Resident Evil 4 Remake (2023)

The most honest review of Resident Evil 4 (2023) from a longtime fan of the original 2005 game.

Having played this game for 0.3 hours on the day of release (on March 24, I, alas, was busy with more important things), I wrote a simple and intelligible review: “CANNON!!!”. Since then, I've spent more than 60 hours in the game (as of September 2023, at the time of adaptation of the review for VGTimes, I've exceeded this number by 8.5 times), and when I left it, I found that Steam was asking me if I had changed I have my opinion for this period of time.

On September 25, 2023, when Resident Evil 4 Remake, after 64.7 hours of playing time, still joined the general list of games I have completed at least once, I decided it was time to write a review. And no, Steam Geibovich, my opinion about the game remains unchanged. Even after 500+ hours, hehehehe.

Honest people, remember my soul. I've already completed the game 29 times, and I still want more. It’s like I’m playing around with “staff,” really.

Before I even got acquainted with the game, I already called it “CANNON!!!”, and, as it turned out, for good reason. In general, Resident Evil 4 Remake is the only game in 2023 that I was looking forward to with genuine interest. I was a billion percent confident that the game would not only be worth my money's worth, but would also please both newcomers to the series and longtime fans like me. For reference, the very first game from the Resident Evil series that I played, and this was in 2013, was the original “four” of the European version. That's right, this is the same crooked port on PC, made on the basis of the PS2 version and released in 2007. This is the same port where there was no aiming through the mouse, the usual RMB turned out to be just CTRL, and where all lighting was lost. Fortunately, now in Russia it is extremely difficult to get this piece of code even in the very depths of the Internet. I understand that this is all a relic of the past, but c'mon, in 2007, technology-wise, everything was not so sad.

Now let's move on to the game itself.

I mentioned above that RE4R is the only game in 2023 that I was looking forward to with genuine interest. This is due to the fact that, when I first learned about the then-released remakes of the second and third parts (the characteristics of my old ten-year-old laptop did not allow me to play them, so I played RE4 and RE6), I became fiercely interested in the question of the existence of a remake of the fourth part. I clung to every rumor, every leak, looked for insider information and fan speculation, combed the Russian and English segment of YouTube, being in the highest degree of hope for the imminent release of a remake. And indeed, the game was announced on June 2, 2022. Oldies of the series like me were looking forward to the holiday, because Lord, a remake of the best part of Resident Evil actually EXISTS!!!

I’ll tell you about the game briefly and succinctly:

• Deserves the title of GOTY much more than the recent mediocre Starfield (thanks to the painted old woman Creation Engine, which is long overdue for retirement), which made a splash throughout Russia and the post-Soviet space Atomic Heart, a tale about Pinocchio in the souls-like genre Lies of P and even Baldur's Gate 3 (don't eat me, this is just a subjective opinion).

• Corrects all the flaws of the original 2005 game, turning them into its main advantages.

• Has in its arsenal a sophisticated, highly customizable and very well (in the realities of 2023) optimized graphics with support for FidelityFX Super Resolution (FSR, upscaling from AMD, similar to DLSS on NVIDIA video cards) versions 1 and 2.

• Boasts an official Russian dubbing, made not in a basement for the price of vodka, but in a professional studio with the participation of famous dubbing actors, which, in the current political situation, is a huge gift from CAPCOM.

• Considered the largest game on the RE Engine and the largest game in the entire Resident Evil series, including spin-offs.

• It is a remake of the highest rated game in the series, and also one of the most successful CAPCOM games.

• Both old (I speak from experience) and new fans of the series will greatly enjoy it.

• Graphics, controls and sound meet modern standards.

So, I’m ready to give this remake the following ratings:

• Graphics: 10/10

• Gameplay: 10/10

• Music, sound effects: 12/10 (this may sound surreal, but I’m ready to give another +2 points for the soundtrack in the credits)

• Plot: 10/10

• Controls (keyboard and mouse): 10/10 (crouching on “E” ", but who cares? The keys can be easily reassigned, and I personally have no problems with such a design solution)

• Controls (gamepads): 10/10

• Technical component (PC): 9/10 (cutscenes are displayed in an aspect ratio of 16:9, which is a little unpleasant for me, because I have a monitor with a 21:9 ratio)

• Technical component (PS5): 9/10 (I didn’t notice anything new, but playing Resident Evil 4 Remake with a gamepad DualSense was a joy)

• Technical component (PS VR2): 7/10 (the interface is not very clear, and the problem, as I understand it, is not even my poor vision)

• Atmosphere: 9/10 ( I'll take away one point, because in the first playthrough I was shot with a fiery arrow, after which I caught fire, fell into the water, but died because the water didn't put out the fire)

• Fear, cruelty: 8/10 (I never considered Resident Evil a horror series, horror games hardly scare me, but in this case it turned out to be a very good horror movie)

• Value for money : 10/10 (for 40 evergreens - a dream, not a game)

Mine overall game score: 9/10 (95/100). A MUST TAKE!