Resident Evil 4 Remake Review – Classic Comes Back to Life

Keeping what works while reimagining what doesn’t is as good as a remake.

It’s no exaggeration to say that Resident Evil 4 was one of the most influential games of the early 2000s. Its popularity helped standardize the over-the-shoulder third-person camera and precision aiming features that became ubiquitous in nearly every action game in the ensuing decades. It also marked a turning point for one of gaming’s most beloved horror franchises, as it leaned toward fast-paced action and interactive cinema to create a truly unique and exciting experience, as it literally took players from a dizzying The scene jumps to another. Certain moments from that game are forever etched in my memory. A dead body hangs silently on a pitchfork in an abandoned shed. A dog who knows how to pay off his debts. “No time to rest.” The bitch in the red dress. bingo?

All that said, there’s a lot going on in this remake of what’s widely considered one of the best games of all time. After two or three years, we more or less know what to expect from Capcom’s remakes – rebuilt from the ground up to a high standard, they’re generally good at capturing the spirit and style of the original game, keeping what worked and making what didn’t work Modernize while utilizing the RE engine to make piles of grunge pop sparkle and chiaroscuro. Resident Evil 4 Remake follows this formula and builds on it, demonstrating confidence in both the original game’s strengths and its own innovations to deliver something fresh that will feel deeply familiar to old fans and exciting to new players.

In Resident Evil 2 Remake, most areas of the RPD, as well as other memorable locations, have been redesigned and restructured to tie in with the updated gameplay and function in a more realistic world. In Resident Evil 4 Remake, much of the game – especially the first few chapters – is basically identical to the original, so much so that from one scene to the next, I know exactly we’re playing 2005 which part of the game. Remakes and remasters are fun things to do; done well, new and improved versions often look exactly like the originals – in your mind’s eye. But since finishing the RE4 Remake back in its 2005 iteration, I can definitively say that it has aged far more than you might realize, and that the Remake has done an excellent job of capturing all the important details, moments, and mechanics while bringing Everything else is up to modern gamer standards.

Much of the action in RE4 Remake falls into the “if it ain’t broken don’t fix it” category, but players will still expect some modernization from the genre – the tone of the same genre 18 years ago since the original set . The ability to crouch and cloak past certain enemies is a small, welcome tipping into survival-horror territory, for example, and the idea behind it is that the developers want to give players as much freedom and variety as possible, allowing them to approach The fighting style of the game is possible. So in addition to stealth kills, Leon now adds silent bolt weapons and knife-based ground terminators to his repertoire, allowing you to brush past some encounters without even taking a peek . Plenty of players will forego this in favor of the loud and extreme face-to-face approach that Leon S Kennedy excels at, and they should, but more player choice here isn’t a bad thing.

While the original was widely praised for the popularity of the third-person perspective, it was also somewhat responsible for the proliferation of Quick Time Events in many subsequent games that attempted to emulate its success. The “action button system” was implemented to ensure players wouldn’t get bored during cutscenes, and while lauded at launch, was largely a product of the era. The development team at RE4 Remake realized this, which led to one of the biggest mechanical changes in the game – the knife block system. This was meant to give the player more direct control over the infamous knife fight with Jack Krauser, rather than a series of button prompts, after which the development team apparently saw no reason not to implement parry mechanics throughout the game. So, now, if your timing is right, most enemy attacks can be parried with defense or even with a knife. It’s an addition that totally makes sense in the context of the game, and adds a delightful risk/reward system to every ax and chopper Leon throws – do you play it safe and simply dodge, or swipe and Would you feel invincible if you timed it just right?

Then your knife becomes more important – especially when low on ammo – but it’s not 100% failsafe. Your knife now has a durability gauge, and if the merchant doesn’t fix it, it will break with repeated use. Different uses of the knife will more or less drain its durability – stealth killing unsuspecting enemies costs next to nothing, while pressing R2 at the right time to use it to avoid a deadly grab attack will Drains almost half of its usage. You can press X repeatedly to struggle freely and keep your knives sharp, but that will drain some of your health in the tradeoff.

