Technologies

I Played Resident Evil 9 Requiem at Summer Game Fest, and It’s Extremely Messed Up

The upcoming horror game was the most disgusting thing I played at Summer Game Fest.

During this year’s Summer Game Fest event, the kickoff showcase teased and then announced Resident Evil Requiem, the ninth installation in the mainline Resident Evil series. During the media-only Play Days events, members of the press were able to sit down to a guided presentation of the upcoming horror game. However, a very select few, myself included, got the opportunity to go hands-on with the demo and fight for our lives. Unlike the run-and-gun horror of Resident Evil Village, Capcom’s next entry in the franchise feels like it’s going for the slow and vulnerable terror of Resident Evil 7.

Resident Evil Requiem is set in Raccoon City in the wake of nuclear destruction wreaked by the US government trying to clean up the zombie plague after Resident Evil 3. The preview began with Grace Ashcroft, the new protagonist for RE9 seen in the reveal trailer, strapped upside down to a gurney and looking extremely haggard. She’s clearly been through a lot, which is evident from the various needles and medical equipment she’s hooked up to as well as the impressive graphics tech on display when showing off her character model. The sweat she’s soaked in, the details on her hair and face, were all very impressive.

As the opening cutscene continued, Grace was able to break a bottle to cut herself free and tip over the gurney before standing up and giving control to the player. The demo for the game, which is set in first person, has you begin to explore this dirty room and the very dark hallway connected to it. During the theater presentation an audible “nope” was shouted from one of the attendees at the thought of venturing forth.

This early section of the game is set in some kind of abandoned hospital wing as a storm rages outside, complete with unsettling thunder and flashes of lightning through the windows. The only light inside is a few sparse red bulbs which doesn’t help ease the tension. The first fork in the road leads to either a pitch black room or a long dark hallway. People were audibly squirming in their seats when I watched the presentation — it was very similar to seeing a scary movie in a theater with an engaged audience. Turning the light on in the hallway reveals an odd horse statue at the end of it that, due to the distance and its unnatural shape, almost felt like a minor jump scare.

It’s one thing to watch a theater presentation of someone walking down a spooky hallway, it’s another to have to be the person doing it yourself. And although I mostly knew the big set pieces of this experience from beforehand, it still raised my heart rate when I was the one having to poke around in the dark and hope I’m safe.

You then search through a couple rooms, and there’s a few items to be found like an empty, throwable bottle and, more importantly, a lighter. However, unlike the most recent Resident Evil Village, there wasn’t a gun to be found. It feels more like Capcom is channeling the terror of the helplessness you feel in the early section of Resident Evil 7, including its emphasis on puzzles. The end goal was a locked gate but we needed to find a fuse, which happened to be behind a screwed-shut panel a little behind us.

Backtracking to the pitch dark room, now with a tiny lighter to protect us, it was possible to explore the pitch dark room from the forked-path earlier. Opening the single door at the end of the room led to the biggest jump scare in the demo, and thus, the biggest screams during the theater presentation. A dead doctor immediately falls out of the door next to Grace where she remarks how he’s been “infected.” Thankfully he wasn’t a zombie at this point since, other than a bottle, I hadn’t been able to find anything resembling a weapon.

Then we got to the best part of the demo. Without the camera moving, a massive beast-like claw came into view and grabbed the corpse. The camera turns to follow the body and you see a huge animal and human hybrid monster scream and devour the body before getting far, far too close to the camera to show off its bloody teeth and horrible face. Another great example of just how good and gross RE9 looks. The audience screamed.

I’m very glad I saw the theater presentation before going hands-on since it gave me some tips on how to proceed and where to run and hide from the creature. However, I won’t go into detail on the creature’s weaknesses — you’ll have to wait to find out for yourself. Running away through the hallways (at a far too slow of a pace in comparison to my heart rate) and avoiding the monster gave me access to the room it emerged from. Here you can move an unfortunately noisy rolling cart in order to reach a screwdriver on top of a shelf. As you move the cart, the creature hears and walks by the adjacent window, upping the tension.

