There are two completely different objects for Resident Evil 4 remake: people who have played the original game, maybe many times or even dozens of times in the last 18 years, and who have never played the game but want to know what all that fuss is about. Let’s start with the first: obviously, if you’re a fan of Resident Evil 4, then you have to play the remake. It’s not just one of the best action games of recent times; it’s the best Resident Evil since, probably the original Resident Evil 4.
Right from the jump, the redo makes you overwhelmed by the danger. The faithfully recreated “village” part throws dozens of enemies at you, requiring you to handle a variety of combat situations or die quickly. Like 2005, this is a head-to-head opening, the game tells you this is how it’s going to go from here on out; get used to it. Fleeing for my life, terrified of the saw-wielding madman chasing me through a crowd of nasty people, while desperately shooting at the enemy’s kneecap, catching the incoming bullets and running getting out of the house as my scarce ammo gets closer and closer to zero stress in a way that hasn’t been possible at this level since I was a kid. The fact that the game maintains this tight action until the credits roll is a feat of game pacing. For the first time since 2005, Resident Evil 4 is scary again and I couldn’t be happier. Unbelievable.
The gameplay has been expanded – specifically, you can now aim your gun while walking, as well as the aforementioned new melee and tanking options – which makes RE4’s already great storyline even better. should be modern and fresh. Despite my occasional nervousness, I had so much fun that I welcomed every major encounter. Especially by the time I unlock more powerful weapons – shouting loudly with my semi-automatic pistol – blowing away loads of enemies is awesome. And don’t get me started with the game’s crude gore system; exploding heads and arms and even shooting enemies outright sometimes bleeding like confetti from a pinata rarely looks this horrible. I’m a freak, and the Resident Evil 4 remake satisfied my sick love of virtual gore.
From a visual and classy design perspective, the Resident Evil 4 remake knows exactly when to be nostalgic and when to be fresh. As a lifelong fan of the original, seeing some of my favorite levels and battle arenas recreated 1:1 on PlayStation 5 is both novel and exciting. However, the room next door can be a complete remix or a re-creation of another area, keeping my attention always, as if I know the subject of the painting, but all the details are the same. new color. However, I welcome any new additions as well as old standbys.
Perhaps the hardest part is rewriting the game’s story, even though the narrative rhythm is the same. You play as Leon Kennedy, now an agent of the president of the United States sent to a remote village in Spain to search for the president’s missing daughter, Ashley Graham. In that village, all hell broke loose. You’ll soon be up against a lot of angry locals infected with the parasite, Las Plagas, making it easy for the game’s main antagonist to control them without completely losing their mental abilities. Leon’s nightmare takes him through the remote village, into the heart of a baroque castle hoarded by a vampire of Napoleon, and then finally to the shores of a military stronghold. . Meanwhile, monsters, gore, and death follow.
It’s campy, silly, and over-the-top. And much of that charm is retained here, but with the addition of sharper handwriting and better characterization. In particular, Ashley has been rewritten as a real character, with emotions, intelligence and charisma. The fact that the other characters don’t sexually harass her like in the original is also a big improvement. Overall, the cast has been overhauled, making the main characters more likable, the enemies more terrifying, and the plot twists more coherent – and never lost. what makes the original story interesting in the first place.
I could write a book of metaphors about all the ways I love the Resident Evil 4 remake, but perhaps the simplest way would be to tell you to look down at the score at the bottom of this page and summarize it as follows: if you loved Resident Evil 4 in the past, you will love this remake. Stage. Shoot straight. It’s a love letter to a game that fans know top, bottom, left, right and center, an honest recreation at all the right times, but with expert refinement and precision. modern sensibilities. It’s also a radical reinvention when needed, a fantastically fun game that is fully confident in its ability to remake one of the best games of all time.
What it lacks, however, is context. And that’s the important thing.
Fast after any mention of the original Resident Evil 4 is its camera discussion. Instead of the fixed camera angle of its predecessors, the original game placed the camera behind Leon. Most importantly, he’s slightly off-center to the left. When he takes aim, you look straight over his right shoulder. Of course, this perspective was the template for almost every third-person video game that came out after that. Resident Evil 4 changed the shape of the gaming industry.
How amazing this remake is – and let me repeat, it’s unbelievable – I don’t think it will show you why Resident Evil 4 is so groundbreaking. It just can’t. There is no universe in which this game is as important as the one it remakes. It couldn’t come out with the same time, space, and setting as the first Resident Evil 4. Ironically, it’s only as good as it is now because it exists in a post-Resident Evil 4 world. And so, while I think it can show you why Resident Evil 4 is fun, goofy, and endearing, if you’re someone who’s interested in why this old game has such a lasting legacy. So – especially for a game that is powerful enough to warrant such an insanely expensive price tag – your best bet is to still play the original, try to set your mind on the pre-Resident Evil 4 world to understand how that game can change everything. Or better yet, you can watch a few minutes of Let’s Play or read one of the thousands of articles about it. That will make playing the remake a much richer experience; you can see decades of lessons learned in the game industry on how to make third-person action games thrilling, fun, and mechanically effective re-applied to the material source. It’s a refinement, not a reinvention. And that space is the most interesting place this remake can occupy.
The Resident Evil 4 remake is about everything that I could want. But importantly it does not overwrite the predecessor version. If anything, this new version reinforces why the original Resident Evil 4 is a game everyone should still seek out, play, or at least watch and learn about. But as a love letter to one of the greatest games of all time, as a new historical artifact that reinforces why the source material was so landmark in the first place, this new ride Break through the Spanish countryside as best as you can and make a great game that’s much better.
