I could see my rating going up or down given more time to reflect on this, but my gut reaction is that I had a really great time with this somewhat messy game. It's absolutely trying to be a jack of all trades, and as a result feels noncommittal but at the same time also provides a lot of variety. The castle is taking elements from the sort of "pursuer" gameplay that something like RE2 Remake does, the Beneviento house is cribbing from the modern crop of defenseless "run and hide" horror games, etc.
Thankfully I really enjoyed each one of these individual pieces, even if they don't quite come together cohesively. The factory is definitely the weakest area and feels long in the tooth, but the other segments are appropriately paced.
At the end of the day this still has the core tenants of RE that make the games so enjoyable, the main elements of scavenging for materials, light puzzle solving, and combat are still very well designed. (The puzzles less so, I'd say that they help break up the pacing nicely but the actual puzzles themselves are pretty weak). I know the combat here has detractors, and I think the main problem is that the starting guns before upgrades are tuned far too weak/have no stopping power. Once you get some upgrades in the problem is alleviated somewhat and combat encounters become a lot more fun, though it's certainly not quite RE4 in that department.
Another way this is not RE4 is in it's inventory design. This was one thing I genuinely thought was disappointing. I didn't fill up my inventory once in my entire playthrough. They copied this system without understanding why it was engaging in the first place, the fact that all of your pipe bombs/mines stack means you never have to worry about it. It feels sloppy and I think is a telling example of how this game's mechanics don't congeal as well as, again, something like RE2R.
Final note: I thought this game's story was... really good? It took me by surprise how well thought out everything was. It is relatively simple, but his is the first RE game that really feels like a direct sequel to it's predecessor, and they capitalize on that really well. Looking forward to RE9 as this definitely feels like the middle chapter in a trilogy.
Thankfully I really enjoyed each one of these individual pieces, even if they don't quite come together cohesively. The factory is definitely the weakest area and feels long in the tooth, but the other segments are appropriately paced.
At the end of the day this still has the core tenants of RE that make the games so enjoyable, the main elements of scavenging for materials, light puzzle solving, and combat are still very well designed. (The puzzles less so, I'd say that they help break up the pacing nicely but the actual puzzles themselves are pretty weak). I know the combat here has detractors, and I think the main problem is that the starting guns before upgrades are tuned far too weak/have no stopping power. Once you get some upgrades in the problem is alleviated somewhat and combat encounters become a lot more fun, though it's certainly not quite RE4 in that department.
Another way this is not RE4 is in it's inventory design. This was one thing I genuinely thought was disappointing. I didn't fill up my inventory once in my entire playthrough. They copied this system without understanding why it was engaging in the first place, the fact that all of your pipe bombs/mines stack means you never have to worry about it. It feels sloppy and I think is a telling example of how this game's mechanics don't congeal as well as, again, something like RE2R.
Final note: I thought this game's story was... really good? It took me by surprise how well thought out everything was. It is relatively simple, but his is the first RE game that really feels like a direct sequel to it's predecessor, and they capitalize on that really well. Looking forward to RE9 as this definitely feels like the middle chapter in a trilogy.