| Resident Evil 1.5 | |
|---|---|
 Gameplay screenshot of Resident Evil 1.5, showing protagonist Elza Walker and a more modern Raccoon Police Station. | |
| Developer(s) | Capcom |
| Director(s) | Hideki Kamiya |
| Producer(s) | Shinji Mikami |
| Series | Resident Evil |
| Platform(s) | PlayStation |
| Genre(s) | Survival horror |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
Resident Evil 1.5 is the unofficial name given to a scrapped prototype version of the 1998 survival horror game Resident Evil 2. It was under development by Capcom for the PlayStation, and was directed by Hideki Kamiya and produced by Shinji Mikami. Beginning development a month after the completion of Resident Evil in early 1996, the game was drastically different than the completed version of Resident Evil 2.[clarification needed] It featured police officer Leon S. Kennedy and biker Elza Walker, rather than Claire Redfield, as the playable characters. It ultimately reached 60-80% completion before development was restarted nearly from scratch.
With rumors of leaked builds circulating since the 1990s, Resident Evil 1.5 became the focus of dedicated fans and video game preservationists to obtain and release a copy to the public. Purchased by a small group of fans in 2011 from a video game collector and kept private, a half-finished version was leaked online in 2013. While it is theorized that Capcom possesses a more complete version of the game, it has never been shared in any capacity. Despite its unofficial status, 1.5's existence has been publicly referenced by Capcom, who included Elza's motorcycle suit as an unlockable costume for Claire in Resident Evil 2's remake.[1]
- ^ Burns, Benjamin (2019-03-08). "The 15-year hunt for Resident Evil 1.5". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on 2023-10-17. Retrieved 2023-08-25.