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Resident Evil 4

Platform: Gamecube Release Date: 2005 1 Player

The Residen Evil franchise has become well-known for both good and bad reasons. Some love the series because of its scares despite the weird camera angles, clunky movement system, and limited space for storing the huge amount of items. The fourth game in the series is the game that broke away from tradition, but were the changes good or bad?

Hmm, seems harmless...

The biggest change verterans to the series will notice is that the pre-rendered backgrounds are gone and the camera is now behind the main character Leon. This change was definitely for the better because it immerses you into the game more. To put it simply, what happens to Leon happens to you.

Wasn't expecting that to happen!

Leon has some really bad luck. Only six years since the raccoon city incident, his first day as a cop, he is now assigned with the task of finding Ashley Graham, the President's daughter. Clues to the kidnapping have led Leon to a small town in Spain. Trying to get help, Leon asks a local if he has seen Ashley. Upon showing the picture he gets angry and tries to attack Leon with an axe. He refuses to drop his weapon so the only choice for Leon is to fight back. The man doesn't look like a zombie but his behavior was very strange. Soon dozens of villagers, or Ganado, crowd the house and attack. Leon has to figure out what is wrong with everyone and what his relation is to to the problem. The story, while very good, is not going to be a Final Fantasy killer. That said it does have some unexpected plot twists and familiar characters turn up throughout the story. The ending in particular is very good and leaves you with a cliffhanger making you anticipate the sequel.

Excuse me, have you seen this girl?

This department is where RE4 excels the most at and it blows away the competition here. The Resident Evil series has always had slower combat but RE4 has changed that to make it more of a fast-paced action game than a survival horror. The other games did use the slower combat and controls to create a scarier atmosphere which is eliminated from the new faster paced combat. That's probably the only bad thing you could say about this game, that it isn't scary like its predecessors. In the beginning of the game you only have a few items and a small storage space but as you get farther into the game you will find a merchant to buy more weapons, storage space, and upgrades for your weapons. You cannot buy ammo which does make the game harder at certain points.

What are ya buying?

Probably the best part of the gameplay is the aiming system. The controls feel very natural and it seems like Capcom has spent a lot of time on them. With a quick press of the R button you ready your weapon and start aiming. A red laser will show you where you will hit and the enemies respond differently depending on where they are shot. This adds a much welcomed amount of strategy and sets RE4 apart from all the other shooters/action games on the market today. Will you shoot the charging Ganado in the head and stun them so you can do a melee attack? What about shooting them in the knees to make them fall down to the ground? Certain enemies can also be defeated by shooting them in a weak spot. The target specific aiming works very well and also adds some humor to the game. If a crazy Ganado starts throwing grenades at you just shoot the grenade in mid-air and blow him up along with the group around him!

Careful, you don't want to hit Ashley!

As mentioned before, the new camera is a big help. It follows you and never gets in the way. It doesn't let you see behind Leon so it does make the game have a good amount of difficulty. Resident Evil 4 is a hard game but you never get annoyed or frustrated from it. The game keeps track of how many times you die in story mode (I died 70 times) and the number will probably go pretty high for most people. The good thing though is that instead of going back to the last save point (like in past games) you go back to a checkpoint. The checkpoints are spread out very well and you rarely have to spend too much time getting back to where you were when you died. Another thing worth mentioning is that the ink ribbons are gone so you can save as many times as you want.

Don't worry Ashley! I'm coming for you!

RE4 has borrowed a little from other games but it is very obvious the creators of the game liked Dragon's Lair. During many of the cut scenes and parts of the game you will have some buttons flash on the screen. It couble be to dodge a knife in a cut scene or to escape from a bear trap. Some have you press a combonation of buttons while others will have you tapping A as fast as you can. These sequences break up the monotony and they make sure you are alert when playing.

The context sensitive A button in action.

The boss fights are awesome and are some of the best parts of the game. Taking a cue from Metal Gear Solid, almost every boss is different. The lake monster has you being pulled along on a rail sequence while dodging obstacles and throwing spears. The fight against the El Higante forces you to dodge his giant club and to tap A as fast as you can to slash his weak spot when exposed. I'm not going to spoil the later fights but expect some great battles.

Haven't I seen you in some movie before?

The best part of the audio is the sound effects. They are perfect. Every gun sounds just like they would in real life and little things like footstep sounds, the clinking of empty shells, and grenades exploding all add to the great audio in this game. The voices, finally, are pretty good. All the characters (except 1 or 2) sound great and there are barely any cheesy lines in the game. Ashley's voice can be a little annoying sometimes when she screams but you would scream too if you were getting captured. The music is very good but not too memorable. It will get your adrenaline going or make you a little nervous in certain spots but you probably won't remember the music playing in the background for that long. The music does everything it should very well but it could have used a little more to make it memorable.

As you have probably noticed by now, RE4 has very good graphics. They even look very good compared to most of the Xbox 360 launch games. The graphics are the most realistic on the Gamecube, or any of the current-gen systems, yet and makes games like Metroid Prime and Halo look bad. The attention to detail is very good in the animation. The Ganado will have different reactions depending on where you hit them. All of them (except the exploding heads) look realistic. You will notice Leon's hair swaying and the little details on his clothes. The only bad thing I have found is that when you swing your knife it doesn't bounce off of walls. Instead it just swipes right through them. It's only a very minor thing and I only noticed it because I was being very picky. You have to see RE4 in motion to really see how good it looks.

The amazing graphics engine at work.

Resident Evil 4 has some of the best replay value in an action/shooter game. Don't be surprised if this game stays in your Gamecube for several months. In addition to the lengthy 15-20 hour story mode you get a host of unlockables. New weapons and outfits are available for your second play-through. You will also unlock a level that lets you play as a character you meet during the game. The mission isn't too long but it is hard. It shows you some new information so it is worth the time. The best unlockable is the Mercenaries mode. This mode plays like an arcade shooter and it is highly addictive. Don't be surprised if an hor passes by in what seems like a few minutes when playing it. At first you only can be Leon but 4 more characters are unlockable by getting a high score in each of the 4 levels. You can also unlock the hand cannon weapon for story mode by getting 5 star ratings with each character on each level. That alone can take 10 hours to unlock. The Mercenaries mode has an arcade combo system to help you rack up a high score. You get 300 points for each Ganado killed and 5000 for the tougher ones (chainsaw, machine gun, and claw wielding Ganados). If you keep killing them within a certain amount of time you will start a combo. You can also increase your score by getting a bonus multiplier. All of this happens under a time limit and you have to search for extra time by looking around the levels. Each character has different weapons and abilities so you have to use different strategies when playing as each one. The Mercenaries mode by itself is better than most games on shelves today. It is the best unlockable in the game and it definitely extends the already high replay value.

Closing Comments

Resident Evil 4 is a masterpiece and easily the best in the series. Very few games are as fun from start to finish as this game. The long development time and constant delays paid off. Go out and buy RE4. It's now a Player's Choice title so if you are of age you have no excuse not to get it.

Gameplay: 10/10 Audio: 9/10 Graphics: 10/10 Replay Value: 8.5/10 Total: 9.8/10

Pros: -Addicting gameplay -Life like graphics -No prerendered backgrounds! -Finally a great camera!

Cons: -More action/shooter than survival/horror