Trying to leave the room causes the monster to reappear at the only exit. Stealth comes into play more here as I had to shut my lighter and hide under a table before sneaking past the monster and out the door. With the screwdriver in hand I made my way back to the locked fuse panel. Unfortunately the monster smashes through a wall and appears right before me. If you get grabbed (which I did a few times) the beast will pick Grace up and take a massive bite out of her shoulder. You can only withstand one of these before the second attack will kill you. Luckily this hospital had a single health pick up to help you sustain a couple maulings.

During the theater presentation, after kiting around the enemy again, the developer paused the game and went into the settings. They proceeded to the display options, as the crowd began to murmur about what was happening.

Then came the big reveal: The developer switched the camera position from first- person to third-person. The audience roared in cheers. We were then told the game can be played in either point of view for the whole game and switched on the fly. The remainder of the presentation was in third-person.

There wasn’t much left to the demo after this point. You’re able to collect the fuse and then open the gate and escape just before the monster reaches you. Overall, this sequence was plenty scary when I watched it first, but was even more tense as I played it myself.

It was a really fantastic demo and had a few clever puzzles for the player to deal with. If you’re able to fully explore the limited space, you’ll uncover clues and hints to aid you on your escape. I personally really enjoyed the cinematic and terrifying way they introduced the beast. It was a fairly limited demo, but it definitely built a ton of anticipation for the game. Capcom seems to be set to put out another solid entry in the franchise once again.

Resident Evil Requiem is scheduled to release on February 27, 2026 for Xbox Series S/X, PlayStation 5 and PC.

Technologies

Trump Maintains US‑Iran Negotiations Continue Amid Tehran’s Denials of Duplicity

President Trump insists that US‑Iran talks are ongoing despite Tehran’s denial of any negotiation plans, while warning that only a deal or total surrender will allow passage through the Strait of Hormuz. Conflicting statements from both sides have heightened uncertainty as the conflict enters its sixth month.

On Monday, President Donald Trump asserted that negotiations between the United States and Iran are still taking place, even after Tehran stated it has no intention of engaging in direct talks with Washington.

In a fiery Truth Social post, Trump labeled Iran’s leaders “unbelievably duplicitous,” claiming they are lying about ongoing peace talks “whether Iran wants to admit it or not.” He repeated his assertion that the United States completely controls the Strait of Hormuz, despite maritime traffic through the crucial route lingering at only a small fraction of pre‑conflict levels.

He wrote, “Nothing reaches Iran unless we allow it, and nothing will pass unless a deal—or total surrender—is achieved.”

Earlier that day, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei told reporters there is no imminent plan for U.S.–Iran negotiations, contradicting Trump’s earlier comment that talks would resume Monday afternoon. Baghaei added that Iran’s only current discussions are with Oman concerning the Strait of Hormuz.

The conflicting statements have heightened uncertainty over the peace‑talk process and the broader conflict, now in its sixth month.

Trump’s assertion about new negotiations came a day after he said on Truth Social that he had agreed to cancel a massive strike against Iran “subject to being able to rapidly make a DEAL.” He said in the same post that Iran and other Middle Eastern countries had asked him to hold off on that attack because “the perimeters of a deal has been agreed to.”

Trump has claimed dozens of times throughout the more‑than‑five‑month‑long war that a deal is at hand. No permanent deal has been signed, and a temporary ceasefire reached in June has fallen apart.

Trump has also repeatedly threatened to launch devastating strikes against Iran before backing off. After the latest example, oil prices on Monday fell and stocks surged.

BMI, a research unit of Fitch Solutions, said in a note Monday that a broader diplomatic understanding on reopening the Strait of Hormuz is still achievable this quarter, while raising the probability of its escalation scenario to 35% from 25%, citing mounting military, diplomatic and economic signs of rising U.S.-Iran tensions.

“Diplomatic progress is likely to be punctuated by periodic military flare-ups, while miscalculation by either side could trigger a renewed escalation,” BMI analysts wrote in a note. The firm said the key issue to watch is the future governance of the strait, as the Iran-Oman talks — potentially backed by Gulf states, China and the U.S. — point to efforts to build a post-conflict shipping framework.

Shipping risks persist even as diplomacy appears to be advancing. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Centre said it received a report of an incident 20 nautical miles (23 miles) northeast of Khasab, Oman — at the mouth of the strait — with a tanker’s master reporting an explosion in close proximity to the vessel at about 20:37 UTC Sunday (4:37 pm ET). The vessel and crew were safe and authorities are investigating, UKMTO said, advising ships to transit with caution.

