Hunter (Resident Evil): Umbrella's Reptilian Killing Machine

A Hunter is a bio-weapon created by the Umbrella Corporation: a green, scaly, reptile-like humanoid with long claws, made by splicing reptile genes into a human embryo with the help of the t-Virus. Hunters first appear in the Spencer Mansion in the original Resident Evil, where they became known for taking off a player's head in a single swipe. (Resident Evil (1996); Resident Evil (2002))

What is a Hunter and how was it made?#

A Hunter is a manufactured creature, not a mutated person. Umbrella started with a fertilised human egg, added reptile DNA and used the t-Virus to bind the two together, then grew the result in a tank. The adult is about the size of a large man, covered in green scales, with a hunched build and huge claws on its hands and feet. (Resident Evil (2002); Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles)

The point of the design was control. Zombies are no use as weapons because they attack anything and follow no orders. Hunters were bred to be clever enough to take a simple command, such as "kill everyone you find", and carry it out. That made them one of the first creatures Umbrella could treat as a product rather than an accident. (Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles)

Hunters in the Spencer Mansion#

Hunters are part of what makes the second half of the original Resident Evil so dangerous. After Chris Redfield or Jill Valentine leave the mansion and return, Hunters have been let loose inside, and they are much faster and more aggressive than the zombies the player has got used to. (Resident Evil (1996); Resident Evil (2002))

Their signature move is a leaping slash that can kill outright. When the player is already hurt, a Hunter can decapitate them in one blow, which made them the first enemy in the series that could end a run in an instant. The 2002 remake kept the attack and the Hunters' place in the story. (Resident Evil (1996); Resident Evil (2002))

Hunter β and Hunter γ in Resident Evil 3#

After the Spencer Mansion, Umbrella decided the Hunter worked and tried to improve it. Two upgraded models are sent into Raccoon City during the outbreak in Resident Evil 3, where Umbrella was field-testing its weapons. (Resident Evil 3: Nemesis)

• Hunter β: a faster, more agile version with a smaller, uglier head. It can still decapitate a weakened target. In the 1999 game it appears in the later areas of the city, and in the 2020 remake it hunts the player in the hospital and the lab beneath it. (Resident Evil 3: Nemesis; Resident Evil 3 (2020))
• Hunter γ: an amphibian model developed by Umbrella's European branch and nicknamed the Frogger. Instead of slashing, it opens its huge mouth and swallows a person whole. In the remake it lurks in the sewers. (Resident Evil 3: Nemesis; Resident Evil 3 (2020))

Other Hunter models#

Umbrella kept making variants until it collapsed. Hunters are among the enemies in Resident Evil Code: Veronica. (Resident Evil Code: Veronica)

The design outlived Umbrella. In Resident Evil: Revelations, set in 2005, black-market Hunters derived from the original model turn up, and a version infected with the T-Abyss virus, the Farfarello, can turn almost invisible. A pack of Farfarello is handed to the terrorist group Il Veltro, which loses control of them. (Resident Evil: Revelations)

Hunters and Umbrella's other weapons#

Hunters sit in the middle of Umbrella's family of creatures. They are smarter than zombies and Cerberus dogs, but nowhere near as capable as the human-based Tyrant, which Umbrella spent years trying to perfect because Hunters could only ever follow simple orders. For the full list of the series' creatures, see every Resident Evil monster. (Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles)