Capcom considered a total of 17 names to call its Resident Evil series in Japan, before it ended up going with Biohazard.
A new documentary (via Genki_JPN on Twitter/X) on the making of Resident Evil has shed light on the challenging and experimental early days of the iconic survival horror franchise from Capcom. Long before the series sold more than 174 million copies worldwide and helped define an entire genre, it was a risky project driven by young developers, shifting hardware demands, and constant internal pressure. As revealed through rare development documents and interviews with creators Shinji Mikami, Tokuro Fujiwara, Jun Takeuchi, and Hideki Kamiya, the inception of Resident Evil was far from straightforward.
List of Names Considered For
One of the documentary’s most interesting revelations is the list of potential titles Capcom considered before settling on Biohazard for Japan, which later became Resident Evil in the West. According to the developers, the company evaluated a total of 17 possible names, though only a part of the list was revealed. These names can be seen below.
- Death Shadow
- Be Afraid
- Strained
- Hazard
- Death Guide
- Biohazard
- Death Hazard
- Death Bleed
- Bloody Fear
- Call of Death
- Bio Slaughter
- Scream
- Death Limit
Shinji Mikami and several others favored Call of Death or Scream, titles that leaned heavily into the game’s horror elements. In the end, however, Producer Tokuro Fujiwara approved Biohazard, a name that captured both the series’ viral themes and oppressive atmosphere.
The documentary dives deep into the struggles involved in bringing the original Resident Evil to life. Initially built around new hardware technology, the project was nearly canceled partway through development. Team members recalled working with unfamiliar tools, rethinking gameplay mechanics, and fighting to preserve the game’s vision. Despite the setbacks, their persistence eventually gave rise to one of Japan’s most influential series and one of the pioneers of survival horror.
