Will Smith Voice

Ahhhhh that's hot!

I love Resident Evil, full stop. Everytime I play one of these games, even the bad ones, I'm fully bought in. The camp, the lore, the horror, the combat, the mapping, something about each title is so peak that its effectively a work of art. Even RE6 mastered something no other title in the survival horror sphere has: cringe. But I'm not talking about the other titles, this review is for the big dog, the head honcho, the CEO, the King of the Capcom 5 (even though I prefer Killer7;) Resident Evil 4 (Remake.)

I'd spent the last couple years starting and resolving the RE franchise as available on modern storefronts, beginning with RE1 through RE:Village. When I heard the Spanish Guitar in the first teaser for the remake, I marked out and started doing a silly jig. I knew based off the last few titles (and especially RE2R/RE3R) that Capcom was going to pull off some insane wizardry that would take one of gaming's most beloved titles and transform it into something even better. Lo and behold, thats exactly what they'd do.

The story beats from what I remember are done pretty much the same, I love traversing through the initial village crawl towards the Castle, stopping before fights and thinking "Oh I know what's about to happen" before I'd crack a slight grin. This is the Resident Evil 4 magic, getting ready for the unique boss encounter you're involved with, readying for the hordes of those affected by Los Plagas in certain areas, the puzzles you'll have to solve. Now these elements were generated in the 2005 release, however it's rewarding to see that Capcom didn't want to fix what was already identified as "good" gameplay in the remake. RE4(R) is a masterclass in pacing, as the RE series has managed to perfect as of late. No chapter or "level" feels like it overstays its welcome, and the player is pushed through rooms with puzzles or enemies into solutions into new rooms almost with a seemingly machine like precision.

Speaking of the rooms and levels, this game is jaw droppingly GORGEOUS. Capcom is on a SPREE with their recent titles, especially those since the RE2R/VII releases. Even from the first moments of the game, I ran around tweaking settings to make sure I had this looking as good as it could in 4K, and boy did it deliver. The sun shone BRIGHT, the flora almost believably real, everything delivered... but again the most impressive work by the engine was how great the characters look. From himbo-king Leon himself to Luis to the new and improved Ashley (more later on her,) I was slamming F12 to take screenshots so I could marvel at how good they looked. I don't know if I'll ever stop doing this, as I'm frequently reminded of my early gaming days looking at characters in UT99, but I love the work Capcom has done to push the medium forward. Players of the original RE4 know that this title throws you into some captivating setpieces, particularly in the castle. The job the RE team did to resuscitate these classic locations into a modern setting is downright heroic. I could go on and on, but the bottom line is that this game's environments and characters are gorgeous.

Next up is the characters, and I'm happy to report that outside of Ada Wong's VA (this talking point is probably beaten to death by now,) that everyone is just as good if not better than in the base game. Leon is absolutely hilarious, that is no shock. I audibly snorted when he's taking on a mid game boss and exclaims "you talk too much" before immediately shooting the boss to kickstart the fight. Between that, his infamous "Bingo" line and the latter "nighty night knights," he's still just as funny as he was and the new visuals make it somehow more endearing to listen to. Games and media at large often misses out at humor to either sound too edgy (High on Life last year) or try to be too safe/relatable (Forspoken,) but Leon and RE4 hit it exactly on the money. He's corny, perfect for the RE camp and it delivers tenfold in RE4R. Ashley was completely improved from the original game, her design making her a more believable adult did wonders when coupled with making her actually act like one. This turned her from one of the more annoying characters I can remember in a longrunning series, to a very likeable heroine and running mate. In the original RE4 I dreaded most of my moments tagging along with Ashley or guarding her, in RE4R I genuinely looked forward to it as her relationship and comraderie with Leon was done very very well. Other characters who benefitted greatly include the Merchant (who was already great to be fair,) Ramon, Ada, and Mendez.

Now I've gone on a long spiel about why I enjoyed the many qualities this game has to offer, but I did have a few detractions that are mostly holdovers from the original so I'll keep them (fairly) short.

The first is THE ENEMY PLACEMENT THERE ARE SO MANY ENEMIES OH MY WHY ARE THERE SO MANY. This is a big jump from the first three (main) titles in the series and even after five/six, but I sorta get why as this was a transition away from survival horror and into action, but man. Encounters in this game can feel really long, and there's even more strafing and running than in the previous titles. Not as a result of strategizing ammo conservancy or backtracking for items/puzzles, but because you have so many foes to down in most of these areas that you'll be working your cardio for reals. If you're pulling a lever or opening a door, enemies will appear behind you. If you're in a brand new area and there's greater than thirty feet between each door, you'll have a plethora of enemies. If you are in a larger circular zone, you'll have two to three waves of enemies. Now, this isn't a particularly long game so it wasn't a world ender, but in a title where ammo has to be thought of somewhat importantly, I felt like I had to spend a lot more than I would have liked to. I'm fairly accurate as well and I was spending my entire ammo pool almost as soon as I'd craft it. Maybe its a skill issue, but uffda.

Sidenote, I've now added the Regenerators to my list of most hated world-enemies in gaming along with the Marauders from Doom: Eternal. They suck, they're not fun and I'm going to cross my arms and scoff instead of listening to dissenting opinions.

Secondly is the control on controllers was real rough even with some adjustment. I try to play most PC games on controller if possible and RE (minus 7/Village) is no exception, but the aiming in 4R was sluggish and awkward the entire way throughout. To begin, its slow and I adjusted it to be faster, but also the auto aim is just... random? I turned it on to assist with the poor speed/placement of the aiming mechanic, but I found it caused more harm than help as it would lock on for a half a second and then drift into the unknown. Pointing at enemies to shoot began to feel just bad after not that much time, running counterintuitively to the skill I thought I had in lining up good shots. This wasn't a game ender, as I was able to complete RE4R in under twelve hours, but it made the longer engagements a little bit of a headache.

This is a damn good game, though it may sometimes be annoying, it's a great entry into a now legendary run of games from Capcom. I could go on and on in praising the way it recreated a classic and write a longer form sequence on recommending it, but let's be honest if you're reading this review its probably because you're planning to play it. I strongly recommend playing RE4R if you're a fan of Resident Evil or not, it's a fantastic title.