Capcom promises the return of Resident Evil 2 and 3's vanished graphics and audio options

True horror struck Raccoon City last week, as legions of Resident Evil 2 and 3 fans—myself included—who spent far too much money on their graphics cards suddenly found the games' ray tracing tech removed. The sudden and silent withdrawal of RT options seemed to be tied to an April 14 patch to both games, and it wasn't clear if the lighting tech would ever make a return.

But it looks like the removal was a mistake, because Capcom has finally taken to Twitter to calm our nerves. "We're aware of an ongoing issue with the raytracing option not appearing in the graphics menu and presets," said the official Resident Evil Twitter account, promising to "have this addressed in a future update".

To all Resident Evil 2 / Resident Evil 3 users on Steam ⚠️We're aware of an ongoing issue with the raytracing option not appearing in the graphics menu and presets. We'll have this addressed in a future update and apologize for any inconvenience! pic.twitter.com/hGkOey65mQApril 18, 2023

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Capcom didn't actually detail the events that led to RE2 and 3's ray tracing options disappearing, nor did it provide a schedule as to when they would return, but it's good to know the removal wasn't intentional. 

I've reached out to Capcom to ask when ray tracing will make its return and what caused its removal, and I'll update this piece if I hear back.

Ray tracing wasn't the only tech that fell victim to a sudden disappearance. It looks like RE2 and 3's 3D audio options mysteriously vanished, too. Given that my own audio setup consists of a crumbling set of aged Sennheisers and not much else, I admit I didn't notice the options were gone. But people with more elaborate speakers than mine can look forward to the return of audio in three whole dimensions. Raccoon City will soon be as ray-traced and echoey as ever.