The Resident Evil Requiem Datamine suggests that Nemesis was not originally Gideon's final form

Resident Evil Requiem has been out for a while, and since it's not exactly the longest game in the world, most people who picked it up have already finished it. That means they'll see a big twist involving central protagonist Victor Gideon, a snakeskinned, bespectacled maniac who kidnaps Grace and is Leon's main target.

Of course, what with Requiem being a Resident Evil game, Gideon's transformation into some kind of horrible being was always inevitable, but this time there was a difference. If you don't want to see the difference, then it's your time to dive in, because endgame spoilers are coming your way. You have been warned.

Gideon's final form was seemingly something else entirely

Okay, so those of you still here will probably be aware that during your final confrontation with Gideon, he essentially transforms into the final form of Nemesis from Resident Evil 3 Remake, bringing the two villains together. It was a bit of a let down for a lot of people and didn't seem to fit the overall aesthetic of Gideon.

However, this could be because Gideon's original form was seemingly something else entirely. Earlier today, a Twitter user named Umesooooo delved into the Resident Evil Requiem files to find two neotextured Gideon models that hinted at a much more gradual and dramatic transformation.

Instead of the return of Resident Evil 3 Remake's nemesis, Gideon would start transforming with a single wing from his right shoulder, giving off a bit of Sephiroth from Final Fantasy 7 vibes. Another model for his final mutation also appears to have been created, but this one consists of several chimeric heads and snake parts that fit Gideon's aesthetic much better.

For some reason, Capcom seems to have made a pretty radical move during development to bring Gideon and Nemesis together, and we don't really know why. It could have been a development issue and creating an entirely new deformed beast would have been too difficult, or there was a story change somewhere. Be that as it may, it is interesting to see that the story of Requiem could have been very different.