The game is the seventh installment in the Resident Evil survival horror series, and was released on March 5, 2009 in Japan and on March 13, 2009[7][8] in North America and Europe for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.[9] Polish games publisher CD Projekt stated in an interview that they expect a Windows version of the game in the second half of 2009.[10]

Resident Evil 5 revolves around Chris Redfield and Sheva Alomar as they investigate a terrorist threat in a desert region of Africa.

Within its first three weeks of release, the game sold over 2 million units worldwide and became the highest selling game of the franchise in the United Kingdom. As of June 1, 2009, Resident Evil 5 has sold 5 million copies worldwide since launch,[11] becoming the best selling game in the series.[12]