I stood in the ARK corridor, the lights flickering as distant alarms chewed at the silence. You watch Leon falter and Grace clutch the vial that decides everything. One choice at the top of the stairs sends the story down two very different roads.
Spoiler Warning!
The following segment includes Resident Evil Requiem story spoilers. Scroll down at your own risk.
Resident Evil Requiem: Point of No Return
Observation: save points are small, boring things that suddenly feel like life insurance when everything else is burning.
I’ll be blunt: when you enter the ARK facility the game tightens. You’ll switch between Leon and Grace, survive Lickers, and face a practical checkpoint—the elevator wait in the Bioweapon Repository or B4 Staff Room. That is the true point of no return. Make a manual save there if you want options.
The endings hinge on Grace’s choice about Elpis. At the final moment she can either Destroy Elpis or Release Elpis. One path ends in grief, the other pushes the main storyline forward. If you care about seeing everything, the game will let you replay the bad ending back to that exact save point, but only if you get the bad ending first.
Which Resident Evil Requiem ending is canon?
The canon ending is the Release Elpis route—the so-called true ending. Capcom uses this version to move the franchise forward: Leon survives, Elpis is revealed as an antiviral asset against Umbrella-style bioweapons, and loose threads are left for later installments. This is the ending that triggers contacts with BSAA figures and a setup that points toward future mainline entries.
Resident Evil Requiem Bad Ending — Leon Dies
Observation: you’ve seen the funerals in other games and films—one death can change the emotional weight of the next ten hours.
The bad ending brutalizes the emotional spine of the game: Leon dies. Here’s the scene in sequence so you don’t have to guess.
- Leon is deep into the last stage of Raccoon City Syndrome as he and Grace push into the ARK.
- Zeno—Capcom’s new Wesker analogue—shows up. Leon, weakened by infection, cannot match him.
- Grace chooses to destroy Elpis.
- The facility collapses. Leon stabs Zeno with an axe to slow him and helps Grace reach safety.
- Zeno shoots Leon in the face; Leon dies and the ARK is destroyed, burying Zeno too.
- Grace escapes but carries the regret of not saving him.
Mechanically this ending is straightforward to trigger, and narratively it delivers a high-cost payoff. If you want both endings on your first run, get the bad ending first—Requiem will prompt you to reload that save so you can chase the true ending without replaying the whole game. That’s a smart convenience found in modern releases on PlayStation and Steam ($69.99 (€64) list price is common).
Does Leon die in Resident Evil Requiem?
Only if you choose the bad ending. The canon path keeps Leon alive and active for future encounters—so if you care about his arc, plan for the true ending.
Resident Evil Requiem True Ending — Leon Survives
Observation: endings that promise more story are the ones that studios like Capcom use to sell sequels and bring characters back together.
On the canon route Grace chooses to release Elpis. That single decision rewrites several open threads:
- Zeno injects himself with Elpis, which removes his powers and leaves him vulnerable; Victor Gideon appears and kills Zeno after their argument.
- Grace injects Leon with Elpis; his infection is cured and he remains alive for the franchise moving forward.
- Victor transforms into a Nemesis-like form (an explicit callback to Resident Evil 3) and Leon defeats him.
- A BSAA agent arrives and mentions Captain Redfield—likely Chris—calling Leon in, which telegraphs a reunion of main players for the next big entry.
- Grace and Leon evacuate by helicopter; a news bulletin later reveals Emily was found cocooned in Rhodes Hill’s Bio-Terror Front.
- Time passes. Grace returns to her desk with a photo of Emily beside her; elsewhere someone quietly neutralizes BSAA agents and retrieves a small package that will almost certainly be the starting point for Resident Evil 10.
Elpis functions as both plot device and mechanical solution: it’s a cure for Umbrella-style bioweapons and a narrative lever that ties characters together. It works like a scalpel, excising infection without turning characters into static trophies for grief.
Beyond story mechanics, this ending repositions the cast: Grace is a protector and caretaker for Emily while maintaining her role in investigative work, Leon is back in play, and the BSAA/Umbrella threads remain hot. Industry outlets such as IGN and GameSpot picked up on these beats quickly, and players have debated their implications across forums and platforms.
Can you get both endings in Resident Evil Requiem?
Yes. The recommended practical flow is to save before the ARK push, trigger the bad ending first, then use the reload prompt the game offers to play through to the true ending. This is a quality-of-life touch you’ll see in big-budget releases—Capcom designed it so completionists don’t repeat the entire campaign on their second run.
Which ending should you choose? If you want the franchise to move forward with Leon intact and Elpis on the table for later storytelling, pick Release Elpis. If you want a darker, higher-cost emotional hit and a single, brutal beat, pick Destroy Elpis. Either way, you now know the stakes and the beats—will you save Leon and hand the series a new tool, or let the story pay its dues and carry that loss forward like a drawn curtain?