Capcom intends to evolve its in-house RE Engine into what it terms an "AI-generation game engine" as part of an ongoing overhaul known as the REX Project. Programmer Satoshi Ishida presented the plans, detailing how the engine, first introduced with Resident Evil 7 in 2017, will be updated to address growing game scope, development team size, and the need for integrated AI.
The REX Project aims to tackle several challenges. As games increase in scope and data volume, build and iteration times have slowed development. The RE Engine's user base has expanded to over 2,000 developers, necessitating better multilingual and accessibility support. Furthermore, Capcom recognizes the need to embed AI directly into the development pipeline rather than treating it as an add-on.
To achieve these goals, Capcom is introducing several new systems. RE:Dox will standardize data processing across various formats. RE:UI is designed to accelerate development tools by separating visual appearance from the application's state. RE:Log will replace text-based logging with an ID-based system. The company is also developing RE:Flows, a visual scripting tool that automatically converts visual logic into standard code, and RE:Runtime, a revamped runtime core focused on batch processing for managing large numbers of characters. A new optimized execution layer, RE:C++ , is also part of the update.
Ishida's ultimate vision is an engine where AI can understand and generate code, conduct automated test plays to identify bugs, and directly support development. This moves towards a future where development teams can "create games together with AI." Capcom has already begun open-sourcing some underlying technology to aid in AI training. This initiative follows previous statements from Capcom in June, where the company informed investors that its use of generative AI was intended to "improve the efficiency of routine operations so that our developers can devote more time to essential value creation," while emphasizing that "the creativity at the core of such experiences should be handled by humans."