New Resident Evil 3 details reveal Mercs mode won’t return

Resident Evil 3’s upcoming remake will not revive the Mercenaries game mode featured in the original, according to a new feature in UK Official PlayStation Magazine.

Mercenaries: Operation Mad Jackal was an unlockable mode included in the 1999 original, which had players revisiting the campaign as three soldiers from the main story.

The mode encouraged fast action by introducing a time limit. Every time players defeated an enemy, the time was extended, with more points awarded for more powerful creatures.

According to OPM, Mercenaries will instead be replaced in the remake by asymmetric multiplayer mode, Resident Evil Resistance, the spin-off which went into closed beta in October.

Developed by Capcom in partnership with Devil May Cry HD Collection studio NeoBards, Project Resistance pits four players survivors against a single ‘Mastermind’.

Capcom recently revealed that Resident Evil 3’s remake will feature more “rearranged” elements than 2019’s version of Resident Evil 2.

In the OPM piece, it’s suggested that a playable section featuring protagonist Carlos Oliveira will be expanded upon.

It’s also confirmed that the game will ditch the action choice mechanism of the original, which changed some gameplay sequences based on the player’s choices, resulting in different endings.

Capcom has instead decided to adopt a single, defined story arc, it’s claimed.

Throughout the story players are pursued by the Nemesis, just as in the original. Capcom claims it’s built upon the AI used for Resident Evil 2’s Tyrant to make Nemesis even more terrifying, with the creature now able to roam the city “untethered”.

Capcom officially announced the remake of Resident Evil 3 in December, with a release set for April 3, 2020.

Resident Evil 3 follows Jill Valentine as she attempts to escape Raccoon city in the immediate aftermath of a virus outbreak, before the events of Resident Evil 2.

It features more action-oriented gameplay than previous instalments and introduces the Nemesis creature, which periodically pursues the player.

Like 2019’s Resident Evil 2 remake, Resident Evil 3 has been remade in Capcom’s RE Engine with a new over-the-shoulder camera angle.

Resident Evil 3 remake is being partly developed by M-Two Inc, a new studio founded by former PlatinumGames CEO Tatsuya Minami, VGC understands.