Editing Resident Evil (section)

== Story overview ==
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*Please do not add in-depth plot summaries, speculation, or trivial details to this section.
*This plot section is not meant to be a full explanation of all events in the series, but rather a concise summary of the main events.
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{{See also|List of Resident Evil characters}}
[[File:Umbrella Corporation logo.svg|thumb|right|Logo for [[Umbrella Corporation]], a prominent antagonistic faction in the franchise]]
The early ''Resident Evil'' games focused on the Umbrella Corporation, an international pharmaceutical company that secretly develops mutagenic viruses to further their "bio-organic weapons" (BOW) research. The company's viruses can transform humans into mindless zombies while also mutating plants and animals into horrifying monstrosities. The Umbrella Corporation uses its vast resources to effectively control Raccoon City, a fictional [[Midwestern United States|midwestern American]] city. In the original ''[[Resident Evil (1996 video game)|Resident Evil]]'', members of an elite police task force, Special Tactics and Rescue Service (STARS), are lured to a derelict mansion on the outskirts of Raccoon City. The STARS team is mostly decimated by zombies and other BOWs, leaving only a handful of survivors, including [[Chris Redfield]], [[Jill Valentine]], and [[Albert Wesker]]. Chris and Jill explore the zombie-infested mansion and uncover a secret underground Umbrella research facility. Wesker reveals himself to be a double agent for Umbrella and betrays his comrades. However, Wesker is seemingly murdered by a Tyrant, a special BOW that is the culmination of the Umbrella Corporation's research.<ref name="plot-ign">{{cite news |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/resident-evil-story-synopsis-plot-summary-lore-explained |title=Resident Evil: The Story So Far |work=[[IGN]] |date=2021-06-23 |accessdate=2023-02-11 }}</ref><ref name="plot-poly">{{cite news |last=Hashimoto |first=Kazuma |url=https://www.polygon.com/22444608/resident-evil-horror-eugenics-military-government-themes |title=Resident Evil's most unsettling theme isn't zombies — it's eugenics |work=[[Polygon (website)|Polygon]] |date=2021-05-22 |accessdate=2023-02-11 }}</ref>

Chris and Jill escape the mansion, but their testimony is ridiculed by Raccoon City's officials due to Umbrella's influence. Meanwhile, a separate viral outbreak occurs in another Umbrella research facility underneath Raccoon City. Most of the city's residents are infected and become zombies. ''[[Resident Evil 2]]'' introduces two new protagonists, [[Leon S. Kennedy]], a rookie police officer and [[Claire Redfield]], the younger sister of Chris. Leon and Claire arrive in Raccoon City amidst the chaos of the viral outbreak. Leon is aided by [[Ada Wong]], a spy posing as an [[Federal Bureau of Investigation|FBI agent]], while Claire rescues Sherry Birkin, the daughter of two prominent Umbrella researchers. At the same time, Jill makes her escape from the city in ''[[Resident Evil 3: Nemesis]]''.  She is relentlessly pursued by a new Tyrant, [[Nemesis (Resident Evil)|Nemesis]], who is deployed by Umbrella to eliminate all surviving STARS members. The U.S. Government destroys Raccoon City with a missile strike to sterilize the viral outbreak.<ref>{{cite book |author=Damien Waples |title=Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles Official Game Guide |publisher=[[Prima Games]] |location=California, United States |isbn=978-0-761-55845-3 |pages=58–73 |date=2007-11-13 }}</ref> Leon, Claire, Sherry, Ada, and Jill escape the city before its eradication. Claire continues to look for Chris, whereas Leon is recruited to work for the U.S. Government. ''[[Resident Evil – Code: Veronica]]'' follows Claire as she escapes from a prison camp in the [[Southern Ocean]] and later reunites with Chris at an Umbrella research facility in [[Antarctica]].  ''[[Resident Evil 4]]'' is set six years after the Raccoon City incident and focuses on Leon as he tries to rescue the [[President of the United States|U.S. President's]] daughter from a cult in [[Spain]].<ref name="plot-ign"/><ref name="plot-poly"/>

A government investigation into the Umbrella Corporation reveals its involvement in the Raccoon City disaster and leads to the company's dissolution. Despite the downfall of the Umbrella Corporation, the company's research and BOWs proliferate across the black market and lead to the rise of bioterrorism. Chris and Jill establish the Bioterrorism Security Assessment Alliance (BSAA) to combat these ever-growing threats on a global scale. Wesker is revealed to be alive and involved in the development of new potent viral agents and BOWs. In ''[[Resident Evil 5]]'',  Wesker seeks to unleash a highly mutagenic virus that will infect all of humanity. Chris and the BSAA confront and kill Wesker in [[Africa]] before he can fulfill his mission.<ref name="weskerdeath">{{cite web|title=S DCC 09: Resident Evil's Wesker gone for good |url=http://ign.com/articles/2009/07/23/sdcc-09-resident-evils-wesker-gone-for-good |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160508150915/http://www.ign.com/articles/2009/07/23/sdcc-09-resident-evils-wesker-gone-for-good |archive-date=2016-05-08 |url-status=live |date=2009-07-23 |access-date=2023-02-11 |first=Hilary |last=Goldstein |work=[[IGN]]}}</ref> ''[[Resident Evil 6]]'' features Leon and Chris meeting for the first time in the video game series.<ref>{{cite news |last=Pitts |first=Russ |url=https://www.polygon.com/gaming/2012/4/10/2924622/resident-evil-6-preview-leon-and-chris-together-at-last |title='Resident Evil 6' preview: Leon and Chris, together at last |work=[[Polygon (website)|Polygon]] |date=2012-04-10 |accessdate=2023-02-18 }}</ref> The two work separately to triage bioterrorist attacks in the United States, [[Eastern Europe]], and [[China]]. They are assisted by Sherry, Wesker's illegitimate son Jake Muller, Ada, and many members of the BSAA and U.S. government.

''[[Resident Evil 7: Biohazard]]'' and ''[[Resident Evil Village]]'' introduce a new protagonist, [[Ethan Winters]], who becomes entangled in a bioterrorism incident while searching for his missing wife. He encounters Chris and the BSAA, who help him rescue his wife and defeat Eveline, a powerful BOW. Ethan, Mia, and their newborn daughter, Rosemary, are relocated to Eastern Europe but are abducted by a cult. Ethan ultimately sacrifices himself to destroy a fungal colony being weaponized by bioterrorists and save his family.<ref name="plot-ign"/><ref name="plot-poly"/><ref>{{cite news |last1=Gonzalez |first1=Oscar |last2=Keane |first2=Sean |url=https://www.cnet.com/culture/resident-evil-village-synopsis-ending-and-post-credit-scene-explained/ |title=Resident Evil Village synopsis, ending, post-credit scene explained |work=[[CNET]] |date=2021-05-11 |accessdate=2023-02-18 }}</ref>