Capcom wanted to make a revamped version of the iconic Resident Evil 4 chainsaw controller, but it didn’t happen – yet. Game Informer spoke with Capcom’s Yasuhiro Ampo and Yoshiaki Hirabayashi about the upcoming survival horror remake ahead of its March 24, 2023, launch, and sussed out the likelihood of the team releasing a specialty controller (thanks, GamesRadar).
The chance is pretty small, at least at launch. Ampo and Hirabayashi said the team wanted to make a new version of the chainsaw controller to release alongside the game, but it just wasn’t possible.
“We wanted to do one, but we are already putting everything we have into development of the game,” Hirabayashi said. “Maybe we can look into that some other time if there’s an opportunity.”
It’s not a hard no, at least.
When Resident Evil 4 first launched in 2005, Capcom released a blood-soaked chainsaw controller for PS2 and the Nintendo Gamecube to go along with it. The grisly peripheral is a nod to the game’s bag-wearing, bloodthirsty chainsaw man, Dr. Salvador, who Leon faces during a tense encounter in the Ganado village early in the game – and loses his head, if he’s not careful.
The encounter became iconic thanks in no small part to how gruesome the death scene is, even by Resident Evil standards. The original chainsaw controller was hardly the most ergonomic design, but it would be nice to have a similar trophy to sit alongside the remake. Maybe someday, if Capcom isn’t too busy making Resident Evil 5 remake.
Written by Josh Broadwell on behalf of GLHF