The proposal Trump announced over the weekend calls for the U.S. and Iran to return to negotiations and continue ironing out some of the thorny issues that had derailed diplomatic efforts, according to The Associated Press, citing a regional official involved in the mediation efforts.

The official said the proposal also includes a reopening of the Hormuz Strait and halting attacks across the region, including by Iranian-backed militias in Iraq on the Arab Gulf countries and Jordan.

The U.S., for its part, will end its naval blockade on Iran and allow Tehran to export its oil, the official said, adding that no deal has been reached, although the mediation efforts remained underway.

Trump’s weekend reversal has lowered the temperature after days of escalating attacks across the Gulf. Kuwait said Saturday that Iranian forces launched a wave of drones within its airspace, with its military destroying multiple aircraft after Iran targeted critical infrastructure in the country’s north.

A parallel track with Muscat is also advancing. Iranian diplomats said Tehran was close to reaching a new arrangement with Oman to manage shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a deal critical to preventing the war from escalating further, according to the Financial Times.

Iranian officials said negotiations over future management of the Hormuz Strait with Oman, which sits on the opposite shore of the waterway, are in their final stages. The agreed shipping route would be different from those used before, according to Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Baghaei, adding that the new route was separate from the issue of the strait’s reopening or continued closure.

Technologies

Oil Prices Slide as Trump Halts Planned Iran Strike

Oil prices dropped after Trump cancelled a planned strike on Iran, with WTI down about 5% and Brent near 5% lower. He said the move followed requests from Tehran and regional allies for a pause while a deal shaping the Strait of Hormuz and Iran’s nuclear program is negotiated.

Oil prices fell on Monday after President Donald Trump announced he had cancelled a planned strike on Iran. WTI futures dropped roughly 5% to $80.34 a barrel, while Brent slipped about 4.7% to $83.77 a barrel.

Trump said early Sunday he called off the strike after Iran and several Middle Eastern nations asked him to hold off, noting that the outlines of a deal had been agreed upon. He added that the prospective accord would entail the immediate, full opening of the Strait of Hormuz and an end to Iran’s nuclear ambitions, according to his Truth Social post.

The president had been considering another round of strikes as diplomatic hopes waned since the conflict began on February 28. He said the U.S. and Iran would meet for talks on Monday, but Iran denied any scheduled negotiations with Washington, citing PressTV. Iran’s foreign‑ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei clarified that Tehran was only discussing shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz with Oman. In a follow‑up Truth Social message, Trump insisted that, regardless of Iran’s acknowledgment, the United States is indeed discussing a solution to a long‑standing problem created by Iran.

Technologies

Oil Prices Drop as Trump Cancels Planned Attack on Iran

Oil prices fell sharply after President Trump announced the cancellation of a planned strike on Iran, citing a new deal that would open the Hormuz Strait and end Iran’s nuclear threat.

Oil prices fell sharply on Monday after President Donald Trump announced that he had called off a planned strike on Iran.

West Texas Intermediate futures, the U.S. benchmark, slipped roughly 5% to close at $80.34 per barrel, while Brent crude, the international benchmark, declined 4.7% to settle at $83.77 a barrel.

Trump made the announcement early Sunday, saying he had canceled the strike following requests from Tehran and other Middle Eastern countries.

In a Truth Social post, he wrote: “We have just been asked by Iran, and other Middle Eastern Countries, to hold off any attack in that the perimeters of a deal has been agreed to.”

The president indicated that the proposed agreement would include the immediate, complete, and total opening of the Hormuz Strait, as well as an end to Iran’s nuclear threat.

Trump had been weighing additional strikes amid diminishing prospects for a diplomatic resolution to the conflict that began on Feb. 28. He stated that the U.S. and Iran would hold negotiations on Monday.

Tehran denied that talks were planned with Washington, according to state news outlet PressTV.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said Tehran was only holding talks with Oman regarding the routes ships can use through the Strait of Hormuz.

In a subsequent Truth Social post, Trump added that whether “Iran wants to admit it or not, we are, in fact, talking of a solution to a problem that they have caused for decades.”