Survival horror and third person action redefined
Resident Evil at a glance for the most part is a prodigious series in gaming, essentially bringing forth survival horror as a genre in video games and providing some of Capcom's best titles to date. It will come to a surprise that I've played every Resident Evil but 4, the almost undisputed landmark title in the series. It's not easy to ignore the constant praise the game gets (and rightfully) deserves almost the past two decades since its release back in 2005. With the remake making news and media rounds, I wanted to finally experience what people have been clamoring about and the discussion about the controls since to be honest, I was a bit worried I wouldn't like the game as much, tank controls aren't usually my cup of tea especially in a game that's more centric in the action than horror this time around. Resident Evil 4 stands to be a great package but it also feels like a jack of all trades and at most a master of one.
The story of Resident Evil 4 brings Leon S. Kennedy to a village in Spain to search for the president's daughter, almost felt routine at first but then things ramp up pretty quickly. Leon must use whatever he can to get through their lines to get Ashley out and escape in one piece but other players on the board have other plans for themselves. Leon is really snarky and quippy during the game and it's mostly entertaining throughout the game with a few standout moments but honestly, it's not much to write home about. The most humorous parts are the calls between the main villains and Leon himself just constantly belittling each other after Leon gets through an obstacle and the fact that it feels so unnecessary adds to the detail. Despite that, I feel like the story doesn't really make any sense due to a detail surrounding the villain wanting her to go home but still stopping you and making their actual plans known yet they do everything to get you away from her and leave that it kinda disconnected me for a bit. It feels more like a device for the characters and the game itself at that point and that was fine with me.
It's no secret Resident Evil 4 skewed towards action and less on making you uncomfortable and relying on pure horror to immerse yourself in your surroundings. The path of resistance is strong against Leon and all he has are the weapons at his arsenal, a knife and a merchant willing to sell him these tools of destruction. Resident Evil 4 relies on "tank" controls but they feel like the best iteration of them that I never minded them at all. To this day, they feel fluid, movement feels fast paced yet methodical with the way quick turning and aiming works. Personal space management, where to aim, inventory management amalgamates into a timeless action horror ride that mostly keeps going. The puzzles and areas aren't too long and the boss fights are really fun with never a dull moment although I wished the game was a little less longer since I was starting to feel a little bit of the fatigue right at the end. Inventory management is almost a game in itself with how you manage your items in this satisfying feeling that almost feels reminiscent of Tetris when shapes go together perfectly and allows you to really make the most of out of each slot since items are not equal in size all the time, a rocket launcher is not gonna take the same space as an egg for example.
Time has served the game well, playing the PC version on a Steam Deck makes the game still look incredibly gorgeous to this day. The models and lighting work really did wonders here and the almost gritty feel really helps here. The use of music is great here with high paced music playing when there's enemies nearby and the music immediately cutting off into silence when the last enemy has been dispatched giving you that feeling of relief that another part is down. As always, Resident Evil safe room themes are always a great calm before the storm and 4 is no exception.
I understand the love for this game a little bit more after playing it, the action is great, the music is great, even the game still looks great to me. The story itself could use a little bit more work and maybe cut down a little more but it still made for this cohesive action horror experience kept you on your toes. I even glossed over Ashley herself as she didn't feel that bad either, I only had her die once but she's been great at staying alive in my playthrough but maybe I was lucky, the escort stuff wasn't that bad at all. But I digress, Resident Evil 4 in my opinion deserves the praise it's gotten over the years. With the remake widely available now and my own preference for the action the remake provides, I might not return to this one but I'm glad I had the chance to play it with pure eyes and see that the game is great and still is.
Resident Evil at a glance for the most part is a prodigious series in gaming, essentially bringing forth survival horror as a genre in video games and providing some of Capcom's best titles to date. It will come to a surprise that I've played every Resident Evil but 4, the almost undisputed landmark title in the series. It's not easy to ignore the constant praise the game gets (and rightfully) deserves almost the past two decades since its release back in 2005. With the remake making news and media rounds, I wanted to finally experience what people have been clamoring about and the discussion about the controls since to be honest, I was a bit worried I wouldn't like the game as much, tank controls aren't usually my cup of tea especially in a game that's more centric in the action than horror this time around. Resident Evil 4 stands to be a great package but it also feels like a jack of all trades and at most a master of one.
The story of Resident Evil 4 brings Leon S. Kennedy to a village in Spain to search for the president's daughter, almost felt routine at first but then things ramp up pretty quickly. Leon must use whatever he can to get through their lines to get Ashley out and escape in one piece but other players on the board have other plans for themselves. Leon is really snarky and quippy during the game and it's mostly entertaining throughout the game with a few standout moments but honestly, it's not much to write home about. The most humorous parts are the calls between the main villains and Leon himself just constantly belittling each other after Leon gets through an obstacle and the fact that it feels so unnecessary adds to the detail. Despite that, I feel like the story doesn't really make any sense due to a detail surrounding the villain wanting her to go home but still stopping you and making their actual plans known yet they do everything to get you away from her and leave that it kinda disconnected me for a bit. It feels more like a device for the characters and the game itself at that point and that was fine with me.
It's no secret Resident Evil 4 skewed towards action and less on making you uncomfortable and relying on pure horror to immerse yourself in your surroundings. The path of resistance is strong against Leon and all he has are the weapons at his arsenal, a knife and a merchant willing to sell him these tools of destruction. Resident Evil 4 relies on "tank" controls but they feel like the best iteration of them that I never minded them at all. To this day, they feel fluid, movement feels fast paced yet methodical with the way quick turning and aiming works. Personal space management, where to aim, inventory management amalgamates into a timeless action horror ride that mostly keeps going. The puzzles and areas aren't too long and the boss fights are really fun with never a dull moment although I wished the game was a little less longer since I was starting to feel a little bit of the fatigue right at the end. Inventory management is almost a game in itself with how you manage your items in this satisfying feeling that almost feels reminiscent of Tetris when shapes go together perfectly and allows you to really make the most of out of each slot since items are not equal in size all the time, a rocket launcher is not gonna take the same space as an egg for example.
Time has served the game well, playing the PC version on a Steam Deck makes the game still look incredibly gorgeous to this day. The models and lighting work really did wonders here and the almost gritty feel really helps here. The use of music is great here with high paced music playing when there's enemies nearby and the music immediately cutting off into silence when the last enemy has been dispatched giving you that feeling of relief that another part is down. As always, Resident Evil safe room themes are always a great calm before the storm and 4 is no exception.
I understand the love for this game a little bit more after playing it, the action is great, the music is great, even the game still looks great to me. The story itself could use a little bit more work and maybe cut down a little more but it still made for this cohesive action horror experience kept you on your toes. I even glossed over Ashley herself as she didn't feel that bad either, I only had her die once but she's been great at staying alive in my playthrough but maybe I was lucky, the escort stuff wasn't that bad at all. But I digress, Resident Evil 4 in my opinion deserves the praise it's gotten over the years. With the remake widely available now and my own preference for the action the remake provides, I might not return to this one but I'm glad I had the chance to play it with pure eyes and see that the game is great and still is.