Hearing John's words in the conference room, everyone immediately perked up. A new flagship title and two smaller projects, which was no small thing. Everyone looks at John intensely.
"First, about the sequel to Resident Evil Resistance, Leon remains the central protagonist, and Ada Wong will have more screen time," John said, sharing a piece of news that instantly lifted spirits.
PixelPioneers Studio's debut title was Binding of Isaac. While Octopath Traveler and Outlast later brought modest success, it was Resident Evil Resistance that truly defined the studio's identity. The franchise became their strongest IP, reinforced by strong market performance and public reception.
Ironically, while Lion "Gate's Ghost 4" suffered a commercial disaster, Resident Evil Resistance exploded in popularity, reigniting mainstream interest in zombie games. Following that success, nearly every FPS studio rushed to include zombie modes. Only a few zombie modes stood the test of time; most were quickly discarded. Still, their sheer volume proved one thing: Resident Evil Resistance had become a genre-defining game.
By both impact and profitability, the Resident Evil Resistance series has earned a solid T1 classification at PixelPioneers. Even though The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim surpasses it in sheer sales and world scale, Resident Evil Resistance remains the studio's primary IP. Supplementary content like novels and comics is also in development, led by Armani.
John and Armani had already discussed the long-term development of the Resident Evil Resistance IP. Armed with knowledge from his dream-like memories, John had already seen the future trajectory of the series.
He drafted an overarching plotline and recruited professional writers and comic artists to adapt it. However, Armani was skeptical. How could they be sure the plot John recalled would resonate with today's players?
Armani proposed an innovative structure: a multiverse model where multiple storylines coexist. Player response would determine which timelines continued. Unpopular versions would be quietly discontinued, as if they never existed.
John was surprised. The method echoed the multiverse practices of superhero franchises in his memories. Still, he supported Armani's idea. While John remembered events up to Resident Evil 4 and Resident Evil 6, his knowledge beyond that was limited. Eventually, new stories would need to be written from scratch, requiring a specialized, creative team.
Bringing the focus back to the game, John reassured the team. He wasn't worried about developing the sequel. With experience from Resident Evil Resistance and The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim, their team was seasoned.
The only uncertainty lay in game design and pacing. Should they double down on atmospheric horror, or lean further into fast-paced action and gunplay? That decision would shape the soul of the game.
Resident Evil 4, in John's memory, had introduced several key innovations, most notably the over-the-shoulder perspective and enhanced aiming mechanics. But technical innovation wasn't everything. The game's pacing, its carefully tuned blend of tension, action, and downtime, was its true genius. The early Resident Evil games focused heavily on survival horror. By the time Resident Evil 5 and Resident Evil 6 launched, the franchise had pivoted toward action-oriented gameplay.
Though many long-time fans lamented the shift, and critics gave lower scores, those two titles became bestsellers in the franchise. Eventually, the series returned to its horror roots, with Resident Evil 7: Biohazard and Resident Evil Village, earning back both praise and strong sales. Deciding the tone of the next sequel was now John's biggest challenge.
"In addition, we'll develop two smaller projects, a roguelike board game inspired by Binding of Isaac, and an RTS title," John added.
RTS? That shocked the room. They had started out building RPGs, so the logical path would've been to continue with RPGs. Then came horror, FPS, and ARPGs, but all of them had narrative-driven roots. RTS was outside their comfort zone, so everyone exchanged confused glances.
"I'll prepare a proper GDD soon," John said. "Tentatively, the chess-like project will be called Self-Chess, and the RTS game is titled Command and Conquer: Red Alert."
He wasn't improvising; there was a well-considered plan behind the two games. PixelPioneers Studio was about to expand, focusing recruitment efforts on fresh graduates or seniors. Should those rookies be thrown straight into major sequels like Resident Evil Resistance, The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim, etc? Of course not.
These two smaller titles would serve as training grounds, low-risk yet creatively rich. If some of the talent eventually left the studio, John would simply conclude that they either had unshakable confidence or dreams bigger than the company. PixelPioneers may not yet rival giants like the Big Three in size, but its potential and compensation were among the industry's best.
John didn't dive into the exact gameplay mechanics just yet; those would be revealed when the Game Design Documents were ready. For now, the team's main focus remained on mobile development, as well as the Skyrim Dragon DLC and its long-awaited multiplayer mode.
During John's meeting, Ansoft officially released Moondustries' highly anticipated Epic Continent, marking its global debut.