100 Things You Never Knew About Resident Evil

98. The Origin Of Crimson Heads

Resident Evil Crimson Heads
Capcom

It didn't take long for Capcom to want to experiment with Resident Evil. After all, part of what makes great horror is the unexpected. That's why when returning the original story in the 2002 remake, Spencer Mansion veterans were thrown off when previously incapacitated zombies would get back up as Crimson Heads and chase them to the closest door.

However, running zombies had previously been considered for the franchise a little bit earlier. In a developer diary looking back at the history of Resident Evil Zero - and specifically how it started out life on the Nintendo 64 - game director Koji Oda off-handedly mentioned that they had experimented with enemies being more reactive to gunfire and, of particular note, "running zombies".

Whilst we don't know if this idea eventually became Crimson Heads exactly, even Oda-san himself mentioned that the concept retroactively feels like a precursor to them. Perhaps it was inevitable.

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Coming from a content creation background that now spans over two decades, Psy cut her teeth on personal video production and community radio. Originally joining the team as a writer and presenter, she added video editing duties to her responsibilities over time and became the longest-standing editor of the irreverent gaming show Tues Your Own Adventure. Psy has worked on many previews and reviews, long-form editorials (either her own, or supporting as an editor), as a frequent quizmaster and more. Praised for the two-pronged attack of her hard work ethic and light-hearted editing style, Psy is otherwise known as a font of retro video game knowledge which has caused her to rack up many quiz wins. Outside of WhatCulture, Psy runs First Aid Spray Podcast - a long-running channel that focuses on Resident Evil in all of it's forms. You can follow her on BlueSky at http://psywhite.bsky.social and Instagram at http://instagram.com/therealpsywhite