Resident Evil 4 Remake (2023)

Remake of Resident Evil 4 (2005) 2005. The story takes place in 2004, six years after the events of Resident Evil 2. Leon Scott Kennedy, a government agent, is sent on a mission to Europe. He must rescue Ashley Graham, the daughter of the President of the United States, who has been kidnapped by a mysterious cult. A trip to a rural village in Spain turns into a meeting with its bloodthirsty inhabitants.

Resident Evil 4 Remake (2023) - a third-person action game, but with aogreater emphasis on the survival elements and horror atmosphere characteristic of the Resident Evil series. Capcom avoids talking about the 2023 game as a remake, calling it "another version of Resident Evil 4" that brings the concept of the original to a modern level.

The new game borrowed the outline of the story, characters and setting, and all the content - levels, art, models, sounds, etc. - was new. The game mechanics are modern, but adapted to look and function like the original. The geometry of levels, objects and models has become more realistic, locations are rich in details and decorations (with limited interactivity).

The atmosphere and feeling were influenced by a change in visual style. A minimum of light sources made literally everything around darker and darker, allowing us to hide a lot of jump scares. Such typical solutions as dense ominous fog, distant screams, bloody rituals, an abundance of “ketchup” and dismemberment also work. The color palette was changed from yellow-brown to realistic.

RE4 takes place in an alternate reality, somewhere in the mountains of Spain. The world is divided into 3 large regions: village, castle and island, each with unique features. There is no open world, but each region is represented by a single seamless level, available for backtracking for a limited number of chapters, after which the narrative moves on to the next region.

The village and castle were reworked most meticulously, the island did not change much. The levels have become more spacious, voluminous and branched, but their design is still corridor-like. The structure has changed: many new areas, and some old ones have been removed entirely (mostly intestinal ones). The most famous places, however, are easily recognizable. The buildings have been qualitatively improved. In addition to expanding the layout with new rooms, passages and floors, they worked on the interiors, furnishings and decorations.

Locations, as a rule, are full-fledged arenas for exploration, searching for secrets, solving puzzles and collecting resources while simultaneously exterminating opponents. All of this has become much more common, but the shortage of ammunition forces us to use elements of the environment placed everywhere against enemies: traps, traps, explosive barrels, etc. An inattentive player can fall into them, thereby complicating his situation.

A simple story about rescuing a damsel in distress, who is also continuously kidnapped as it progresses, has not changed in general, but has received many adjustments in details that affect the perception of the plot.

We reworked Leon's dialogues, removing or replacing out-of-context and simply unsuccessful sentences, grotesque phrases and witticisms. They changed his behavior to make him look like a less clingy ladies' man. Playing the role of a seasoned government agent, Leon even speaks in a way that commands respect and isn't afraid to throw in a strong word or two.

Ashley's teenage image has become more mature: she confidently chats with Leon but remains obedient and calm, wary of everything around her. Luis's role has been greatly expanded, almost turning him into Leon's partner and a generator of humorous scenes. Ramon the dwarf has become closer to stereotypical evil villains rather than the caricatured psychopath from the original.

All game scenes have been reworked, a couple of new scenarios added, the order slightly changed, and a number of significant moments removed (escape from the giant dwarf, funicular, several chases, a couple of trap rooms, battle with U3, fight with Ada Wong). The narrative has become more cohesive. The staging is done at a modern level, cutscenes are spectacular and dynamic, yet serious and realistic. The time slowdown for ten seconds has been cut.

Throughout RE 4 Remake, the player is accompanied by a modest set of characters, most of whom are unequivocal enemies, but some can be interacted with. For instance, at the local merchant's shop, you can buy new weapons and upgrades, recipes and consumables, sell unnecessary items. The leveling up is also tied to him.

The game's dynamics have significantly increased. Leon has become more agile, learned to aim, run, and crouch, although he still can't roll or jump. He can deflect flying axes and arrows with a knife, parry melee attacks. The model and animation have been updated — how Leon handles weapons, uses a flashlight, reacts to explosions, hits, and grabs.

The player is still required to shoot a lot from pistols, revolvers, shotguns, rifles, and several types of submachine guns. Shooting and aiming have been reworked and will provide completely different sensations. A rudimentary stealth element has been introduced: enemies can be killed from behind to move forward unnoticed or to take a more advantageous position before attacking.

The physical model skillfully calculates collisions, so you can knock one enemy into another and deal damage to the latter. A shot at an enemy with a torch, for example, will cause detonation.

The game design allows you to complete three-quarters of the game in various ways due to different play styles, combining melee, close, and long-range combat. The final quarter remains a shooter, utilizing the entire arsenal found. QTE moments in battles are organically replaced by timing.

There are now additional tasks — find, kill, bring, break, etc. For these, the player receives jewels, and in-game currency can be found at the level. All this is needed to purchase new items. There are more puzzles, almost all reworked, new ones added, and some of the least successful old ones removed.

Enemies are now more aggressive, nimble, and vicious. They all have migrated to the remake from the original with updates or partial reworks of models, and a couple of new subtypes have been added. This is done to introduce new monsters throughout the playthrough, making the player change their combat style accordingly. Each enemy has vulnerabilities, combining which can give an advantage.

Быстрые и слабые, сильные и медленные зараженные поставляются на арены в таком сочетании, чтобы хорошо балансировать друг друга. Врагов с бензопилой, молотом и другими опасными предметами перевели в ранг мини-боссов, они сильнее и живучей, доставят проблем. Искусственный интеллект теперь старается окружить игрока, загнать в угол, зайти со спины и не ждет, пока Леон расстреляет его подопечных.

В игре представлен десяток боссов, все были обновлены, часть радикально, но они по-прежнему уникальны в плане внешности, поведения и набора атак. Битвы с ними ощущаются не легче или трудней, чем раньше, а просто иначе.