A few years ago, plans for a TV series based on Capcom’s Resident Evil franchise circulated the Internet. Independent filmmaker Shawn Lebert and Mance Media announced their plan to create a TV show based on the popular video game series called Arklay (based on the fictional mountain region surrounding Raccoon City). However, due to lack of audience support, plans for Arklay’s development was abandoned and Lebert released the proof of concept video to show how Arklay was supposed to look like.
Since the project was scrapped, references from Resident Evil was removed from the concept video entitled “Dave”. The video follows Detective James Reinhardt and his partner Samantha Trace as they investigate the mysterious death of Reinhardt’s brother Dave. If you remember from the first Resident Evil video game, these mysterious deaths and murders occured prior to the mansion incident, which caused panic among the city’s residents that the police force sent in the S.T.A.R.S. team to investigate, and the rest is history. It is unknown if the canceled show will feature the events from Resident Evil 1 but judging from the concept video, it is likely.
The short concept video is definitely heading the horror and mystery path that the movie franchise failed to embrace. The slow pace mixed in with eerie music definitely builds tension. There is an air of mystery with the narrative and I felt exactly as I did when I first played Resident Evil, including the creepy feeling I had as I explored the mansion, wondering who resided there.
As a fan of the games, it is certainly disappointing to see a TV series with so much potential go to waste. Hopefully the release of the concept video will ignite a spark among the hardcore fans of Resident Evil and if people support it, maybe the creators would reconsider. Who knows? Maybe Netflix will pick it up if the concept gains the interest of the general public.
On other Resident Evil news, the RE7 DLC Not A Hero is set to release on December 12, the DLC is meant to connect the storyline of RE7 with that of the main franchise, know more here. Also, Resident Evil 7 has failed to reach Capcom’s sales expectations despite its somewhat positive reviews from gamers and critics alike.
What are your thoughts on the concept video? Are you excited and would like to see the Resident Evil TV series resurrected? Or should the franchise just focus on bringing us good games?
