Mercenaries mode may be Capcom's secret May surprise for Requiem fans, datamine suggests

Capcom struck gold with Resident Evil Requiem, captivating fans through its signature horror-action gameplay, strong narrative, next-gen visuals, and the return of Leon S. Kennedy. With 70% of players on PS5 and PC having already rolled credits, the challenge for Capcom now is to give them a compelling reason to return.

To address this, it appears Capcom is already working on a solution by developing a Mercenaries mode similar to the RE4 remake. A fresh datamine has uncovered previously unheard music tracks in the game's files, and everything points to the wave-based assault minigame coming.

Discovered by dataminer SYRKOV on X, the 10 unused short tracks don't seem to follow any specific naming convention, but their sounds have players excited. Datamined tracks 7 and 9 lean hard into the high-octane sounds you would expect from a Mercenaries mode. The standouts, though, are Tracks 3 and 4, both backed by a constant ticking noise, suggesting they could be tied to the kind of time-based pressure the mode is known for.

While this information comes from a datamine leak and these tracks may never make it into a final update build, there are still a few other concrete reasons for fans to expect that Mercenaries, or something equivalent, could be on the way. Back in March, Capcom announced a pack of post-launch add-ons for Resident Evil: Requiem, one of which was a loosely named "mini-game" scheduled for May. The obvious guess was Mercenaries almost immediately, and this datamine lends that guess some real weight.

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A May rollout would also slot neatly into the content hook the franchise has maintained for twenty years. The last title to feature the mode was the Resident Evil 4 remake, letting players take on not just Leon S. Kennedy and Ada Wong but also villainous characters like Jack Krauser and Albert Wesker.

Requiem also has some natural advantages for a Mercenaries mode. Its semi-open world is perfect for the score-chasing gameplay the mode is built around, and the opening section of the game, where zombies swarm Leon from every direction, feels perfect for chaining kills and keeping combos alive.

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At the same time, Mercenaries could serve as the perfect reason to pull back players who have already put the disc on the shelf. With fans hoping to see faces like Zeno, Grace Ashcroft, and Victor Gideon return, the mode has plenty of hype for Capcom to use to boost player engagement. But even with a box full of clues, it's best to keep expectations in check until something official comes up.