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Late to the Party: Resident Evil 4

consoleme.ca writes: Ok ok. I know this post is about 3 years too late. I know that every self-respecting gamer has already played this game and loved it. But as the number of game releases slows down for the summer (though certainly there are exceptions…I'm looking at you Metal Gear Solid 4), I'm taking the time to revisit some games I've always wanted to play but somehow managed to stack up in my pile of shame. I must say the pile is indeed deep and shameful. To start I'll be visiting several PS2 titles that everyone is certainly familiar with: Metal Gear Solid 2 and 3, Final Fantasy XII, Shadow of the Colossus, Resident Evil 4 and Okami. Just a few little known titles that need some extra attention.

To begin my stroll back through time I began with Resident Evil 4. Lately there has been lots of press and excitement about the next iteration, Resident Evil 5, so I wanted to see why I should perhaps be getting more excited for it later this year. Not only that, the game was clearly good enough to warrant a full port over to the Wii after already being ported from the Gamecube to the PS2. To set the stage, I played the game on my PS3 and turned up all the settings in the options menu. So the question is, does Resident Evil 4 still hold up today? Let's find out.
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kontakt - contributor
Published: 538 days 8 hours ago | Review | PlayStation 3 | Wii | PlayStation 2 | GameCube | Gaming
 
 

Showing: 1 - 4 of 4 Comments
1 LaChance | 538 days 8 hours ago - User only got 1 bubble - Show
Shut this user up Let user speak
Kassanova07 - 538 days 8 hours ago
2 -
I would like to see more of these retro review articles. RE4 is definitely top 20 on PS2
Shut this user up Let user speak
Picnico - 538 days 7 hours ago
3 -
I agree Lachance. Resident Evil 4, to be honest, was relatively disappointing for me to start with. If they were going to get rid of so much of the puzzle aspects, then the action had to greatly compensate for it- and it did to an extent but, right from the start, it is clear how linear and pre-set your world really is- it won't let you go back across the bridge- it won't let you shoot the glass of the car containing those 2 men. Furthermore, the village area is grainy and brown, a world away from the rich intricate detail of the Resident Evil remake, eg the wallpaper in the mansion, the moths buzzing around the lights- the remake, in all its pre-rendered glory, will remain timeless looking. The character models in the remake are beautifully subtle, more so than RE4's on the whole but that sums up the change in spirit between the games. Artistically, if the remake is an Old Master painting, Resident Evil 4 is more like Devil May Cry crossed with The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. There are more references than that of course like the mine cart section which is a platform game staple and itself probably a homage to Indiana Jones and The Temple of Doom and rollercoasters.

The remake was a superb reworking of a brilliant concept- Resident Evil, apart from not being the first survival horror game (Alone in the dark was) was a 1950s horror movie/B-Movie scenario elevated by a team inspired by later films like the Alien series and, no doubt, many other influences from 'high' art and popular culture. Alfred Hitchcock would surely be envious of Resident Evil's ideas and direction. The puzzle aspect combined with the plot and the tight corridors gives it a scary mystery.

However, as Resident Evil 4 progresses, although the dialogue is almost creepily bad and certain set pieces like a walking stone statue can be seen a mile off, certain areas make this game very memorable- eg. the maze, the sewers, the basement, the facility where you first see the regenerators. These remain very uncomfortable places to visit.

RE4 is a creepy game, often I felt not always deliberately. It's a violent, gory game. I didn't feel attached to the characters as much as in the remake. It generally keeps you moving on to appreciate the beauty (or ugliness) of the action rather than of your surroundings.
4 LaChance | 538 days 6 hours ago - User only got 1 bubble - Show
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