Ever since its release back in 1996,Resident Evilhas been one of the most successful and popularsurvival horror franchises in video game history. In a few weeks from today, Capcom is launchingResident Evil Village, which will be played from the perspective of newcomer Ethan Winters, and one of the most veteran characters in the franchise, Chris Redfield.
For 25 years, Chris Redfield has led the fight against bioterrorism ever since the first game up until today. Although Capcom was able to retain theResident Evilfranchise’s success, one thing that the studio is unable to keep consistent is the appearance of its characters, most notably Chris Redfield. In preparation forResident Evil Village’srelease, here is every iteration of Chris Redfield from 1996 to the present.
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The Classic Years (RE1, RE CV)
Given thatResident Evilfirst came out during the first PlayStation console era, the in-game design of the characters is mostly made up of chunky polygons. Duringthe firstResident Evilgame, Chris Redfield was just a 25-year-old police officer from Raccoon City, unaware of the horrors that he and his team will encounter in the Spencer Mansion and beyond. Capcom also took the bold step of shooting all cutscenes in live-action, which was never done in succeeding installments, apart from a few scenes inResident Evil 3 Remake.
After his stint in the firstResident Evilgame, Chris took a step back from the spotlight and was next seen inResident Evil: Code Veronica,which took place shortly after Raccoon City’s destruction. Given thatCode Veronicawas released to the Sega Saturn and then the PlayStation 2, Chris' appearance changed drastically, though features from his original depiction were still present in his design.
The Modern Era (RE 1 Remake, RE5, RE6, RE: Village)
In 2002,Capcom remade the firstResident Evilgame, which gave birth to Chris’s character design that became the basis of his appearance in succeeding installments. His character model in Resident Evil Remake was later used inResident Evil’sspin-off titles:The Umbrella ChroniclesandThe Darkside Chronicles. It is unclear who is the exact model Capcom used as inspiration for Chris Redfield’s design. Still, many believe it was a combination of American actor Matt Mullins and Reuben Langdon, who did Chris Redfield’s motion capture works inResident Evil Code Veronica,RE5, andRE6.
In 2009, Capcom releasedResident Evil 5, bringing Chris Redfield back into action. It is worth noting that while his appearance may look different from the character model used inResident Evil Remakeonwards, it is actually the same design but was made older to depict natural aging. MostResident Evilfans would see this version of Chris as the most familiar, especially given the drastic change of his body type from a lean police officer, to a boulder-punching bodybuilder.RE5’sversion of Chris was later reused inResident Evil 6, but with a slightly thinner body.Based on the trailers released forResident Evil: Village, it appears that Capcom is reusing this same model for Chris but older.
The Anomaly (RE7)
Some readers probably wonder whyResident Evil 7’sversion of Chris was left out in the modern era. This is because his character design in that game can be considered an anomaly. It is worth noting that whenResident Evil 7was released, players couldn’t believe thatthe guy who rescued Ethan by the end was Chris. The only reason why players knew it was Chris is that he had to introduce himself as Redfield. His appearance in this game even started a rumor that he may not be the real Chris, given that he doesn’t resemble any of his predecessors. It remains unclear why Capcom decided to change Chris’s appearance drastically. Still, it appears that the studio has heard the criticisms of fans, which is likely why it reused an older version ofResident Evil 5and6Chris inResident Evil Village.
Resident Evil Villageis set to release on July 01, 2025, for the PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
