Itchy, Tasty: An Unofficial History of Resident Evil
By Alex Aniel
Publication date: April 2021
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About the book
'A valuable insight into the chaos, calamity and resulting magic of Resident Evil in its formative first years' Eurogamer
This is the definitive behind-the-scenes account of Capcom’s horror video game series Resident Evil – one of the most popular, innovative and widely influential franchises of all time.
Industry expert Alex Aniel spent two years interviewing key former members of Capcom staff, allowing him to tell the inside story of how Resident Evil was envisioned as early as the late 1980s, how its unexpected and unprecedented success saved the company from financial trouble, how the series struggled at the turn of the century and, eventually, how a new generation of creators was born after the release of Resident Evil 4.
Itchy, Tasty narrates the development of each Resident Evil game released between 1996 and 2006, interspersed with fascinating commentary from the game creators themselves, offering unique insight into how the series became the world-conquering franchise it is today.
So, if you already have conducted all these interviews and compiled this book, is this funding essentially a way to secure pre-orders? How will this funding add to the book's production? And why would you stop the "history" at 2006? That leaves out 14 years of Resident Evil's 24 year history. If this book leaves out 60% of the history of Resident Evil, then it's more of an "intro to history of RE" than a full picture. Essentially, what differentiates this book from Resident Evil Archives 1-2 which act as both oral and visual accounts of the series history?
Hello! The campaign takes care of production-related aspects like manufacturing, editing and copywriting. The book is part of a project that will explore post-2006 in a Vol. 2 book. The book is already around 70,000 words, so it's massive in its own right. Thematically, 2006 marks a logical endpoint of the first era of RE, and the springboard into a new one. The RE Archives books published by Capcom focus on story elements told within the games themselves. This book is more of a developer/creator-oriented story. If you haven't already, give the Polygon excerpt a read: https://www.polygon.com/2019/1/21/18187446/resident-evil-2-history-capcom-hideki-kamiya Thanks!
Hi there, are there two versions of the hardback book? Some descriptions mention 'special edition hardback', while others just say 'hardback'. Kind regards, Kristine
Kristine - there is only one edition, my clumsy copywriting is to blame for this ambiguity. Mathew
What is the difference between the Hardcover book and the Special Edition? Just the signature?
Yes - sorry should have been clearer Mathew
Perhaps I overlooked it but I don't see anywhere when you expect this book to ship. Any idea or rough estimate of when it will be available?
Hi Preston, We can't set a publication date until the book has reached 100%, and we've had the manuscript handed in, so we can't say for sure when the book will be available yet. Sorry not to have a clearer answer at the moment. Unbound Support
Hello! I was wondering if you were still able to upgrade to the RE2 director signed copy by chance? I saw it for a few days and now I can't seem to find it
Hi Meylani, Yes you can indeed still upgrade. There's details on how to do this over in our help centre here: http://help.unbound.com/en/articles/3159595-how-do-i-upgrade-my-level-of-support. I hope this helps. Unbound Support
Can we expect a shipment email for physical copies? I'm in the US and haven't seen anything yet despite others getting theirs. I want to make sure it's on the way.
Hi CJ, You should receive an email upon dispatch. Please email support@unbound.com if your book has not yet been dispatched as they can look into this for you.