Resident Evil Creators Analyzed Players’ Brainwaves to Gauge Fear Factor of New Free-to-Play Spin-Off, Despite Mixed Reactions on Its Scariness

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When the free-to-play mobile spinoff Resident Evil Survival Unit launched quietly last November, I remember there being little buzz around it. As a huge fan of the Resident Evil franchise, I was curious despite its generic mobile game appearance. However, initial impressions suggested it wasn’t worth my time, so I quickly moved on.

Now, I find myself writing about how the developers monitored play testers’ brainwaves to ensure the game was genuinely scary, leaving me puzzled if I’m thinking of the right title. But yes, it’s the same mobile game from South Korea’s JOYCITY, which hasn’t been labeled as scary by any means.

In an interview, JOYCITY’s business lead Jun Seung Park explained that the team aimed to create an “objectively scary” experience.

“We conducted a bio-signal-based focus group test, monitoring players’ brainwaves, eye movements, and pulse to objectively measure their levels of tension and immersion,” Seung Park stated. “Even if surveys showed positive feedback, actual bio-signals could tell a different story. This data provided us with valuable insights to adjust the fear levels and immersion.”

The only way I can rationalize this is by considering the possibility of lost nuances in translation. It seems the game starts with a traditional Resident Evil vibe, albeit with mobile controls, but reviews indicate it quickly shifts into a standard base-building mobile game with gacha mechanics, all while sporting the Resident Evil branding. Not for me.

Resident Evil Requiem offers “a different kind of replay value” compared to the rest of the series, according to the director: you can use Leon to take down zombies that might be too intimidating to face as Grace.