Key Highlights:
- Leon has been accidentally revealed by PlayStation, and is the second character of Resident Evil 9 Requiem.
- This Leon looks much older but still retains his signature hair style and hard boiled look.
- This was revealed by a cover art update.
Leon’s existence in Resident Evil 9 ranks high up there in terms of the worst kept secrets to date, along with the likes of Valve’s upcoming game (which may or may not be Half-Life 3). A recent series of events has also led to the ‘accidental’ reveal of Leon in Resident Evil 9 Requiem, thanks to a major slip up from PlayStation. Here’s what we know so far.
PlayStation Releases Game Poster for Resident Evil 9 With Leon in It
PlayStation has accidentally revealed the presence of Resident Evil’s Leon S. Kennedy in its upcoming mainline title, Resident Evil 9: Requiem.
This information comes thanks to multiple users across a wide range of social media sites (X and Reddit mostly), where they noticed the change in the game’s cover art.
In a nutshell, assuming that you have pre-ordered the game already on PlayStation 5, you will be able to set up an auto download. It’s in the auto download menu where things get interesting.
The cover art for Resident Evil Requiem includes (obviously) a picture of the new protagonist, Grace Ashcroft. What is far more interesting is presence of Leon in the backdrop.
Leon obviously looks a lot older in the new image (these games roughly follow the real world in terms of time progression, and Leon is way over 50 at this point), but curiously enough keeps his signature hairstyle, making him immediately recognizable.
The images do not seem to be altered in any way, and everything seems to be cohesive enough. Combined with the fact that multiple users have reported the same, it does make for a very plausible theory.
After all, Leon’s involvement in the game was speculated for years, but it’s nice to see some sort of semi official confirmation on the matter (even if it isn’t by Capcom themselves).
The game is also set for pre loading on January 25, 2026.
So Is Leon Really in Resident Evil 9 Requiem?
Beating all manner of skepticism aside, Dusk Golem’s claims finally proved itself to be true and grounded in reality. This wouldn’t be the first time Leon has been mentioned to be returning though, and these claims resurfaced as soon as the first reveal for Resident Evil 9 surfaced online.
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Leon is perhaps one of the more recognizable characters from the Resident Evil series, having made his debut in Resident Evil 4 (2005), a complete shift in direction for the franchise, where it shifted to action focused survival horror.
Going back to the claim, yes, it is very likely that Leon will be present in Resident Evil 9 Requiem. The PlayStation slip up is proof enough for this, and I suspect that we will see Leon in this year’s Game Awards showcase, which will have a Resident Evil 9 segment.
When Does Resident Evil 9 Requiem Release?
Resident Evil 9 (also known as Requiem) is a survival horror game from Capcom, and is the ninth mainline game in the long running series. The game will be released on February 27, 2026 for the PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S and Nintendo Switch 2 consoles.
Requiem is an entirely single player game with the ability to change between first person and third person modes, in addition to having the elements of both Resident Evil 7 and Village, which were fantastic games.
