The “Resident Evil” franchise is touted as one of the longest-running and most successful video game franchises throughout history. It started in 1996 and has since released new entries regularly ever since, such as the “Resident Evil 4” remake.
Ahead of the release of the “Resident Evil 4” remake tomorrow, Famitsu, a Japanese gaming magazine, recently conducted a survey to find out the most popular “Resident Evil” characters and ranked them according to popularity.
You will notice that some characters in the survey results appear on the predictable rank, while others are surprises. Here are the results of the poll.
- HUNK
On the 10th spot is HUNK, the code name of an Umbrella Security Service operator, who was the leader of the ill-fated Alpha Team in the employment of Umbrella. Silent, cold, and devoid of emotion, HUNK is ruthless.
- Piers Nivans
Next on the list is Piers Nivans. He was a soldier in the BSAA, or the Bioterrorism Security Assessment Alliance, a UN-controlled military that seeks to combat bioterrorism. A former soldier in the United States Army, he was placed in the Special Operations Unit of the BSAA within the North American branch. Throughout his career, Nivans served under Captain Chris Redfield, whose high-security rating allowed them to join investigations outside North America. Nivans was killed in July 2013 when an underwater research complex self-destructed.
- Dr. Rebecca Chambers
Dr. Rebecca Chambers is an advisor for the BSAA and a former rookie member of the Special Tactics and Rescue Service assigned to the S.T.A.R.S Bravo team, taking charge of medical needs because of her far-reaching knowledge in biochemistry.
- Ethan Winters
Next up is Ethan Winters. He was an American mutant trained as a systems engineer. Among the many mutant victims of biological weaponry, he was once infected with a weaponized species of “Mold” during the 2017 Dulvey incident. Together with his wife Mia, they were rescued by the BSAA and were placed under witness protection in Europe’s eastern region. In February 2021, this protection was unraveled when their daughter, Rosemary, was kidnapped by Mother Miranda. Winters succeeded in rescuing his daughter but gave his life to protect a BSAA tiltrotor.
- Dr. Albert Wesker
Dr. Albert Wesker was an accomplished virologist noteworthy for his work with groups tied with the bio-weapons black market. In March 2009, he was killed during a BSAA operation that uncovered his role in a doomsday project called Uroboros.
- Claire Redfield
On the number five spot is Claire Redfield. She is a current member of TerraSave, a human rights organization. Since her survival in the Raccoon City incident in 1998, Redfield would become involved or end up amidst several Biohazard outbreaks worldwide, prompting her and her brother, Chris, to devote their career to battling the threat of Bio Organic Weapons.
- Ada Wong
Ada Wong is coming in on the fourth spot, which is a surprise for many because she beat out Claire Redfield and the villainous Dr. Albert Wesker.
Ada Wong is the pseudonym of an enigmatic unnamed spy of Asian-American descent. She is notorious in the corporate world for being able to handle serious situations and the most complex requests without guilt.
- Chris Redfield
Chris Redfield took third place. He has similarly had a consistent presence in the “Resident Evil” franchise, like the other characters, and was even among the stars of “Resident Evil 5,” which is touted as one of the most financially successful games in the history of the survival-horror series.
- Jill Valentine
We’re closer and closer to finding out who the most popular character is in the survey. In second place is Jill Valentine, who similarly shares the spotlight in her debut in the original “Resident Evil” before getting a solo run in “Resident Evil 3: Nemesis.”
Valentine is an American SOA or Special Operations Agent of the BSAA, of which she is a co-founder and an original member.
- Leon Scott Kennedy
Drum roll, please… the top spot went to Leon S. Kennedy. Kennedy is an American of Italian descent currently employed as a federal agent by the D.S.O. or the Division of Security Operations, a counter-terrorism agency with direct Presidential oversight.
Perhaps it is not surprising to find him take the top spot. Why? He is one of the main protagonists of “Resident Evil 2″ and the sole main protagonist of “Resident Evil 4,” two of the series’ most popular games. He has also been featured consistently in the “Resident Evil” animated movies.
Gaming characters are perhaps among a game’s features that make it majorly exciting. What do you think about the results of the survey? Did your favorite characters make the cut?