident Evil 3 remake share the same broad story position, although the remake restructures areas and encounters. The 1998 Resident Evil 2 and 2019 remake likewise depict the same outbreak-era episode with substantial design differences. Choose one version of each for a first chronology run.
Where does Code: Veronica belong?
Resident Evil Code: Veronica follows the Raccoon City disaster on December 27–28, 1998. Claire searches for her brother Chris after being captured while pursuing Umbrella, making this a direct character continuation rather than another retelling of the city outbreak.
Its story develops the Redfield family conflict, Umbrella’s history, and the rivalry with Wesker. The game was originally released on Dreamcast and later ported to other platforms; availability varies by current storefront and region, so verify the edition you can legally access. It remains the next major mainline event even though its title does not contain a number.
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When should I play the optional Chronicles games?
The Umbrella Chronicles and The Darkside Chronicles can be added after Code: Veronica as optional side entries. They retell earlier incidents in rail-shooter form and add some connective material, but neither is required to understand the numbered storyline.
Playing them after Code: Veronica avoids interrupting the main chronological run. If you are interested only in the core survival-horror plot, skip them and continue to Resident Evil 4. Capcom lists both among the franchise’s historical entries, while fan discussions differ on how broadly to label every spin-off “canon”; describing their scope instead of making an all-or-nothing canon claim is more precise.
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How do Resident Evil 4 and Revelations connect?
Resident Evil 4 takes place in autumn 2004, six years after Raccoon City. Leon is now a United States government agent rescuing the president’s daughter, and the game shifts the series toward organized tactical action while retaining biological-horror themes.
Resident Evil: Revelations follows primarily in 2005 and fills in the development of the Bioterrorism Security Assessment Alliance. One episode is set in 2004, so the game overlaps RE4’s broad period. For a game-level order, finish RE4 and then play Revelations; trying to split its episode around individual RE4 chapters adds complexity without improving the main narrative.
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Both the original RE4 and its remake belong in this same 2004 slot. The remake retells Leon’s mission with revised areas, characterizations, and pacing; it does not move the event to a different era.
What is the order from Resident Evil 5 through Resident Evil 6?
Resident Evil 5 occurs March 4–6, 2009, with Chris Redfield and Sheva Alomar investigating a bioterror incident in Africa. Its Lost in Nightmares chapter is a flashback to 2006, so play it as part of RE5 or treat the flashback as an optional internal detour rather than moving the whole game.
Next comes Resident Evil: Revelations 2 in 2011, centered on Claire Redfield and Barry Burton. Its epilogue jumps to 2013, but the main episodes belong before Resident Evil 6. The placement makes it a useful bridge for recurring characters and the series’ changing bioweapon politics.
Resident Evil 6 spans late 2012 through July 2013. Its Leon, Chris, Jake, and Ada campaigns cover overlapping viewpoints, so campaign order inside the game is a matter of preference. Completing the campaigns in their released menu order is serviceable; the game-level chronological position remains after Revelations 2.
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Where do Resident Evil 7, Village, and Requiem fit?
Resident Evil 7: biohazard takes place in July 2017 and introduces Ethan Winters’ search for Mia in rural Louisiana. Resident Evil Village follows in February 2021, continuing Ethan’s family story while expanding the series’ mold mythology and global conspiracies.
After the main Village campaign, its Shadows of Rose epilogue jumps to 2037. That scene is later than Resident Evil Requiem’s reported October 2026 setting, so do not treat the DLC as occurring immediately after the 2021 campaign. Finish the main Village story, then play Requiem, and return to Shadows of Rose when you want the far-future epilogue.
Requiem is the newest chronological mainline placement in the current guide. Because its 2026 date is contemporary with this article, storefront listings, regional release information, and any later story updates should be checked separately from the chronology itself.
Should I use chronological order or release order?
Use chronological order when you want the fictional history and character progression to unfold from the first outbreak onward. Use release order when you want to experience the series’ evolving mechanics, camera styles, and design history as players originally did.
Release order places the 1996 original first, then later entries such as RE2, RE3, Code: Veronica, RE0, and the 2002 remake. Digital Trends’ release-and-chronology guide also separates those two approaches and confirms the broad overlap between RE2 and RE3. Neither order is universally correct: chronological play prioritizes plot sequence, while release order preserves historical context and avoids prequels revealing mysteries designed for earlier games.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What should a first-time player choose for each remake?
Choose one edition per story position. The 2002 Resident Evil remake, 2019 Resident Evil 2 remake, 2020 Resident Evil 3 remake, and modern Resident Evil 4 remake all retell earlier incidents rather than creating separate chronological chapters.
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- Prefer the remake if you want updated controls, audiovisual presentation, and redesigned pacing.
- Prefer the original if you value the historical version, fixed-camera or legacy mechanics, and the way contemporary players first encountered the story.
- Play both only later if you want to compare reinterpretations; doing so doubles playtime without advancing the timeline.
Availability is edition-specific. The available data does not establish a single collection or identical platform list, so check the current publisher or storefront page for your region before buying.
How was this chronological list chosen?
The selection prioritizes mainline story events, then adds the two Revelations games because they fill clear narrative gaps between numbered entries. It records each game’s broad in-universe year, flags flashbacks and epilogues, and treats remakes as alternate versions of the same story slot. Optional Chronicles titles are separated so readers can expand the route without mistaking retellings for required chapters.
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Day-level dates come from the current secondary chronology cited above, not from a claim that Capcom has published one definitive scene-by-scene calendar. For an exact DLC or campaign sequence, consult each game’s internal chapter structure; a game-level list cannot represent every jump in time.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I skip Resident Evil 0 and still understand the series?
Yes. The first numbered game introduces the central mansion incident and the main characters clearly enough on its own. Resident Evil 0 mainly adds Rebecca’s backstory, Umbrella’s training-facility context, and setup for later revelations.
Do I need to play both versions of Resident Evil 2?
No. The 1998 original and 2019 remake occupy the same outbreak-era story slot. Playing both is worthwhile only if you want to compare their routes, enemy designs, puzzles, and interpretation of Leon and Claire.
Is Code: Veronica required before Resident Evil 4?
It is not required to follow Leon’s 2004 mission, but it gives important development to Claire, Chris, and Wesker. Skipping it will not make RE4 incomprehensible; playing it enriches the series’ character and Umbrella context.
Where do Resident Evil film adaptations fit in the timeline?
They are not part of this game chronology. The list covers game entries and game-linked expansions; film adaptations use separate continuities and should be treated independently.
Should I play Shadows of Rose before Resident Evil Requiem?
Play the main Village campaign first, then Requiem if you want the chronological 2026 placement. Shadows of Rose is set in 2037, so it works best as a later epilogue rather than an immediate continuation.
