I have been a Capcom fan for years, and I remember the lean period all too well. Back then, both quality and sales floundered. Things eventually turned around in a huge way. Devil May Cry, Resident Evil, Monster Hunter, and Mega Man all began posting excellent reviews and sales numbers. Everything Capcom touched seemed to turn to gold. The one glaring exception was Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite, and I still pour one out for it.
Now that we are deep into 2026, I keep returning to the fiscal report that laid out how Capcom planned to maintain that momentum. The company did not simply want to achieve success; it wanted to protect it.
The strategy had three distinct goals:
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strengthen digital sales,
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bolster the title lineup through the full-scale execution of its 60-month and 52-week maps,
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awaken dormant intellectual properties.
That third goal is the one that grabbed me immediately. The phrase "awaken dormant intellectual properties" is basically a promise to dig into Capcom's absurdly deep catalog. Darkstalkers, Dino Crisis, Onimusha, Ōkami, Viewtiful Joe, Rival Schools, Final Fight, and Ghosts 'n Goblins all came to mind. If even one of those series returned, a lot of fans would be very happy.
I will be totally honest: Darkstalkers 4 is probably my deepest desire in the entire medium. The roster is beautifully strange and varied, and I would love to see those characters reimagined for modern platforms. Still, I refuse to get my hopes up. I have been burned before by hope, and I am not sure Capcom will ever hand me that particular gift. It would be amazing, but I keep my expectations buried.
Dino Crisis 4, on the other hand, feels like a very distinct possibility. Capcom's RE Engine is clearly suited to third-person action games, and it would fit a "Resident Evil with dinosaurs" project perfectly. The historical parallel is also funny. Dino Crisis originally released on the heels of significant Resident Evil success, and a modern revival could follow the same playbook. I also wonder whether a new Onimusha might appear a little further down the line. That series has a devoted audience, and its samurai-meets-supernatural setting still feels underused in the modern market.
I would also keep an eye out for a new Final Fight. Those characters have never truly left the public eye. Guy, Cody, Haggar, and Poison keep showing up in Street Fighter and Marvel vs. Capcom games, which proves they still resonate with players. To me, a new beat 'em up is not a question of "if" but "when."
The genuine long shots, in my view, are Ōkami 2, Viewtiful Joe 3, and a new Rival Schools. Clover Studio, which developed both Ōkami and Viewtiful Joe, was dissolved by Capcom, and much of that team moved on to form PlatinumGames. That creative history makes those projects more complicated. Rival Schools does not have the same studio baggage, but it is also a bit more obscure. I am not confident it has enough cultural cachet to justify a full-scale revival.
| Dormant IP | My Personal 2026 Outlook |
|---|---|
| Darkstalkers 4 | My deepest wish, but I refuse to expect it |
| Dino Crisis 4 | Very possible; a natural fit for RE Engine |
| Onimusha | A strong candidate further down the road |
| Final Fight | Likely sooner or later; characters stay visible |
| Ōkami 2 | A long shot due to Clover/Platinum history |
| Viewtiful Joe 3 | A long shot for the same reason |
| Rival Schools | Cult favorite, but perhaps too forgotten |
Even now, I remain optimistic about Capcom's broader direction. Not every dormant IP will return, and not every revival will be exactly what fans want. Still, the fact that Capcom openly made dormant properties part of its strategy is encouraging. Digital sales and long-term roadmaps may sound corporate, but they are exactly the kind of foundation that allows creative revivals to happen. I just hope the next call goes to one of the franchises I love. 🎮