Even before 2019, Capcom took a big risk, wanting to prepare a full-fledged remake of the game from the previous century. However, after the premiere of the restored Resident Evil 2 (2019), all those who did not believe in the success of remakes had to rub their eyes with the impression of how well the “rejuvenated Leon” visiting Raccoon City fared.
We didn’t have to wait long for the next Capcom refreshes. A year later, in 2020, Resident Evil 3 (2020) saw the light of day , which showed the story of Jill Valentine. This story also took place in said Raccoon City and perfectly complemented the story from the perspective of Leon Kennedy or Claire Redfield. If someone has not had contact with the original and is a fan of survival horror, these items were a must-have.
After the commercial success of both remakes, it was clear that Capcom would move on with more work. Next in line was Resident Evil 4, which, however, was originally supposed to be made by the side team M-Two, which previously helped with RE3 Remake. The team reportedly failed to cope with the task set by the authorities of the Japanese company, so the work on the project was taken over by the same Capcom team that worked on RE2 Remake.
Thus, the debut of RE4 Remake was delayed (if not for the problems, we would probably play in 2022). Problems with development may have planted the seeds of doubt in the fans of the series whether Leon’s restored adventure in the village, castle and island will meet expectations and come close to the quality of the best-selling RE2 Remake, but now after the reviews and beating the game, even maxing it out, I can say: Capcom you did it damn well!
Famous faces back in action
If I said I was a huge Resident Evil fan, I’d be lying. The Last of Us, Assassin’s Creed, or The Witcher are much more appealing to me than the Capcom name. But, the promotional material for each of the “four” energized me to the point that I couldn’t wait to reprise my role as a young police officer, and now even as an agent working on the president’s behalf. In my case, there was a good deal of anticipation before the premiere, and the Asian devs did not let me down. I can honestly state that the already fantastic Resident Evil 2 Remake was beaten by the Resident Evil 4 Remake.
What specialized Resident Evil 4 Remake? For me, it is unquestionably an atmosphere that cannot be replaced as well as a plot that frequently and unexpectedly takes unexpected turns. Every time we prepare to finally recover our breath and speak to Ashley or other coworkers calmly, an old or new adversary shows up and keeps us from doing so. Mini-bosses, which are incredibly difficult to defeat in this survival horror, make life challenging at every turn as well.
Although the refresh has kept the bulk of the tale from the original, playing RE4 Remake makes it seem more like a brand-new narrative. and the same as the one in the picture. Then, the same as the one in the picture. Then, the same as the one in the picture. Then, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and. This enables existing fans to re-experience the novel with the same level of curiosity they had when they first read the original while also introducing new fans to the intriguing setting.
Perfection in a new frame
Locations go hand in hand with an interesting plot. While in Resident Evil 2 Remake we often returned to well-known locations, e.g. when we obtained a key that opened new passages, in Resident Evil 4 Remake backtracing is practically non-existent – during the game we end up in a dirty village, a castle full of puzzles or a mysterious island, and each area has something unique about it. While searching the designated zones, we can return to previously discovered places to open chests that were inaccessible in the past or complete side challenges for which we receive a new currency in the store, but not only is it optional, but in addition, it is in vain to look for an effect like: “hey, I’ve been in this room five times already.”
More half open locations equals more clashes . As I mentioned above, in this game we will almost never take a breath. It is a corridor, so when you walk from square A to building B, you can be sure that you will be attacked by opponents almost all the time – even when you go back to pick up previously left chests. Fans of the challenge will be satisfied that completing Leon and Ashley’s new adventure is more challenging (and also varied, because it’s hard to count how many guns we can get during the game) than the story in Raccoon City.
What I liked about Resident Evil 4 Remake is certainly the ability to strategically approach many fights. Some arenas are even designed so as not to kill all the enemies, but to get the story item and then slip away from the opponents, because we could fight them endlessly. If we don’t figure it out, we’ll lose a lot of supplies and make it harder for us to play in the next chapters – there was no such option in RE2 Remake, which, despite the fact that it allowed you to avoid enemies, was not a good solution, because they appeared later, during already mentioned backtracing. It is also worth mentioning the merchant, who offers much more possibilities than Resident Evil Village – in this game we collect hundreds of thousands, if not millions of coins, and each of them is worth its weight in gold.
A hit that will not evaporate from memory for many years!
I could go on to list more positives, including gameplay changes, numerous exciting sequences, sound, opponent designs (not just the more powerful ones, but even common opponents who look very scary), claustrophobic visuals, the interesting use of the DualSense controller, or yet another mention of the impossible-to-fake climate in this text, but I’d rather leave these flavors up to you to discover. The last time I felt this level of excitement was after finishing God of War: Ragnarok, which only goes to show how well the writers of the new adventure have done Leon and Ashley. At the same time, I can’t wait for more people to learn about the plot of Capcom’s refresh so they can talk about it with the community.
Here you may read our in-depth assessment of the Resident Evil 4 Remake. As Wojtek stated, Capcom enhanced perfection, and after playing the game, I wholeheartedly concur with this claim. Similar to Hogwarts Legacy, it is a lock for GOTY 2023 (with the exception that RE4 Remake deals with a mature story rather than a kid-friendly plot), and I’d be surprised if Capcom’s creation isn’t recognized at this year’s The Game Awards – even though the competition is also planning a ton of hits for this year.
Source: PewGames