RE4 Remake manages to carve out its own identity apart from the original by nailing the careful balance of re-imagining itself for modern audiences while clearly understanding and hitting all the principal beats fans of the original would expect, ultimately creating an experience that feels respectful to the essence of the original while not being afraid to make changes that put it better in line with the gameplay expectations of a modern game.
Let’s consider combat as an illustration of this balance. In the original, you moved around with a variation of the “tank” control scheme, except with a camera locked close over-the-shoulder, unlike its predecessors. This camera would then zoom in further when aiming your weapon and would root your character in place, unable to move and shoot simultaneously. These limitations on your character’s movement, coupled with the enemy AI tendency to flank you from the sides, made for extremely tense and frenetic combat, forcing you to constantly reposition as enemies tried to surround you. Context-based melee attacks also served as effective crowd control if enemies ever got too close, activated with the press of a button after a well-placed shot, and most animations for actions such as dropping down from higher ground granted lots of invulnerability frames. All of these choices made for tense third person shooting combat unlike anything people had ever experienced before, and it served as a foundation upon which the industry iterated over the years.
What this means for RE4 Remake, however, is that many of these design conventions are no longer novel, and in some ways feel outdated by modern standards. In order to live up to the legacy of the original, they opted to tap into the essence of combat, the moment to moment experience rather than simply bringing forward the same systems with higher fidelity.
In Remake, movement and camera control is now omnidirectional, with the over-the-shoulder camera only locking behind you when aiming your weapon, and even while aiming you are capable of moving around, albeit with a penalty to accuracy; this all puts it in line with design conventions expected for a 2023 action game. You also still have all the tools you previously had, such as context sensitive melee attacks for crowd control and invulnerability during those same attacks. Remake manages to retain the same sense of tension during combat as the original by implementing much more aggressive enemy AI, they are more likely to surround you on all sides (including from the back) and they do so faster and more often. Charging attacks have greater range and they stagger much less often, even when taking a headshot, which used to guarantee a melee attack afterwards, so clearing the space around you with roundhouse kick is not as reliable as it used to be. Even animation invulnerability is not as much of a given: dropping from a rooftop directly into a crowd will have you swarmed and cut to pieces the moment you touch ground. And to account for the chaotic pace of the new combat you have new defensive options as well in the form of an improved knife with a parrying system that will give you the edge in almost any situation if you have the mind and skill to master it.
This results in the same type of frenetic, desperate combat situations that make famously memorable encounters such as the Village battle at the beginning of the game land with almost the same level of impact as they once did back in 2005. It really is an incredible achievement that should not be understated. In fact, I would say the only downside to the game is the “almost” in my previous statement above; for all of its achievements as a remake, RE4 will not be revolutionizing the industry a second time, and while I wasn’t really expecting it to it is nonetheless THE BAR that was previously set by the original, and for that I can’t honestly say they stand equal in their importance to the medium as a whole.
That being said this is EASILY one of the best action titles of the year and worth a playthrough by anyone, and whether you are a series veteran or complete newcomer, RE4 Remake will be a game you remember for years to come.
Let’s consider combat as an illustration of this balance. In the original, you moved around with a variation of the “tank” control scheme, except with a camera locked close over-the-shoulder, unlike its predecessors. This camera would then zoom in further when aiming your weapon and would root your character in place, unable to move and shoot simultaneously. These limitations on your character’s movement, coupled with the enemy AI tendency to flank you from the sides, made for extremely tense and frenetic combat, forcing you to constantly reposition as enemies tried to surround you. Context-based melee attacks also served as effective crowd control if enemies ever got too close, activated with the press of a button after a well-placed shot, and most animations for actions such as dropping down from higher ground granted lots of invulnerability frames. All of these choices made for tense third person shooting combat unlike anything people had ever experienced before, and it served as a foundation upon which the industry iterated over the years.
What this means for RE4 Remake, however, is that many of these design conventions are no longer novel, and in some ways feel outdated by modern standards. In order to live up to the legacy of the original, they opted to tap into the essence of combat, the moment to moment experience rather than simply bringing forward the same systems with higher fidelity.
In Remake, movement and camera control is now omnidirectional, with the over-the-shoulder camera only locking behind you when aiming your weapon, and even while aiming you are capable of moving around, albeit with a penalty to accuracy; this all puts it in line with design conventions expected for a 2023 action game. You also still have all the tools you previously had, such as context sensitive melee attacks for crowd control and invulnerability during those same attacks. Remake manages to retain the same sense of tension during combat as the original by implementing much more aggressive enemy AI, they are more likely to surround you on all sides (including from the back) and they do so faster and more often. Charging attacks have greater range and they stagger much less often, even when taking a headshot, which used to guarantee a melee attack afterwards, so clearing the space around you with roundhouse kick is not as reliable as it used to be. Even animation invulnerability is not as much of a given: dropping from a rooftop directly into a crowd will have you swarmed and cut to pieces the moment you touch ground. And to account for the chaotic pace of the new combat you have new defensive options as well in the form of an improved knife with a parrying system that will give you the edge in almost any situation if you have the mind and skill to master it.
This results in the same type of frenetic, desperate combat situations that make famously memorable encounters such as the Village battle at the beginning of the game land with almost the same level of impact as they once did back in 2005. It really is an incredible achievement that should not be understated. In fact, I would say the only downside to the game is the “almost” in my previous statement above; for all of its achievements as a remake, RE4 will not be revolutionizing the industry a second time, and while I wasn’t really expecting it to it is nonetheless THE BAR that was previously set by the original, and for that I can’t honestly say they stand equal in their importance to the medium as a whole.
That being said this is EASILY one of the best action titles of the year and worth a playthrough by anyone, and whether you are a series veteran or complete newcomer, RE4 Remake will be a game you remember for years to come.