We’ve known for a while that Resident Evil Village will launch alongside a multiplayer mode, known as Resident Evil Re:Verse. You can now try the online suite for yourself from today, thanks to the launch of an open beta.
The beta client is now available to pre-load on PC, PS5, PS4, and Xbox Series X, Xbox One, ahead of the servers going live at 2 p.m. ET today (April 8). The beta is scheduled to run until the same time on Sunday (April 11).
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Thankfully the client is not a mammoth install that will take half the beta window to actually download, it's a relatively small 6.5GB. Currently, if you download the beta you’ll be greeted with a friendly server maintenance message. But the server will be live in just a few hours.
Re:Verse itself is a fun mash-up of classic Resident Evil characters. Familiar faces including the likes of Jill Valentine, Chris Redfield, and Leon Kennedy are all playable. The standalone online mode sees these classic RE characters thrown into a competitive deathmatch, and each one has unique weapons and skills designed to slaughter your opposition.
The game isn’t over when you're dead either. You can be resurrected as one of several other iconic Resident Evil villains, including Mr. X and Nemesis, to seek revenge on the player who took you out.
The mode looks like chaotic fun, although its semi-cell shaded art style has been pretty divisive among franchise fans. As this is an open beta, no pre-order key or prior signup is required to play. So it’s still worth giving Re: Verse a shot this weekend, even if you have a passing interest in the game.
This isn’t the first time that Capcom has bundled an online mode with its latest Resident Evil game. Last year’s Resident Evil 3 remake included access to Resident Evil: Resistance, which unfortunately suffered from frustrating gameplay and servers that were prone to crashing. Hopefully, lessons have been learnt for Re: Verse.
While Resident Evil Re: Verse will be included with every copy of Resident Evil Village, the two games are completely separate. So if you’re only interested in the franchise for its single-player mode, you’ll have to wait until May 7 for the solo Village experience.
