Resident Evil 2 Mr X - How to Avoid the Tyrant, Can You Kill Mr X in Resident Evil 2?

When you're partway through the police station in Resident Evil 2, the Tyrant is going to appear, and he'll make your life hell. In this Resident Evil 2 Mr. X guide, we'll be walking you through everything there is to possibly know about the incredibly intimidating figure, including whether or not you can kill him for good.

Resident Evil 2 Mr X Tyrant Guide

For those that don’t know, check out the picture below to familiarise yourself with Mr. X. There’s not too much in the way of plot that we can reveal about this monster without spoiling the game, so all we will say is that he’s been sent by unknown forces to kill Leon Kennedy and Claire Redfield.

In Resident Evil 2, you won’t encounter Mr. X until you manage to put out the fire in the, uh, ‘fire escape’ area on the map. To reach this area, you firstly need to collect all three medallions in the Raccoon City police department, defeat William Birkin in the underground section of the map, and then take the staircase all the way to the third floor of the police station.

Now head out onto the ‘balcony’ area marked on the map, and you’ll have the option to use the ladder to climb down to the ‘rooftop’ area. Be warned, once you go down here, there’s no turning back, and as we’ll describe further down, Mr. X is going to make your life hell for a long time.

Once you’re on the rooftop, descend down the stairs on your left, and two zombies will burst out of the door ahead of you. Take them out, and use the yellow lever to the left of the door, flicking it to point in the opposite direction. Now retreat to the rooftop area, and use the lever near where the ladder broke, to put out the fire in the wreckage of the helicopter. You can now use the doorway to the left of the wreckage to find a way out of here, and also Mr. X, who wants to rip you in half.

Can You Kill Mr X in Resident Evil 2?

There’s a short answer to this question: no. In the immediate period after you first encounter Mr X. there’s literally no way to kill the monster, and he’s going to follow you around the Raccoon City police station, and the underground parking garage, for quite a while.

Capcom is channeling a bit of Resident Evil 7’s Jack Baker with Mr. X, which I actually love. Make it far away from Mr. X, and he’ll temporarily vanish, breaking off pursuit. He can now reappear at literally any time, in any area of the map, which means Leon and Claire have got to be hot on their toes. There was even one time when he burst through a wall, and another when he reappeared right when I was trying to tiptoe my way around a Licker..

So no, you can’t kill Mr. X in Resident Evil 2. But hopefully this guide has given you an idea of how to avoid the monster, and how to anticipate his sudden arrival.

If it's more content for Capcom's remake that you're after, head over to our essential Resident Evil 2 tips page. Alternatively, you can hit up our page on how to unlock Fourth Survivor in Resident Evil 2 with the enigmatic Hunk, our article on how to unlock the magnum in Resident Evil 2, or our Resident Evil 2 Leon's desk locks guide. If you want more Resident Evil goodness, check out our definitive ranking of the best Resident Evil Games.