RE Requiem’s Grace May Have a Hard Time Escaping One Protagonists’ Shadow

At Summer Game Fest, Capcom finally revealed that Resident Evil Requiem will be the next game in the long-running horror series. Over the years, the franchise has embraced a fun blend of horror and action, but this time around, Resident Evil Requiem seems to be leaning into the psychological horror genre. This is a major, but exciting, departure for the series, and with new protagonist Grace Ashcroft leading the story, the game is promising some heart-pounding moments.

Grace Ashcroft is an FBI agent sent to investigate the Wrenwood Hotel, the very place where her mother was murdered eight years prior. While Grace still remains mysterious, it was made quite clear in the trailer that she’s meek and emotionally traumatized by the brutal death of her mother. This makes her a great character to lead a psychological horror story, but it may be difficult for her to escape comparisons to another Resident Evil protagonist who has been through mental hell: Jill Valentine.

Resident Evil Requiem Grace Looking at Her Computer

Resident Evil Requiem Makes Good on a 23 Year Wait

Resident Evil Requiem was just released, revealing that it will take players back to a setting that has been long-neglected by the series.

Grace Ashcroft Could Have a Hard Time Beating the Jill Valentine Comparisons

Grace doesn’t seem to be a soldier like Jill was, which already makes her quite different. Capcom still has yet to reveal more character information, but Grace’s strengths are more likely centered around her intelligence rather than physical ability. Of course, Grace may not be as meek as she seems on the surface, but when it comes to living with trauma, she and Jill have quite a bit in common.

Grace Ashcroft’s mother is Alyssa Ashcroft. She was introduced to the series in Resident Evil Outbreak.

From the Spencer Mansion Incident to Albert Wesker’s Mind Control

The first Resident Evil introduced gamers to Jill Valentine and Chris Redfield as they found themselves at the Spencer Mansion, nestled within the Arklay Mountains. Jill and Chris uncovered the bioweapon work being done at the estate, setting into motion the rest of the series. Facing the events of RE1 would have been traumatic enough, but Jill’s troubles didn’t stop there.

On top of severe PTSD from the Spencer Mansion and facing Nemesis in RE3, Jill is also eventually kidnapped by Albert Wesker to be part of his experiments, even becoming a mind-controlled soldier that does his bidding. She eventually breaks free of his control, but Jill has been put through the ringer throughout the Resident Evil franchise.

Not including the RE3 remake, Jill Valentine hasn’t been featured in the mainline Resident Evil franchise since RE5 in 2009.

Grace Taking Up the Mantle Continues Resident Evil’s Embrace of New Protagonists

Ever since RE7, the franchise has been expanding its character roster. Newcomer Ethan Winters led the last two chapters, and now Grace is seemingly taking over, as far as it’s known. With RE7 director Koshi Nakanishi returning to direct, shaking up the character lineup once again isn’t too surprising. However, when it comes to psychological horror, Jill could have been a strong choice to help tell a similar story. There’s still the possibility that Jill has an undisclosed role in the new game, but that has yet to be seen. Resident Evil Requiem‘s psychological edge may have presented a great stage to premiere a Jill return, but right now, that seems unlikely.

While Grace still remains mysterious, it was made quite clear in the trailer that she’s meek and emotionally traumatized by the brutal death of her mother.

There has already been speculation that Grace isn’t the only playable character in Resident Evil Requiem. This has yet to be confirmed by Capcom, but if more characters are planned to help tell the story, then Jill is hopefully being kept in the shadows for a big reveal. Even if that’s not the case, though, Grace is promising an interesting new character that is set to bring a compelling investigative twist to the series.