Skip to main content

All Resident Evil games in order, by release date and chronologically

Leon parries a chainsaw villager in Resident Evil 4.
Capcom / Capcom

There are almost no survival horror games that last for more than few entries, let alone ones that have persisted for decades like Resident Evil. This series had humble beginnings as a small horror experience set in a single mansion to explore, solve puzzles, and fight against the clunky tank controls and fixed camera angles. Since then, the series has evolved and grown into one of the most recognizable Capcom IPs there is, with new entries and amazing remakes coming out almost every year.

Currently, the highest-numbered Resident Evil game is 8, aka Village, but you would be wildly off if you thought there were only eight entries to consider when looking to complete the series. Right from the start, Resident Evil has loved expanding its world with a massive cast of characters and new protagonists from game to game. Resident Evil 7 was a soft reboot for the series, but there is still a cannon order to the events surrounding Umbrella, the various zombie viruses, and all our favorite heroes like Chris and Leon.

Recommended Videos

In a series that borders on science-fantasy and spreads its story out among multiple consoles and sub-series, we forgive you for not being able to keep it all in order. This is a simple guide on how to play all the Resident Evil games in order of release and chronologically.

All Resident Evil games in release order

Chris Redfield shooting a zombie in a hallway looking at a door behind him in the original Resident Evil game.
Capcom

Resident Evil dates back to 1996, with games spread across home consoles and portable systems. After the first three games, the numbers stop being useful in figuring out which game came out before the rest.

This is the release order for the entire Resident Evil series.

  • Resident Evil (1996)
  • Resident Evil 2 (1998)
  • Resident Evil 3 (1999)
  • Resident Evil: Survivor (2000)
  • Resident Evil: Code Veronica (2000)
  • Resident Evil: Survivor 2 (2001)
  • Resident Evil Gaiden (2001)
  • Resident Evil REmake (2002)
  • Resident Evil Zero (2002)
  • Resident Evil: Dead Aim (2003)
  • Resident Evil: The Missions (2003)
  • Resident Evil Outbreak (2003)
  • Resident Evil Outbreak: File 2 (2004)
  • Resident Evil 4 (2005)
  • Resident Evil: Deadly Silence (2006)
  • Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles (2007)
  • Resident Evil: Genesis (2008)
  • Resident Evil 5 (2009)
  • Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles (2009)
  • Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D (2011)
  • Resident Evil Revelations (2012)
  • Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City (2012)
  • Resident Evil 6 (2012)
  • Resident Evil Revelations 2 (2015)
  • Resident Evil 0 HD Remaster (2016)
  • Umbrella Corps (2016)
  • Resident Evil 7 (2017)
  • Resident Evil 2 Remake (2019)
  • Resident Evil 3 Remake (2020)
  • Resident Evil Village (2021)
  • Resident Evil 4 Remake (2023)

All Resident Evil games in chronological order

Ethan Winters shoots Lycans in Resident Evil Village.
Capcom

The small cast of characters of the first game has exploded into a massive web of friends, foes, companies, and conspiracies. Games have been placed before, after, and even during the events of other games to make it even harder to keep up with the overall plot. Most even take place within months of one another. They all do follow a very consistent timeline once you untangle it, though.

Playing the series in chronological order could make the twisting tale more digestible, or help you piece together the events better in your mind after the fact. Either way, this is how the series plays out sequentially, leaving out any game that doesn’t add to the plot or is no longer cannon we included in the full list above.

  • Resident Evil Zero (July 1998)
  • Resident Evil (July 1998)
  • Resident Evil 3: Nemesis (September-October, 1998)
  • Resident Evil 2 (September 1998)
  • Resident Evil Survivor (November 1998)
  • Resident Evil Code: Veronica (December 1998)
  • Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles (2002)
  • Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles (February 2003)
  • Resident Evil 4 (2004)
  • Resident Evil: Revelations (2004-2005)
  • Resident Evil 5 (2006-2009)
  • Resident Evil Revelations 2 (2011)
  • Resident Evil 6 (2012)
  • Resident Evil 7 (2017)
  • Resident Evil Village (2020)
Jesse Lennox
Jesse Lennox has been a writer at Digital Trends for over four years and has no plans of stopping. He covers all things…
The best Xbox 360 games of all time
xbox one backwards compatible december 2015 halo reach 360 compatability waypoint featured

The Xbox 360 is a console that defined an entire generation of gamers and inspired some of the best Xbox One games to follow. There was still competition with the best PS3 games and the best Wii games, but the 360 managed to hold its own against those two titans.

Many of the best games of all time appeared on this beloved console, which made narrowing down this list of the best Xbox 360 games a real challenge. Whether you're playing on original hardware or taking a break from the best Xbox Series X games and using backward compatibility, these are the best games you can play on the Xbox 360.

Read more
All Halo games in order, by release date and chronologically
jen taylor cortana interview halo 3

We were first introduced to the world of Halo with the launch of the Xbox in 2001. That one game became an instant classic and one of the best original Xbox games ever made, allowing Xbox to compete with the likes of PlayStation and Nintendo. Thanks to the massive universe that game set up, plus the ending teasing more to the Master Chief's story, it was only a matter of time before we got more Halo games. Over 20 years later, there are about a dozen games in the series, but only five are numbered. If you were to simply follow the mainline games, you would be missing out on huge swaths of the story.

Sure, Halo is just as much about multiplayer as it is the campaign, but the best Halo games have both a strong multiplayer offering and a compelling story. With lore dating back before the dawn of humanity and stretching into the far future, there's a lot more to Halo than just shooting aliens. Let's go full circle and list all the Halo games in order of release date and chronologically.
All Halo games in release order

Read more
The best PS3 games of all time
PlayStation 3.

The PlayStation 3 had a rough start. The price was high, and there weren't all that many great games compared to the best Xbox 360 games. However, Sony stuck with it and eventually managed to turn things around, leading to one of the most important generations in terms of new IP. Since that time, video game graphics and gameplay have only gotten more realistic with the best PS4 games and even better with the best PS5 games. 

Despite all the advancements and new consoles, you may sometimes be in the mood to revisit some of your favorite games that you played as a kid or teenager. Sifting through all the old PS3 games can feel overwhelming, but if you’re trying to figure out which games are still worth your time, we’ve compiled a list of recommendations. We've also gathered a list of the best PS1 games and best PS2 games for the sake of nostalgia.
Action

Read more