The Project Resistance teaser was released just two days ago in the unveiling of the next Resident Evil title. This was to the excitement of many fans who hold the belief that we are about to get the Left 4 Dead successor they have been waiting for since 2009. While some were hoping for a Resident Evil 3 remake reveal, Project Resistance, nonetheless, is shrouded in mystery and has left us with numerous unanswered questions, including what the role is of the familiar Mr. X, who made his appearance at the end of the Project Resistance trailer.
Mr. X first appeared in 1998's Resident Evil 2, providing many scares during the game's several-hour campaign. He would arbitrarily appear in different places throughout the Raccoon City Police Department, often crashing through walls to shock players, which would force them to take different routes or, for ambitious gamers, temporarily take out Mr. X. He was a looming, frightening, Frankenstein-like T-103 Tyrant designed to obtain the G-Virus and terminate any remaining Raccoon City police officers. Mr. X has appeared in the original Resident Evil 2, Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles, and 2019's Resident Evil 2 remake.
Yet, Mr. X appears to have a much different, and commanding, role in Project Resistance. The trailer shows the monster operating some kind of panel, adjusting switches and other devices to modify the aggression of zombies toward the survivors seen in the trailer. After the survivors have eliminated all of the zombies, Mr. X tightens his trademark gloves and steps out into full view of the trailer's camera and turns toward the survivors. His eyes then turn bright red, signifying he is ready for some, most likely, lethal combat.
As such, it would be logical to assume that Mr. X not only serves as a killing machine but that he also acts as the one who manipulates the zombies and enemies to be fought by the survivors in Project Resistance. If there's a Horde-type mode, for instance, then it's likely Mr. X could be a final boss for the survivors.
If that's the case, Mr. X could have a much different role going forward. Traditionally seen as nothing more than a Terminator-type character, Mr. X could easily turn into the next Albert Wesker for Chris Redfield and company, orchestrating their fate and the apocalypse of the world. At this point, this is all speculation, as the teaser only shows Mr. X commanding a horde of zombies, though it is entirely possible for Mr. X's new role to become more prominent in the canon.
The Resident Evil series has, in the past, seen various roles go in different directions. For example, Barry Burton wasn't much beyond a silly supporting character who happened to save Jill's life a few times. However, he later took on a much more prominent role in Resident Evil: Revelations 2. Albert Wesker, too, was a character who unexpectedly became significant over time, though almost annoyingly so. How Project Resistance will fit into the Resident Evil canon is unknown for now, but if the game is entirely integral to the series, then Mr. X could very likely be much more important to the Resident Evil universe than we know.