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In a recent press release confirming the announcement of Onimusha: Way of the Sword at The Game Awards and a surprise Okami sequel, Capcom dropped a tantalising titbit. The company stated that it is “focusing on re-activating dormant IPs.” Now, perhaps I’m just being naively optimistic, but one of those IPs surely has to be Dino Crisis… right?
The Long List
It’s fair to say that Capcom has a fair few franchises under its belt. Sadly, many of these have been shunned in favor of mega series like the consistently superb Resident Evil and the titanic Monster Hunter. With 163 million and 105 million units sold respectively, that’s understandable. These franchises have consistently performed for Capcom, despite some missteps.
As a curmudgeonly middle-aged gamer, therefore, I’m over the moon that Capcom is committed to resurrecting old franchises. Using phrases like “re-activating dormant IPs” and “reviving past IPs” is a rare display of forthrightness and clarity. We’re already seeing the return of a personal favorite — Onimusha — and the Okami comeback is a fantastic surprise.
The big question, therefore, is which other franchises is Capcom referring to? I think it’s safe to discount IPs like Devil May Cry, Street Fighter, Mega Man and Dead Rising, since “dormant” would be a stretch. Heck, Dead Rising even had an excellent remaster earlier this year. The same could be argued for arcade classic Ghost ‘n Goblins, which saw a sort-of-new-entry Ghost ‘n Goblins Resurrection in 2021.
So, what does that leave as possibilities? Well, perhaps we could see fighting game Darkstalkers make a proper comeback, since it last appeared in the Capcom Fighting Collection in 2022. It feels a little niche, though, and Street Fighter is Capcom’s dominant fighting franchise. Equally, the classic RPG series Breath of Fire could make a full comeback. Given the recent success of JRPGs like Octopath Traveler II and Dragon Quest III: HD-2D Remake, it would find an audience, particularly in Japan. Personally, I’d also love to see Viewtiful Joe‘s wacky humor and timeless comic-book aesthetic return. So does series creator Hideki Kamiya, so after the Okami sequel it’s a possibility.
There’s one dormant IP, however, that stands head and shoulders above the rest. One fans have been clamoring for for ages. I am, of course, talking about Lost Planet.
I jest. Dino Crisis.
Back From Extinction?
Throughout the year, Capcom have held a series of polls to ascertain what players want. In one of the recent surveys, Capcom asked which of it series is most deserving of a new game or a sequel. Slightly confusingly, active IPs like Resident Evil and Devil May Cry were options, both of which unsurprisingly received healthy votes.
The IP that most people voted for, however, was Dino Crisis. The influential survival horror series received an impressive 31.8% of the total vote. Interestingly, most of the votes from outside Japan. It’s hard to imagine a more ringing endorsement of this revered franchise, and one surely Capcom must be taking note of. We haven’t seen a new Dino Crisis since the very disappointing Dino Crisis 3 over 20 years ago, so it’s safe to say it counts as a dormant franchise.
The other big thing that Dino Crisis has going for it is its genre. The survival horror is basically Resident-Evil-with-dinosaurs and, if there’s only franchise that Capcom has successfully modernized, it’s Resident Evil. Dino Crisis could copy the over-the-shoulder camera that has worked so well in modern Resident Evil games like the Resident Evil 2 Remake and the Resident Evil 4 Remake. Both of these entries brought the iconic series to new audiences, with an astonishing 14 million and 8 million copies sold respectively.
While Dino Crisis is certainly more a of a cult classic series than the renowned Resident Evil, it certainly has its fans. Capcom’s surveys have shown that time after time. And it surely wouldn’t be hard to sell modern gamers on Resident-Evil-with-dinosaurs. All Capcom has to do is look to the Resident Evil remakes to see how they could bring Dino Crisis back from extinction. The perfect templates already exist.
So, stop teasing Capcom. Just give us what we want already. Pretty please.
