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RE2R Vs RE4R? Which remake edges out overall?

Which remake is better?


  • Total voters
    20

RipvanX

Well-Known Member
When comparing them to their OG counterparts, RE:4 is more faithful and doesn’t completely remix the story around like how RE:2 did with contradicting scenarios and half the story content missing with no proper B side. RE:4 combat also has a lot more going on and feels more tactical and engaging. There is more variety in the enemies you fight and how they approach you. My vote would have to be for RE:4. I loved RE2 as it’s my favorite to this day, but RE:2 only improved on the gameplay for me. I have had issues with most of the RE Engine stories but RE:4 less so because let’s face it, who plays RE4 for the story?
 

leon_hellppp

Well-Known Member
As much as I love RE2R, in terms of faithfulness to the amount of content in the original games, I would have to give it to RE4R. I'll admit that I was sceptical of the pre-release claims that RE4R wouldn't cut content, and that it would even expand upon some aspects of the 2005 game, but it seems the devs really took the cut content criticisms to heart and sought to deliver a new experience equally as substantial as the original. Even where stuff isn't present, new stuff has been added, so I didn't feel short-changed at all after beating this new remake. The game feels like a remixed or alternate version of the original to me, which still hits all of the same story beats. Surprisingly, it also makes some changes that I think are genuinely better (e.g. the gameplay function of the red-robed Zealots, the shooting range, the knife fight with Krauser), whereas with RE2R I mostly just thought changes were neutrally "different". I hope they pour the same amount of love into the inevitable RE5 remake.
 

Ikawaru

Well-Known Member
I would have to say that I still think RE2R ranks higher than RE4R. Despite the fact that I think RE2R was 85% complete and did need some seriously fine-tuning especially for the B scenarios and perhaps more crossover potential between the two sides, it still feels like an authentic 'Resident Evil' game and the characters and story were well portrayed, and the added mechanics, atmosphere and survival horror elements were sound. RE4R holds up very well gameplay-wise but the problem here is that I despise RE4's story and over the top set pieces and it reeks like some medieval childrens fairy tale with little regard to the more based science fiction mystery horror that started the franchise and RE4R was extremely faithful to these more lacklustre elements or RE4, almost to a fault. I mean you can decorate a cake with the best frosting, candy, and icing, but if the actual cake batter leaves something to be desired and don't really care for its center, it's impossible to thoroughly enjoy it, right?

I never cared for the merchant, and I don't particularly like dropping points into weapons to magically make them more powerful and prefer RE2'R system of a more practical approach on weapon attachments as a way to fine tune weapons, but both games utilize the gun powder system fairly well for ammo crafting which is cool and all, I just feel that they could have expanded on them a bit and be able to craft different types of ammo for each weapon. Thus far RE3 Nemesis OG trumps every RE game in the ammo crafting sector and think that system have stuck around on the franchise. RE4R incorporates stealth, which is awesome, but it feels more experimental and doesn't weave into the game as well as it should. Don't get me wrong, it's fascinating that Capcom has put forth the effort to this feature and I hope they perfect in the future, it's just at this point I cannot praise it to the heavens because it still feels experimental. RE2R doesn't need stealth because the game was well designed around the idea of not needing it and focused more on visual and atmospheric horror.

I'd say both games rank equal on sound and ambience, I really like the sounds of the gunshots especially in RE4R and the fact that there's one bullet in the chamber when you reload a full magazine demonstraes a push towards more weapon realism. Both games do very well on atmosphere and horror visuals but I'd have to say RE2R beats out RE4R simply because it feels more based due to all the other elements combined. I really liked the boss battles in RE2R and felt far more tense, RE4R's boss battles felt like the cheesey ones from 'Village' with the way the bosses move around in an almost orchestrated fashion and exchange silly dialogue with the player.

I could go on, and on and on, but I really don't want to as I think I have covered the basics so the TLDR version would be that RE2R is a fascinating recreation of RE2 and stands well on its own two feet despite a few lapses in design potential (especially regarding the B scenarios) whilst RE4R does a good job augmenting and improving the aspects on that game with better and even more experimental and perhaps new features for the franchise but it is still held back by its extreme faithfulness to the core RE4 experience, which to me feels quite sour in the year 2023.
 
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Springhosen

Kahnum of Outworld
I haven't played RE4R, though my husband and I are watching a playthrough and he's pretty hooked. I can't say that I'm the most qualified to give my opinion in this instance but I will do my best just from what I've seen.

From what I remember, which isn't too much, it seems to be rather faithful whereas RE2R took a few liberties. But I will say that, for me, the liberties taken with RE2R, while not everything I wanted for the game, do not hinder the original in any way and I'm very happy that the game came out the way it did. I see it as an appropriate remake and do not feel like I'm missing anything by playing it instead of the original.

