Do You Need to Play the First Two A Plague Tale Games Before Resonance?

Resonance A Plague Tale Legacy launches August 27, 2026, as the third entry in the A Plague Tale series—but it’s not a direct sequel. The new game serves as a prequel set 15 years before A Plague Tale Requiem, shifting focus away from the original protagonists Hugo and Amicia to follow Sophia, a smuggler character introduced in Requiem. The question for players is whether jumping in fresh or replaying the earlier games matters.

What the Source Says

While playing A Plague Tale Innocence and Requiem will help you appreciate the story more fully, Resonance appears designed to welcome both series veterans and newcomers. The dev team deliberately reinvented the core mechanics, moving away from the stealth-focused gameplay of the first two games toward a more action-oriented approach. David Dedeine, Co-founder of Asobo Studios, explained that after Requiem’s definitive ending for Hugo’s story, “an actual ‘A Plague Tale 3’ was off the table.” The team chose instead to explore new themes and characters, ultimately centering the game around Sophia because her personality—”much more active, and somehow more aggressive”—suited the combat-heavier direction they wanted to take.

Sophia is a pirate smuggler who captains a ship called The Rascasse and goes by the alias “Scorpion of the Seas.” In Resonance, she’s drawn to Minotaur’s Island by visions of the past and a legendary figure named Theseus. During Requiem, she helped Amicia and Hugo reach their goal and remained part of the story through its conclusion.

Why This Matters

For longtime fans of the series, Resonance represents a meaningful departure. The original A Plague Tale games built their reputation on cinematic storytelling, historical atmosphere, and carefully paced stealth gameplay. A complete narrative shift—both in protagonist and gameplay style—signals that Asobo is willing to take creative risks rather than churn out formulaic sequels. The choice to build around Sophia, a character who started as a supporting role, reflects a confidence in her appeal and suggests the studio found depth in a character many players may remember fondly.

For players new to the franchise, this creates an accessible entry point. You won’t be walking in completely blind to the world or lore, but you also won’t feel locked out if you haven’t spent 80+ hours with Hugo and Amicia. That’s a smart design decision in an industry where franchise fatigue is real and not every player wants to commit to playing back catalog games before jumping into the latest release.

What’s Next

As Resonance launches, watch how players respond to the gameplay shift and whether the action-focused design successfully courts newcomers without alienating the stealth-puzzle crowd. The critical question will be whether Sophia’s story and the new mechanics feel like a natural evolution or a departure that divides the fanbase.