[Played the Ultimate HD Edition on Steam]

Although it is often credited for being the grandfather of third-person action shooter games, Resident Evil 4 feels unlike any action game I have ever played simply because of how it controls. Maybe people more experienced with the so-called "tank controls" famous in older games may not have the same fresh experience, but as someone who is used to the free camera and fast controls of modern titles the combat (which takes up 90% of the game's running time) was always exciting and pulse-pounding. The player character Leon controls like a bulky piece of machinery (despite his agile frame) who has difficulty turning corners or maneuvering in tight spaces. You can't fire while moving, so you have to stop and manually aim (there is no auto-locking onto enemies, and if there is any aim assist it feels very subtle) before you can fire. To make the game playable, enemies usually move very slowly (although sometimes they'll randomly charge at you just to keep things unpredictable) but they do a lot of damage, and it's easy to get overwhelmed in some of the more claustrophobic environments. An important thing to note is that Resident Evil 4 isn't quite a difficult game (in fact there's an invisible dynamic difficulty feature that will make enemies less aggressive if you're dying too often) but it feels like a difficult game and that's what makes it so enjoyable. As Leon, you feel like you are constantly overcoming impossible challenges and going up against overwhelming forces. Many combat encounters feel designed to make the player think, "There's no way I can get through this.", yet the game always guides you to hard-won but satisfying victories.

The game is best played with a controller, and I used Controller Scheme 3 since most people have reported having a good experience with it and I can confirm that it was a great experience playing with that setup.

The game that changed the Resident Evil franchise as a whole, for better or worse. The characters are cheesy and corny, but in a right way, the atmosphere blends over the top action of hollywood movies with survival horror just right, and the game is just overall a blast to play. Playing with the RE 4 HD Project is fantastic, a pinacle of fan remaster, it's buttery smooth, really detailed, and amplifies the game to great heights. If I have to nitpick, I guess the controls can be quite clunky, but it still doesn't ruin my enjoyement that much of this cult classic of a game.

I own this game on
-PS2
-Steam
-Switch
-PS5

I'm pretty attached to this game. When I was at my grandma's, my cousins were playing this on the GameCube. I thought to myself "Jeez I will never want to own a game like this". Well one day my Mom bought me Jak and Daxter and the walmart clerk accidentally mixed up another customer's purchase and I wound up taking 2 games home. After that the rest was history, I played the game and fell in love with it.

The first RE game I beat. I played RE0, RE3, and RE Code Veronica before this, but never was able to get through them (for multiple reasons I won't get into in this review). I give this game all the credit, as it made me check out all the other numbered Resident Evil titles, and is partly responsible for me loving the survival horror genre (which is funny and a bit ironic, being that this is not nearly as horror focused as its predecessors).

RE4 is one of the most influential games ever made - which is both a good and bad thing... it is the primary reason for the abundance of the third person, over-the-shoulder perspective that is so very prevalent in action/shooting games nowadays. It, along with the original God of War, also made Quick Time Events (QTEs) prevalent throughout the game industry... especially at the time... I was never a huge fan of QTEs, but it is what it is - just make sure you don't put the controller down when you are in a "cutscene" or you may get an unexpected, and potentially hilarious, death.

Even for those that don't like the horror genre, you should still at least give this game a try. It may be somewhat gory at times, especially if you screw up (hello chainsaw man), but it is relatively tame in comparison to other horror games.

The action gameplay is tons of fun and the cheesy dialogue is endearing... Leon has some great one-liners throughout this game, that I was very much anticipating re-experiencing with the Remake that came out earlier this year, in 2023.

This game may also have the most recognizable gaming merchant of all time - he's a bonafide legend. The pacing of RE4, upon where you collect pesetas (RE4's currency) from the environment and enemies, which allow you to buy and upgrade your gear, is nigh perfection. It is always a pleasant surprise when you blast through areas of monsters, and see the merchant around the corner ready to greet you with new wares.

The only thing that can be somewhat frustrating in this game is that it is inherently an escort mission through and through. Not every level do you have to worry about Ashley Graham, the president's daughter you are tasked with rescuing, but she is more than prevalent throughout the game, and it can be more than a little annoying attempting to protect her (and her sometimes sketchy AI) from the onslaught of enemies. Ashley was the one thing that the Remake improved dramatically - both from a voice acting/character performance standpoint, while also making her much less burdensome to protect.

All in all, I will always enjoy the original RE4, and even with the Remake's release, I still think the original is worth taking a look at, if you've never played it.

Despite some critiques of this game not being scary I somewhat disagree. The moaning of the cultists and enemy's sneaking up on you along with the ambience can make the game pretty scary or to me at least. I love this game a lot and in fact put It above the remake because of all the elements that make re4 well re4 that weren't in or as heavy in re4r. The campness is a large part of re4 or rather resident evil itself due to its b movie origin. Leon saying funny stuff or comedy in the narrative make the game so fun and fresh from other edgy no humor aloud action horror games. The artstyle is pretty timeless and even looks great today. Artstyle is important when aiming to create a good looking game due to how well old artstyles look good for vs realism. And finally characters leon is the star of the show here and my favorite version of him. His outfit humor and voice ( credit of Paul Mercier) nail the humorous lame dante like leon. And the side characters are great or evolutions of their old selves. And finally for characters Ashley isn't that bad in fact I really like her (I like escort missions theyre fun) and find her a good buddy and a funny character and I love her outfit ❤ the gameplay is fun but challenging with item management. I like the way shooting feels and the tight packed action horror with it. The weapons are plentiful with the help of the pretty cool mechanic that is the merchant. Tank controls are easier to control from easier resident evils (even if I like thoose too) overall a must play for anyone and in my opinion a timeless classic and the best resident evil game even if it is different from the original 3.

This is one of those gaming classics that you always come back to. Ive put countless hours into it on my PS2,PS3 and my phone. When I think of resident evil in general I think of this game I think of leon. No other game in the series is better or will ever be better then this one. Pretty funny considering there is no actual zombies. The controls are straight up clunky regardless if you play with keyboard or controller I just think controller is more bearable (TBH resident evil always plays clunky its def to keep people from going rambo at least not without being fire at the game). You will eventually adjust. For new timers you think this game is nerve racking just you wait till you get into castle.

Played from – to: (2021-08-21 – 2021-08-26) - Beaten on PC via Keyboard
‣ 8/10 – Skyrim Nord creates a cult.
‣ Game Audio / Soundtrack - 7/10
‣ Graphics – 8/10
‣ Atmosphere – 10/10
‣ Main Story / Characters – 7/10
‣ Side Activities / Exploration – 10/10
‣ AI – 8/10
‣ Ragdolls / Physics – 8/10
‣ Movement – 6/10
‣ Voice acting – 7/10
‣ Combat – 9/10
‣ Final notes: It is crazy to think that Resident Evil 4 was released in 2005. Everything about this game like many have said feels one generation ahead. There is so much content in this game that I can see why many say this is the best resident evil game in the franchise and frankly I would have to agree. Added content gives more context to an already crazy and big story. You get to replay most of the game from a different perspective and see new cutscenes, fight new encounters, boss fights and even levels. Overall the game is great though it does take some time to get used to rather unique controls. The aiming might feel off at first, but after a few hours I had no problem kicking the Spanish peasants back to their village. The story is also pretty good although I do not really understand why some of the villains refused to kill Leon when clearly, they easily could multiple times, talk about plot armor. Truly I do not think I have anything radically bad to say about this game. It has aged well and the animations with the graphics still look pleasing even to this day. In conclusion I would love to see a remake of this game just to replay it with new graphics and more comfortable controls.