As a fan, I was more excited for RE2R as I've never liked RE4 and I think I probably had the most playtime in on RE1 and RE2 as a kid. I can't speak to the hype of RE4R because I was not a part of that so it felt a little like being on the outside looking in. And even afterwards seeing the new and improved remake I didn't really get it just because I feel like the remake didn't add anything except for better graphics. With RE2R, even before I played it I felt like this was a completely new experience from a bit of a different perspective because so much time had passed and there was so much more that they could do now than was possible back then. The gameplay and atmosphere were completely different whereas I don't really feel that way with RE4R.

So in terms of faithfulness, so far, I have to say RE4R but as for my personal opinion, nothing quite tops RE2R and how hype I was for that game.
 

Turo602

The King of Kings
If we're talking strictly in terms of remakes, I think RE4 takes it. RE2 was a great game in my eyes and would have been made perfect had they given it the gameplay and graphic detail of the first REmake. It was already such a phenomenal sequel to the first game in just about every way and would have benefited greatly from those quality of life improvements.

But the time frame for that came and went with the original RE4. The series was in a different place and I had no faith that Capcom could ever make a real survival horror game again after their half-hearted attempts with the Revelations series. Then they did make a survival horror game again but it was so foreign to the series and really didn't capture what I as a Resident Evil fan liked about this series that I just completely lost all hope with Resident Evil.

So them remaking RE2? No way they'd do that justice... Well, they did and it was incredible. Mind blowing even. Who knew they had it in them? I've already said my piece about this game many times and while I can praise it all day long, as a remake, it's always left me with more to be desired.

The way they modernized the story, gameplay, mechanics, etc. Fantastic. That's all well and good, but some of the choices they made as a remake just seem questionable or feel like they ran out of budget. REmake 2 just feels like another great game based on Resident Evil 2 and not really the definitive version of Resident Evil 2 because it neglects a lot of what made Resident Evil 2 stand out as a sequel to the original Resident Evil.

At the end of the day, my tastes and preferences lean more towards Resident Evil 2 for this series. It's a smart and modern take on the classic Resident Evil formula and is therefore the ideal foundation for the series to build off of for future installments. But that's speaking to the game alone and not the remake.

Resident Evil 4 on the other hand is without a doubt a massive improvement over its original, full of smart choices to just about every aspect of the game. It's like Capcom has been reading my posts or something. While I'm not particularly fond of the idea of a merchant and buying items in a Resident Evil game, I understand why its there.

As much as I would have preferred it feel more like a classic Resident Evil experience, they more than make up for it with just how much survival horror has been injected into every inch of this game while still maintaining the original game's identity which you can take or leave, but what's here is the perfect marriage between the classic survival horror and the action era of the series that will surely satisfy fans who both loved and hated the original, which is a tall order to ask of anyone and they succeeded. Stubborn RE4 only fanboys who don't matter aside, of course.
 

UniqTeas

G Virus Experiment
When comparing them to their OG counterparts, RE:4 is more faithful and doesn’t completely remix the story around like how RE:2 did with contradicting scenarios and half the story content missing with no proper B side. RE:4 combat also has a lot more going on and feels more tactical and engaging. There is more variety in the enemies you fight and how they approach you. My vote would have to be for RE:4. I loved RE2 as it’s my favorite to this day, but RE:2 only improved on the gameplay for me. I have had issues with most of the RE Engine stories but RE:4 less so because let’s face it, who plays RE4 for the story?

I feel like I do not have to add any more details, because this is the PERFECT analogy. RE2R was not a complete remake and removed a lot of the content that made the original RE2 great. I loved RE2R, but there is not enough material in the game. Claire and Leon A barely have any differences let alone the pitiful B sides. However, RE4R improves the original game by adding more content to the areas that needed updating and REMOVING the worst parts about RE4 that felt silly or out of place.

Time will tell if RE4R is as great of a remake as the original REmake, but as I am currently playing it, I have to say, it is pretty close.

And POOR RE3R is in the bottom category alone despite still being a great and fun game in it's own right.
 

bSTAR_182

Sexually Active Member
I held off on responding to this thread because I wanted to play through more of RE4R before commenting. It still didn’t stop me from casting my vote for RE2R initially though, as I was convinced, at the time, that RE4R couldn’t be as good as RE2R was but Capcom definitely proved me wrong here.

It’s honestly impressive how they could make this game feel so scary even with its action elements. Despite knowing the beats of the original game, the atmosphere of its remake causes you to be on edge while playing.
Even the castle part of the game has been a scary experience to play through with the creepy chanting of the enemies as you work your way through the rooms and halls and macabre style of the castle.

I’ve also enjoyed the additions made to better develop RE4’s story. They may not seem like much but the little bit they have done goes a long way for me.

