- Tested on PC with a RTX 4070 on a 1440p screen ultrawide
- Code transmitted by Capcom
- Finished in 25 hours hard (without new game plus)
- Gameplay captures and screenshots house
The informed readers know how much the MaG team likes the survival horror (see our podcast dedicated) and more precisely the saga Resident Evil. If purists carry high in their hearts – and rightly so – the holy PlayStation trilogy that set the milestones of the genre with panache, in 2005 this fourth opus marked the long-awaited return of Shinji Mikami as director. A major optical change when he was less involved as a producer of the suites of the standard meter sublimated by his version Rebirth. He is now captain of his own Tango Games studio (The Evil Within, Ghostwire: Tokyo, Hi-Fi Rush) and it was therefore Capcom's internal team that had to take over after a rough start to development at M-Two (responsible for the dispensable RE3 remake). 18 years after its bustling release on Gamecube and so many portages, this new recast of Resident Evil 4 ?
I'm sure you Boys didn't just tag along so we can sing Kumbaya...
The first observation expected from fans and not least, the Capcom teams did not neglect the graphics map. The Resident Evil Engine remains particularly pleasant to the eye and the game knows how to flatter the retina, especially on PC where customization options are generous. The title supports the Ray Tracing and turned unbroken on a well-muscled configuration. Models like animations are convincing. We will also find a Leon worn by a heavy gameplay at first but particularly successful. We will strongly advise to play the controller under penalty of losing the swinging ballistics of the game. Vising without butt is unstable and contributes to the success of Gunfighters where to chain headsshots ask for some fingering.
So it will be necessary to improve the weapons wisely at this good old imperturbable seller to fight back at the height of the arsenal of our opponents. We will sell as usual all our charms to the merchant who will be happy to launch his best punchlines in his repertoire, even if the change of the detonated doubler. Moreover, more QTE, this mode which has contaminated a whole part of the industry until indigestion following the frantic success of Resident Evil 2005
The game of course retains the original structure of its illustrious model, even if it allows itself some licenses more or less welcome depending on the circumstances as we will mention later. The three parts of the village, castle and island were therefore assigned to different teams, which is clearly felt in-game. It is probably the village that remains the most faithful to our memories and that may suffer from a level design more narrow and a little more angry by the years. The skirmishes with Bitores Mendez and the monster Del Lago seemed less well brought and otherwise less crado.
Where each harpoon shot gave rise to a wreath of effluent blood on the lake beast, the remake is more contrasted here on these two bosses precisely. The encounter with the first villagers also removes a part of the strange characteristic of the fact that it turned from very unnatural material in the Gamecube version. It's too bad I gave it up. The same was true for Mendez, who appeared by surprise while inspecting a painting in his image. Overall, the side The Thing flesh in perpetual mutation and rotting is more sober in this version 2023. For example, Mendez will arrive directly in his scorpion phase without seeing his body tear flesh and bone under the vociferations of the emerging monster. Same for Saddler who pierced the torso of the unfortunate Luis, who suffered in 2023 from a less terrible death signed Krauser.
Issue
If the invasion into the village is a real capharnaum, it seemed a little less dramatic in the approach than in the original. Leatherface (alias Dr. Salvador for intimates) is well present at the casting and fortunately, but it represents a negligible threat in this new opus. If the option against the knife is a successful addition in this episode, it makes the chainsaw of the bouger less intimidating, since we can oppose it our pretty tooth cure. As for the first encounter with the dogs, the latter took place at night and under storm in the original. Here the scene in broad daylight is somewhat lost from its superb. Among the details, Noah's ark also took his comforts in the village with cows and pigs coming in support of our friends the hens, even though it remains anecdotal.
