‘Resident Evil’ 2026’s 10 Best Video Game Easter Eggs

Resident Evil (2026) is an interesting example of how far an adaptation can stray from the source material and become something different without losing the soul of the original. While Zach Cregger’s take on the horror video game franchise doesn’t really even try to reimagine the heroes and villains of the games, it does a great job of reflecting the natural tension that comes with playing the game. As a result, the Easter egg references to the games aren’t really recreations of lore but cheeky allusions to specific game mechanics.

With the movie largely ignoring the kind of deep-cut character references you usually see in adaptations like this, Cregger had more room to play with minor enemy types, supply designs, and even some conventional tropes of the games. Here are all the best Easter eggs hidden in Resident Evil and what they’re referencing from the original video games.

Bryan Finds A Typewriter 

One of the more memorable little touches in Resident Evil is the inclusion of a typewriter as one of the things that Bryan encounters while looking through the house for ammo. In the original video games, typewriters are often used as save points for progress, with harder difficulties even limiting the number of saves available to players based on how many typewriter ribbons they could find. Bryan stumbling across one while exploring the house for ammo is a great reflection of the moment-to-moment gameplay.

Bryan’s Ammo Restocks Are Straight From The Games 

Bryan’s discovery of a box of distinctive shotgun shells is another reference to the video game series. The green box of shotgun ammo that Bryan finds in the desk has the same bear logo and “Heavy Field” branding that appears on boxes when shotguns are reloaded in the video games. Similar to the other Easter eggs throughout the film, it’s rooted in a recurring mechanic in the games that reflects the film’s attempt to recreate the experience of playing the games.

Bryan Passes Some Healing Herbs 

Similar to the shotgun shells, medical herbs are a frequent item found in the Resident Evil games. These items are able to heal with a minor amount or be mixed with other items to create a more potent effect. While making his way through a tunnel full of wrecked cars, Bryan passes some green herbs in one of the cars. Ironically, this occurs right before Bryan gets infected by the virus, making his ignorance about the green herb all the more funny.

The Key Puzzle Is Inspired By Game Mechanics 

One of the other direct references to the original gameplay mechanics in Resident Evil can be found when Bryan is trying to escape the little house that he discovers outside the woods. When trying to escape the house he hides in, Bryan finds a gate with a distinct lock. Bryan isn’t able to find the right key initially, prompting him to try and use blunt force to get through the gate by driving through it with a truck—breaking the truck in the first place. This is reflective of most attempts in the original games to try to get around proper puzzles, which often end in failure.

The Tendrils Are Like The Las Plagas From ‘Resident Evil 4’ 

The infection spreading throughout Resident Evil is less of a zombie virus and more of a mutated parasite entity that is able to combine bodies into new monstrosities. While the primary enemies of the Resident Evil games are zombies, the tendril parasites that transform people feel like a direct reference to Resident Evil 4. That game focused on Leon Scott Kennedy, one of the franchise’s most consistent heroes, as he dealt with an experimental new parasite moving through people and combining them into monstrous new forms. It’s another example of the film pulling from the larger series instead of directly reimagining any specific game. 

A Corrupted Dog Is An Early Threat 

One of the most memorable encounters in the Resident Evil adaptation is the dog that Bryan initially encounters. At first, the hound that attacks Bryan is played largely for laughs, a quick encounter that Bryan has to figure his way out of. However, when the dog reveals a mutated face, it’s clear that it’s a far more dangerous entity. This is similar to the dogs that attacked the heroes in the opening of the first Resident Evil, giving the original game and the new cinematic adaptation a thematic connection. 

The Acid Spitter Is A Classic Zombie Archetype 

One of the more distinct zombie variants in the film that Bryan encounters is the acid-spitting zombie that almost dooms him in the hospital. This variant of zombie is one that was seen in multiple games, including Resident Evil 2 and Resident Evil 6. It’s a rare ranged enemy that can overwhelm players if they’re not prepared for it in a game series that largely makes the threats more visceral and proximity-based, so it’s a clever one to bring in for a brief encounter with Bryan. Other zombie variants also appear, with the movie taking clear inspiration from the Resident Evil 3 remake that also has a zombie similar to the infected girl that bites Bryan.

The Film’s Shifts In Perspective Reflect The Games 

Resident Evil: Requiem, which is the ninth mainline entry in the video game series, features a shifting perspective that moves the camera from third-person to first-person depending on player preference and tonal requirement. The film actually references this shifting style in a subtly effective way, occasionally shifting to a first-person perspective when Bryan has a gun and is trying to land a specific tricky shot. It puts emphasis on the tension of the scene but in distinct and effective ways.

Umbrella Is The Source Of The Outbreak 

While the new film is largely removed from the underlying continuity of the source material, there are some direct references to the Umbrella Corporation. Although the circumstances of the outbreak have changed—the film suggests it was human error, as opposed to the more nefarious motivations in the games—the bio-company is still rooted in the lore and world-building of the film. This could even open the door for a follow-up that shines a spotlight on their work in Raccoon City, if Sony wants to continue to expand this iteration of the series.

Bryan’s Final Form Is Like An RE Boss Level

Playing into the film’s ultimately bleak tone, Resident Evil ends with an infected Bryan mutating into a monster, losing his chance to be potentially cured and losing his sense of self. This final transformation may not be based on any specific boss from the video game series, but that sort of transformation isn’t uncommon for the big bads of each respective game, going from the earliest entries to Requiem. It’s another key example of Zach Cregger adapting the game experience but not the narrative beats of the source material.