In addition to these last-minute saves, there are other types of QTEs where you need to press circles or similar keys in time to avoid specific enemy or boss attacks, but these are significantly reduced in number compared to the 2005 version. Crucially, they fit the gameplay better than the “press x to undead” moments in the original game. There’s a new mechanic that allows enemies hovering behind you to wrestle with Leon and leave other enemies under attack; breaking free requires you to smash X. Thankfully, this doesn’t feel like a QTE at all–instead, it adds extreme tension and downright panic, as Leon is outnumbered and surrounded using all his tools, the XL briefcase, to survive.

Speaking of that iconic and physics-breaking kit (seriously, where did he keep it on him?) the briefcase is back with all of its original quirks, plus some new improvements. You can now customize the shell on the typewriter to enhance your own gameplay. Changing its appearance can increase the drop chance of certain types of ammo, as well as other enhancements, while you can also attach up to three cute amulets that offer other bonuses – the chicken amulet will ensure that any egg Leon consumes will restore him 100% health, for example (just trying to suppress the mental image of him smashing a raw egg into his mouth during a fight, much to Ashley’s horror). How the charm is earned is a fun little surprise that I don’t want to spoil here, but let us take this opportunity to reassure you that despite its gorgeous and eerie new visuals and ominous atmosphere, Resident Evil 4 , but it still retains its playful fun, which is where it counts.

In addition to being able to organize Leon’s gear in the briefcase, you can also craft ammo and health items in a separate crafting screen. Alternatively, you can quickly craft items by placing them one on top of the other – just like in the original game – directly in boxes. Also updated is the map screen, which, in a similar fashion to Resident Evil 2 and 3 Remakes, records useful information as you play, such as the location of items you’ve seen but haven’t picked up, and mysteries you haven’t encountered yet. Solve the problem and lock and unlock the door. I personally like the fact that it immediately reminds you of missed items and also provides the location of some extracurricular task solutions, but some people may prefer to ignore these prompts in favor of finding things on their own.

Of course, no Resident Evil 4 remake would be complete without the merchant, and while some fans of the original game weren’t sure about his new voice lines, they’ll appreciate his new service anyway. Throughout the game, you’ll be able to buy, sell, and tweak weapons and gear at any of the merchant’s many pop-up shops, but he’s now branched out into trading. In the original game, spinels were small jewels that you could find and sell for quick cash, but in the remake they become an entirely separate currency, offered by merchants in exchange for Do little things for him during the adventure. These requests usually tie in nicely with your current activity – so no lengthy backtracking is required – and feature delightful combinations of quests for you to complete in exchange for small amounts of spinels.

The most basic of these include tracking down golden eggs or shooting down some blue medallions in and around dilapidated farmhouses, but there are also some unique little adventures. These jewels are then rewarded and traded with merchants for special items, most of which you won’t find anywhere else. And if you find yourself short on cash to buy additional guns or upgrade your weapon, there are plenty of treasures to be found, socket some of the other gems in, and resell. You’ll find yourself carrying Tiffany’s jingling airport content in your pocket through much of RE4 Remake, as the game helps break down gem value multipliers that grant you certain colors and sizes More cash for changes, which means you’ll want to keep extra gems on hand for you to get the most out of each trinket.

There are several new gameplay parts and story additions in RE4 Remake that we’d love to discuss in more detail but can’t for fear of spoilers and embargo restrictions, but we’ll say that there’s obviously been a lot of care and attention Down to the details of every aspect of Resident Evil 4 Remake’s design. Some boss fights are functionally and stylistically identical to the source material, while others have been completely remade and reimagined. Some locations have been moved from their original locations, while others — especially later in the game — have been streamlined to better fit the flow and pacing of the story. There are other structural shifts in the narrative—some huge, some barely noticeable—but tone-wise, everything fits together into a pleasingly cohesive whole.

The problem with remakes is that if you do, you’re damned, and if you don’t, you’re damned – too little changes, and players ask what’s the point of it all. Change too much, and you run the risk of upsetting long-time fans while sniffing at what made the original game so great in the first place. Remaking one of the most influential games of the past 20 years is no easy feat, but Capcom has pulled it off. Leon is similarly dry, Ada is a smoky show, Ashley is a lot less annoying than the original (even if her fashion feels badly affected), baddies have time to shine before bursting out with tons of viscera and excess limbs. Oh, and a regenerator? Still very scary. There are a few sequences that fall flat, especially late in the game, but overall, this is as good as the remake. Even the bingo reference is slightly lost in the new generation.

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