In my opinion, this is the first part that is the least successful. If it is (too?) faithful to the original, it is not as overwhelming as the castle world, of an unparalleled wealth. It is here that we feel how pleased developers have been to renew our memories while releasing from the carcan of Mikami. In the castle, the rhythm accelerates by taking with it its lot of surprises. Each piece is the occasion of a new situation, with a bestiary that surprises and delights the fan of the series. The encounters with enemies in armor are great just like the most horrific episode where Ashley is controlled. The most striking puzzles like dinner have their place in the castle that echoes the Spencer mansion.
In addition to the classic twin sisters at the chainsaw, the village brings new enemies equipped with gatling and covered with a nice pig or wild boar mask that would not deny Miami Hotline. But it is really the castle that transforms the trial. Developers have been able to transcend each encounter while bringing refreshing situations. If I have always preferred the Zealot monks to the Ganados of the first third, it is because of the variety of medium-age weapons they use. More organized in their synchronised assaults, some of them are equipped with shields, shrubs, weapons masses or fakes. Seeing them turn into aberrations under the influence of a red priest is just as striking. You will have to oppose them a firepower worthy of that name!
On this point, the weapons have punch and offer a good capacity for penetration. If the distribution of damage is less extensive than in Resident Evil 2 (2019), the many dismemberment animations fly and the title knows is remarkably accurate. More fluid, this 2023 mount allows you to switch between 8 weapons instead of 4, so that you can show flexibility in all circumstances. It is a pleasure to alternate between heavy weapons and precision rifles. On the menu 18 weapons including news that joins the inevitable Striker or the faithful Killer 7!
The rhythm in the skin
The second world will thus give rise to the most beautiful gameplay scenes of the game, whose paroxysm will be reached by the fight against the two garradors, these blind berserkers equipped with sharp blades like a Wolverine in fury and under 3-MMC! It is at this point that crowd management will be pushed to the maximum, while the monsters will not hesitate to cut into pieces any obstacle to their passage whether he is friend or enemy. And there, as much as saying that your knife will be of little use to you in order to ward off the driven out of these forces. A good shot and you'll end up two boneless steaks. This is also one of the obvious signs of the division of the development of the game between several teams: the screens of the dead are much more violent and successful in the second part than in the first.
This is one of the flaws of the game: some kills lack fishing and radically break with the bestiality at work in the excellent remake of Resident Evil 2. In the ranks of the obvious failures, we will remember Leon who gets his eyes shot by shouting without opening his mouth... One Effect Muppet Show It is difficult to understand how it was validated in postprod. This is regrettable because the above remake had put the bar very high in terms of gross horror. Leon was pulled out of the jugular while slowly under a flickering light. Struck under the weight of the living dead, the chosen camera angle stifled the player by resuming the grammar of rape, before the scene ended with a bloody cry that was still going through my nightmares. It may be a detail for you but most of the fear comes from the sentence the player fears, namely the overflow of raw violence over a situation that was thought to channel.
In this sense and at the rank of the few pitfalls of the title, one will regret the avalanche of checkpoints of this remake which makes perfectly useless the traditional typewriters. It was already one of the tares of version 2023 of Dead Space (read our critical) and we find this cross at Capcom. The first run will thus lose much in intensity and stress, while a false step will take us back a few minutes earlier. The game is so permissive on this aspect, even in hard, that we sometimes find two points of automatic backups in the same arena, which does not really encourage caution!
Fortunately, this defect will be completely swept away in the new game plus that offers an old-fashioned experience with limited ribbon backups. But wasn't there an intermediary to find to maintain the tension and feeling of accomplishment during the first run? Resident Evil 2 (2019) left the leisure option at the beginning of the game for example. Nor is there any understanding of the choice of gamedesign that prevents certain treatments or ammunition from being placed in the trunk to unload its briefcase. On the other hand, the « hunting » from Metal Gear 3, out a year before Resident Evil 4 (2005), has been more skilfully integrated into this new strand.
