RE2 Remake Finally Dethrones RE5 After 15 Years
Resident Evil 2 remake has dethroned RE5 as the best-selling game in the franchise.
It's a quiet kind of milestone, the sort that speaks volumes about how the Resident Evil series has evolved. After holding the crown for fifteen years, Resident Evil 5 has been surpassed as the franchise's best-selling entry by the Resident Evil 2 remake, which has now shipped 19.75 million copies worldwide.
That shift matters more than it might seem at first. Resident Evil 5 was a phenomenon when it landed—a mainline sequel that defined the action-horror template for a generation. But what's happened since tells a different story about what players actually want from the series. The RE2 remake, released in 2019, tapped into something that resonated: a faithful reimagining of a beloved classic, rebuilt from the ground up with modern systems and sensibilities, yet respectful of what made the original special. It's the kind of project that rewards both longtime fans and newcomers, and the sales figures suggest that approach has real staying power.
The broader picture is striking too. The Resident Evil franchise as a whole has now sold 213 million copies, which means it's officially outsold Final Fantasy—a genuinely significant moment in gaming history, even if it arrived without fanfare. That's the weight of decades of entries, remakes, spin-offs, and the kind of cultural penetration that only a few franchises ever achieve.
Capcom clearly isn't resting on that momentum. Resident Evil 4's remake has itself sold 16 million copies, and there's more on the horizon: a new Resident Evil film directed by Zach Cregger is set to launch on September 16, with Resident Evil Veronica expected to arrive in 2027. Whether that's a remake, a new entry, or something else entirely remains to be seen, but the pattern is clear—the series is moving forward by looking back, and audiences are meeting it there.
For those of us who've watched this franchise evolve, it's a reminder that sometimes the best way forward is to understand what made the foundation strong in the first place.
Source: IGN
