The Resident Evil ports on mobile now require an internet connection to play, prompting players to refuse the latest update – or even seek refunds.
As shared on the iOSGaming subreddit, the latest update from Capcom for Resident Evil 7, Resident Evil 4, and Resident Evil Village states: “Due to changes to the startup process, an internet connection is now required when starting this app”.
It’s unclear exactly why an internet connection is needed, though players are speculating it could be for DRM checks, or simply data collection.
Eurogamer has contacted Capcom for clarification.
Arguably, one of the benefits of mobile gaming is being able to play anywhere, but that’s somewhat negated by the need for an internet connection – even if only for startup.
Responding to the reddit post, many players will now seek a refund, though they fear there won’t be a significant backlash due to the low sales of the games.
As Eurogamer previously reported in July, sales of the Resident Evil mobile ports have reportedly flopped on iOS.
At the time, Resident Evil 7 was estimated to have been bought by fewer than 2000 people since its launch earlier that month, following the low sales of Resident Evil 4 and Village.
It also follows low sales of Assassin’s Creed Mirage and Death Stranding on mobile.
As per Digital Foundry, the Resident Evil 4 port works fine for mobile play, but it’s “not quite the triple-A experience” as it targets PS4 quality.
“Resident Evil 4 is at least good enough that I think it makes for a reasonable mobile experience, as long as you keep hopes in check. You’ll have to tolerate substantial performance issues and a sometimes messy image, but this is still Resident Evil 4 on the go, and it looks decent and doesn’t crash. It just lacks the performance and visual consistency that a lot of players expect.”