Ashley heart to heart
In terms of writing, Resident Evil 4 (2023) keeps the tone B of 2005 while getting to the taste of the day. While the potache jokes with Hunnigan like Ashley are much less numerous, it must be noted that the writers have rewritten with intelligence a large part of the dialogues. The relationship with Ashley is better started, less carabinated and she will not hesitate to take much more initiatives. On this subject, the function that allowed to hide the president's daughter in a dumpster or closet is initiated with a certain humor post me too. In general, it is much more rare to use this option in remake. If Ashley calls us to catch her when she jumps out of a window, she won't hesitate to take care of herself if you're too long to relax. Iconic exit « You Pervert » addressed to Leon who ( inadvertently) would have looked under his skirt! If Ashley still has some suicidal behavior, his AI has been greatly improved.
Without turning into Shakespearean drama, staging and dialogue are therefore better felt. We may regret the late arrival of Saddler even though his character is particularly charismatic thanks to a striking dubbing. This abort from Salazar seems to have taken too much cortisone. Inflated like a baudrouch ball and with his hairstyle Melrose Place, we no longer really recognize the head to slam of 2005. Salazar is more in retreat, too, but the cinematics where he gets shot are still funky. It will lead to a boss fight which is one of the highlights of the game. His universe, however, was somewhat amputated on the guignolesque side that stuck to his skin. What happened to his Jack Sparrow hat and his horsetail? Her childish sadism, her little malice, her youthful angers as well as some kinematics miss the picture, even if the idea remains present.
In this generous bestiary, we will also remember the Regeneradores whose tumors Plagas will have to be destroyed in the bezel to get rid of them in the labs of the island. It's probably the most disturbing enemy of the game with the garradors. Hearing them breathing at the turn of a corridor will be enough to ice your blood! The squadrons of flying and invisible insects are still part of the game and will also give rise to beautiful scenes of animated gameplay! Among the absent subscribers, we will regret the withdrawal of boss U3 With the tongue hanging. Yet he had a certain stamp in the original. The stupid laser scene was also removed even though we understand a little better why. Resident Evil 4 remains however generous and gives the beautiful part to rewards and costumes of all kinds. The latter have already given rise to improbable variations by a "inspired" community determined to appropriate the game under all the seams of good taste for the best and for the worse…
You will understand at the end of this review, Resident Evil 4 picks up about all the boxes of an ingenious remake. Capcom has been able to bring back old memories from a new angle and without following in Mikami's original vision. Resolutely more modern, this redesign cultivates the art of nostalgia with intelligence. With a fast pace, the game leaves us no time to be bored and we rediscover the scenes that have marked us so much younger, in addition to new and new situations. With his naked gameplay, Resident Evil 4 can boast of dethroning many modern TPS that do not reach his ankle. He will only be accused of a certain permissiveness in the difficulty for a first run due to checkpoints in cascades and some choices of questionable designs and cuts. The whole remains an example of remake like Resident Evil 2. It remains to be seen whether Capcom will now confront us to bring out the mediocre Resident Evil 5 who took Mikami's recipe without panache...
For
- Graphics and splendid animations
- Overall faithful to the original
- Gameplay revisited with intelligence
- Some new milestones
- Salazar's boss
- Regeneradores and garradors
- Rhythm without fault
- Rewriting better felt
- Ashley's not a ball anymore!
- The castle on top!
- The new game plus
- Items and costumes to unlock
Against
- Perfect facial animations
- Some strong scenes deleted
- The less significant village
- Checkpoints far too many
- Cinematics not intended for ultrawide screens
- A few questionable choices of design and staging
Let's open the bets here. Next remake, Veronica Code or RE5? I'm putting on Code Veronica.
Unfortunately, I doubt because rights are shared with SEGA for this title (same problem for Dino Crisis) ! 🙁
Yeah? I didn't know about Code Veronica. It should be seen whether the licences were also renewed, normally every ten years in French law at least.
Oh, no, I didn't know! Code Veronica really had its own atmosphere, with its references to Psychosis. It could be amazing to see a modern version. I'll see a remake of Dino Crisis, especially since we're in the middle of dinosaur fashion. I can dream, but who knows...
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