This is how you make a remake! Capcom have truly outdone themselves with the Resident Evil 4 Remake as they made one of the best games of all-time an even more exciting, interesting game.
This is such a fantastic game!
I know I’ve now just said this game is amazing twice in three sentences, but I don’t know what else to say about this masterpiece. The original Resident Evil 4 was already one of the best games ever made, along with being the best Resident Evil game (in my opinion), but the new details, features, graphics, overhauls, and focal points Capcom added into this remake have made it an even better game than it was before.
The graphics on this game are absolutely insane as the Spanish countryside, character models, gun designs, the parasite-infected monsters and individuals, Salazar Castle, etc. all look and feel realistic, which was obviously not something the graphics of 2005 could have done.
Sure, none of the Resident Evil games are too realistic as they feature world-dominating parasites, biochemical monsters, and sadistic cults, but the world Capcom redesigned in this remake actually feels believable and livable. Unlike some other entries in the series, I could easily envision regular, ordinary people living their lives in a totally normal way outside of the main story as the characters, voice acting performances, and graphical enhancements were just that good.
And that’s hard to do for even the most detailed open-world, RPG games, let alone a horror/action-adventure title that Resident Evil 4 Remake is.
Remarkably, that’s not the only thing that was updated as the combat system was completely refitted with the new parry system, stealth system, and gunplay mechanics all adding so much more depth, replayability, and creativity to the world.
(Capcom-Resident Evil 4 Remake-Launch Trailer)
Obviously, the gunplay in the original RE4 was fantastic (for its time) as it helped transform the franchise from strictly a horror game to a horror/action-adventure experience, yet even the most ardent RE4 fans will say the weapon mechanics were slightly wonky.
Being unable to reload without first aiming, having to pause the game to switch between weapons, not being able to take different approaches to combat sections (ex: sneaking), and not being able to parry away enemy attacks negatively impacted the original’s brand-new action-adventure gameplay.
That was all vastly improved upon in this remake as now Leon and Ashley can sneak anywhere and everywhere on the map, Leon can parry nearly every single enemy attack with a perfectly timed knife parry (even some boss attacks too), the player character can now reload at any time, and toggling between Leon’s weapons case has been improved into a super easy mini-UI system.
(Capcom-Resident Evil 4 Remake-3rd Trailer)
This game literally has all of the best aspects of the original mixed in with the enhanced, groundbreaking features from the newer titles to create a fun, engaging, and downright scary experience. “Wait, I don’t remember the original game being all that scary?” you’re probably wondering if you’ve yet to play the game. Well, I’ll happily tell you now that Capcom racked up the scare factor to a level 100 in the remake.
Yes, the original game had the classic horror elements of the franchise, but it was more focused on its new action-adventure mechanics. This game, however, heavily features both the gunplay and combat the original title made famous, while also adding in a real horror factor to the Los Iluminados cult and the surrounding Spanish village and countryside.
Not only has the environment been made visually darker, repressive, and imposing, but Capcom also changed the events of the story to better enhance the horror-inducing atmosphere. Leon now arrives in Spain at night (he arrived during the day in the OG game), while much of the countryside is covered in low-hanging, deciduous (fancy word for trees with a lot of leaves) trees that pretty much block out the sun.
Along with the horrifying body disfiguration the parasite gives the villagers and monsters, the game is just 100X creeper than the original.
As for the story, I won’t get too detailed in this review as almost everyone already knows it (the game is nearly 20 years old), but I will say that Capcom greatly enhanced every single main character. Leon is far more reserved and cautious as one would expect from someone stranded in a hostile, parasite-infested rural village, but he also has maintained his charm and charisma everyone enjoyed from the original.
Ashley Graham isn’t just an obnoxious, teenager that has all the personality of a Barbiefied-toad as she has actual been given human emotions, logic, and interactions, while Ada, Luis, Major Krauser, Ramon, and the Merchant’s characters have also been radically improved.
(Capcom-Resident Evil 4 Remake-Launch Trailer)
The Merchant, and his stores to be more precise, has been dramatically improved as he not only still follows around Leon like the legend he is, but he also has a host of new weapons, items, body armor, gear, equipment, etc. to escape Spain with Ashley. He even has unique, rare weapons you can purchase by traversing the new locations and doing the new side quests, which is another positive this game has going for it.
Now, the only thing I have to criticize is the use of crosshairs on most of the weapons, which is more recent addition to the newer entries, as I found the old laser system to just work better. It’s not a massive criticism, but I thought I’d put it out there.
Nonetheless, I’m giving Resident Evil 4 Remake a fantastic 9.8/10, and I highly recommend anyone with even the slightest bit of interest in the Resident Evil franchise to play this game.
It’s that good.
Images Source: Featured Image: (Capcom Co.) (Resident Evil 4 – Launch Trailer – YouTube)
In Text Image 1: (Capcom Co.) (Resident Evil 4 – Launch Trailer – YouTube)
In Text Image 2: (Capcom Co.) (Resident Evil 4 – 3rd Trailer – YouTube)
In Text Image 3: (Capcom Co.) (Resident Evil 4 – Launch Trailer – YouTube)
