After my computer crashed last week I was left with nothing but my phone and PS4 to kill time with. I started swiping through my PS4 library in search for something to do. And then I saw it.
Resident Evil 4.
I had nearly forgotten that I bought the game on discount for less that 10 bucks last month in preparation for RE3R. Hear me now when I’m saying this: I’ve previously had little to none interest in playing this game. Even though I’ve never actually had the game nor its story spoiled, based on what others had told me I knew enough about it to form a basic opinion. In my mind, this was the game that took the series in the wrong direction. So, obviously I had to play it! Before starting it up, this was all I knew about the game:
1. Leon is the main protagonist
2. The plot is about rescuing the president’s kidnapped daughter
3. It takes place in Spain and features a different kind of virus
4. The game is much more action-oriented
5. The game is widely considered to be one of the greatest video games ever made
With this in mind, I decided to finally give it a try. After all, how bad could it be?
The first thing that hits me after playing the first few chapters in the Village area, is that this game has an incredibly well-made structure. It is FUN to play and everything you do feels very rewarding. The semi-open world that enables a sort of backtracking is impressive for such an old game, and I can only imagine how amazing this must’ve felt for players back in 2005. Its easy to get what’s going on, perhaps a little bit too easy, and the story leaves not much for the imagination. But all in all I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it, and how the urge to continue kept staying strong.
Unfortunately, my other less favorable suspicions about RE4 turned out to be true as well. The first time I saw Leon do an anime style jump in slow-motion I was like ”OK... That just happened.” This sort of over-the-top stuff continued to infest the game in countless of other ways, not to mention the story itself and all the characters kept on giving me some sort of strange fantasy vibe taken out of a fairytale horror book. Similar to Code Veronica, RE4 puts a bigger emphasis on supernatural horror rather than the more grounded sci-fi horror presented in the first 3 games. I saw this coming, but it was still kind of a letdown. I was also surprised and somewhat shocked to see that RE4 brought in elements from Paul W.S Andersons terrible films such as the laser corridor, this gave me bad flashbacks to when Silent Hill: Homecoming brought in elements from the Silent Hill movie in 2007.
Also, length and pacing. By the time I’ve reached the Island I’m starting to feel that the game kind of drags on for a bit too long. How many times is Ashley going to be re-kidnapped? The story is incredibly weak once you realize how everything is repeated and extended, and it shows. Characters like Salazar and Saddler are too one-dimensional to be interesting, just like in Code Veronica the bad guys come off as Disney villains. And what the hell does Ada Wong bring to the plot? I have a few chapters left but I’m not expecting any mind-boggling twists or revelations. So nah, its a fun game with many cool and interesting additions such as the parasitic infections, but all of that takes a backseat in an otherwise ridiculous over-the-top game that might as well be its own standalone title with no connection to the Resident Evil series.
Nevertheless, experiencing RE4 for myself has definitely been a huge eye-opener in terms of how it revolutionized gaming and influenced so many other horror games that came after it. Everything from the over-the-shoulder perspective which is still a staple in the industry to this day, to the game’s overall structure, atmosphere and environments that I now realize has been copied into other games I’ve played such as Deadly Premonition and The Evil Within. I don’t think I’ve really understood until now what a huge imprint RE4 has had on the genre and why it is so beloved by fans.
So even though my initial impression of RE4 still stands, and while I still consider it to be a too big departure from the first 3 games with a terrible story, I’ve gained massive respect for it. RE4 is undoubtedly a fantastic game, that’s something I cannot argue with.
Resident Evil 4.
I had nearly forgotten that I bought the game on discount for less that 10 bucks last month in preparation for RE3R. Hear me now when I’m saying this: I’ve previously had little to none interest in playing this game. Even though I’ve never actually had the game nor its story spoiled, based on what others had told me I knew enough about it to form a basic opinion. In my mind, this was the game that took the series in the wrong direction. So, obviously I had to play it! Before starting it up, this was all I knew about the game:
1. Leon is the main protagonist
2. The plot is about rescuing the president’s kidnapped daughter
3. It takes place in Spain and features a different kind of virus
4. The game is much more action-oriented
5. The game is widely considered to be one of the greatest video games ever made
With this in mind, I decided to finally give it a try. After all, how bad could it be?
The first thing that hits me after playing the first few chapters in the Village area, is that this game has an incredibly well-made structure. It is FUN to play and everything you do feels very rewarding. The semi-open world that enables a sort of backtracking is impressive for such an old game, and I can only imagine how amazing this must’ve felt for players back in 2005. Its easy to get what’s going on, perhaps a little bit too easy, and the story leaves not much for the imagination. But all in all I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it, and how the urge to continue kept staying strong.
Unfortunately, my other less favorable suspicions about RE4 turned out to be true as well. The first time I saw Leon do an anime style jump in slow-motion I was like ”OK... That just happened.” This sort of over-the-top stuff continued to infest the game in countless of other ways, not to mention the story itself and all the characters kept on giving me some sort of strange fantasy vibe taken out of a fairytale horror book. Similar to Code Veronica, RE4 puts a bigger emphasis on supernatural horror rather than the more grounded sci-fi horror presented in the first 3 games. I saw this coming, but it was still kind of a letdown. I was also surprised and somewhat shocked to see that RE4 brought in elements from Paul W.S Andersons terrible films such as the laser corridor, this gave me bad flashbacks to when Silent Hill: Homecoming brought in elements from the Silent Hill movie in 2007.
Also, length and pacing. By the time I’ve reached the Island I’m starting to feel that the game kind of drags on for a bit too long. How many times is Ashley going to be re-kidnapped? The story is incredibly weak once you realize how everything is repeated and extended, and it shows. Characters like Salazar and Saddler are too one-dimensional to be interesting, just like in Code Veronica the bad guys come off as Disney villains. And what the hell does Ada Wong bring to the plot? I have a few chapters left but I’m not expecting any mind-boggling twists or revelations. So nah, its a fun game with many cool and interesting additions such as the parasitic infections, but all of that takes a backseat in an otherwise ridiculous over-the-top game that might as well be its own standalone title with no connection to the Resident Evil series.
Nevertheless, experiencing RE4 for myself has definitely been a huge eye-opener in terms of how it revolutionized gaming and influenced so many other horror games that came after it. Everything from the over-the-shoulder perspective which is still a staple in the industry to this day, to the game’s overall structure, atmosphere and environments that I now realize has been copied into other games I’ve played such as Deadly Premonition and The Evil Within. I don’t think I’ve really understood until now what a huge imprint RE4 has had on the genre and why it is so beloved by fans.
So even though my initial impression of RE4 still stands, and while I still consider it to be a too big departure from the first 3 games with a terrible story, I’ve gained massive respect for it. RE4 is undoubtedly a fantastic game, that’s something I cannot argue with.
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