I’m a bit torn to say which game is better between RE4R and RE2R at this time. For now I’ve switched it to “equal”. I think RE2R is a great game and still has a stronger story but it does tend to lack in content. And dammit if Capcom didn’t hit it out the park with how well they handled RE4R. Even if the story still seems over-the-top, over-the-top is still nothing new for the series and has been a thing from the beginning
 

Rain611

You can't kill me.
I chose RE4 remake because it did so much for the OG from my perspective. The extra character development, better music, revamped maps and boss fights, they all improved on the original.

I really like RE2 remake as well, but I feel that it didn't improve on the OG as much, although I may be biased since OG RE2 is one of my top favorites in the series. The 2nd scenarios were drastically changed and not exactly 2nd scenarios, I don't think characters were additionally fleshed out to the extent of 4 remake, the new soundtrack is not great, little nitpicks of course but at the end of the day, they are both good Remakes so it kinda comes down to that.

TL;DR - RE4R did vastly more to improve the OG than RE2R.
 

SpaceOwlHoot

Well-Known Member
RE2Remake for me.

Months down the road, when I get that urge to pick up an RE game, I see myself grabbing RE2R over RE4R. It's just the the better resident evil experience. I didn't care for many of the things that RE4 introduced so this remake staying true to the original isn't really a plus for me. I'm getting a bit bored and at this point, I might not finish and have to come back to it later. It really hasn't kept my interest like RE2R.
 

Jonipoon

Professional Sandwich Consumer
I chose the RE2 remake simply because I believe it elevated the original in a much better fashion.

It managed to respect the original and improve upon it in countless of ways, making a huge jump from the original's pre-rendered backgrounds to OTS, expanding upon the RPD and even adding new levels, fleshing out the story and its characters, turning Mr. X into one of gaming's most terrifying enemy, and being incredibly replayable, among other things. While it did leave out the branching A and B scenarios from the original, it still managed to make both Leon and Claire's scenarios feel fresh and different from each others'. All in all it's a beautiful game that I could play over and over again without getting tired, because the gameplay is absolutely stellar. It offers everything you want from a survival horror game, and more.

The RE4 remake did a really good job as well, but it's not as impressive as RE2R. The castle is clearly the greatest improvement from the original, where basically everything has been changed and improved for the better. The structure of the castle is revamped and feels like a real castle, it's more atmospheric and adds new areas and tight spaces that are better integrated in its level design. It removed most of the campy stuff from the castle and instead added more realism, and turned Ashey's section into a a great and enjoyable horror experience. The boss fight against Salazar is also the boss fight that differs the most from the original, and I found it to be the best boss fight in the entire game. It was really hard and enjoyable and made great use of the environment and the dodge mechanic. The other sections of the remake (Village and Island), I didn't feel like they improved on the original as much.
 

Ikawaru

Well-Known Member
At this point I feel like RE4R came and went like a train chugging past a field of half gawking mules. I sort of felt that way about 'Cyberpunk 2077' when that launched but unlike 'Cyberpunk 2077', something tells me that RE4R will not have enough tender love and care patches/fixes and constant updates and improvements to keep reinvigorating interest and go on to sell 20+ million copies. I'm guessing RE4R will do about as good as RE2R sales-wise leaving us once again in a proverbial stalemate for the franchise. xD

For the record, I do not want RE to be a 20-50+ million sales franchise which would probably turn it into some boring algorithm or simply burn it to the ground. I just want the series stay true to itself and release a solid 10 million copies or so game every 2 years, and not continuously spark controversy and contradictions with every new iteration.
 
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SaddlerFan

Well-Known Member
I enjoy both remakes, to be honest. For different reasons - RE2R was fun to play and I did so enthusiastically, but I really played it only once. I didn't see much replay value, but I did enjoy the one playthrough a LOT, and I might get back to the game at some point, who knows.

RE4R I play over and over again, just like the original. (I finally found a way to play both games a lot nowadays, I was worried I'd have to decide between them, haha). It has SO much replay value, and yeah, I'll admit it, it has my favorite Resident Evil character, so that's why I play it so much. If I take that factor out (it's unfair, if I leave him in as a factor RE4R will win any day), I must say that both remakes are well done and are enjoyable. It's therefore difficult for me to pick one over the other.
 

Ridley Lockhart

Well-Known Member
I really liked the RE2R X gon give it to ya! The minor changes i was ok with. The one frustrating thing was that damned chess puzzle where it says something like "the king is across from the knight, but not next to the queen which is next the bishop, but the rook....". That puzzle was a headache.

Also haven't played RE4R, but couldn't help myself from seeing a few spoilers. Overall i like what i seen. But a lot of the villains seem bland, Saddler, Salazar, Mendez...and I'll never forgive Capcom for how they Ada and Wesker. Ugh.
 
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