Text/Sanming
In the minds of many players, Resident Evil 4 is a white moonlight existence of the rescue series.
The original version released in 2005 not only symbolizes the key version of Resident Evil's transformation from a puzzle horror game to a half-puzzle and half-action game, but it is also a pioneer in defining the "over-the-shoulder perspective" operation mode for the industry, and the almost perfectly balanced resource management and combat system also makes this game the best in the biochemical series.
So today, from 2005 to 2023, Capcom has reset "Resident Evil 4" 13 times in the name of high-definition, ultimate version, etc. in the past 20 years, and this player-recognized masterpiece has been ported to 12 platforms including PS/Microsoft/Nintendo Family Bucket.
Even IOS/VR has not escaped the iron spoon of the card master
As one of Capcom's current signs, the "RE" series, which completely remakes the old game with modern technology, is naturally indispensable for the joining of the god work, and on March 24, 2023, "Resident Evil 4RE" was released.
This work is the same as the remake of the 2nd generation and 3rd generation, using Capcom's self-developed and self-used "RE engine", the picture performance has been comprehensively improved to the level of this generation's masterpiece, after the rise of monster hunting, Devil May Cry 5, Biochemical 7/8 and other works, Capcom can be said to be handy for the application of the RE engine, the optimization of the 4RE is very good, I used the flagship configuration of the previous generation 13700K/3080 in this review, which can stabilize 144 frames throughout the 4K full high-height special effects.
So without further ado, let's hurry back to that small village in Spain to dismantle the cult's plot and save the daughter of the President of the United States.
Ah no, forgot to uninstall the mod, the picture is misplaced.
Is there a deletion process this time?
This is probably the biggest concern for players.
After all, in the RE generation, the remasters of the 2nd and 3rd generations of the predecessors have very obvious process and plot deletions, so although the first two remasters have evolved significantly, there is still a lot of controversy (especially the 3rd generation remasters that most players can clear in about 4 hours).
Then I guarantee that the raw 4RE has a deletion process, after all, the complete remake defined by the raw 4RE is not a 1:1 reproduction of the original with the current technology.
On the whole, Raw 4RE completely retains the main story of the original version from the village all the way to the castle, and then find the real murderer behind the scenes on the isolated island - thanks to the improvement of hardware level, the map in the remake is biased towards a semi-open box court, and you can play smoothly along the way with the process, and looking back to explore can often find a lot of new surprises, not copying the original almost one-by-one game experience.
It is worth mentioning that each map retains the nostalgic element symbols, or the original flavor, and during the process of clearing the level, I can always flash in my mind the memories of playing Biochemical 4 many years ago.
At least I personally cleared the normal mode for about 12 hours a week, did not collect all of them, just did a few side lines along the way, if you count the time of repeated tackling of some levels, I spent about 15 hours to clear the level, which is also a relatively long process in the biochemical series.
Of course, many puzzles/levels/plots in the original version have been "optimized" for many reasons.
The part I can clearly feel is probably about the lack of plot levels in the "Left Protector" part of the castle owner Ramon Salazar, to be more accurate - the container level on the isolated island and the U3 boss incarnated by the original Left Protector are gone, considering that it has now been revealed that Aunt Wang's single-player DLC will be launched after giving birth to 4RE, we may be able to expect Capcom to complete that memory in the future.
And in the original version, Leon's former comrade-in-arms/teacher Jack Crowther is an undercover agent sent by Lao Wei to the sect leader, his motive is to find an opportunity to capture "Amber", and in Birth 4RE, Jack becomes a faithful believer of the Sun Sect.
Although some levels have been deleted, the game experience of Sheng 4RE is fuller, and even in the storytelling section, Sheng 4RE has added a lot of "material".
—The following contains spoilers for the new plot of Raw 4RE, friends who want to keep the freshness can skip it for the time being—
All the characters are complex and real, making me feel like they are real, which is the biggest surprise for me in the story of Raw 4RE.
For example, Jack Clausa, as a man who ran through several "Resident Evil" spin-offs and Leon's first half of his life, his image in the original version was somewhat flat, and after seeing the power of the Veronica virus, he turned to Lao Wei and accepted transformation, more like a mercenary who acts for money.
In Birth 4RE, Jack's image is much more complete, and the plot mentions that the reason why he defected to the government was that he was involved in the fight of politicians in Operation Javier in 2002, and in the end the squad was all destroyed except him, so by controlling Ashley with the Pukara parasite of the Sun Sect, and then controlling her father the President of the United States, and finally achieving control of the world, which is also the revenge of Jack, a rather tragic hero.
The best thing about the shaping of Jack by 4RE is that in this decisive revenge, it adds a little complex humanity to him, I think Jack must also understand that the so-called overthrow of world hegemony by the Sun Sect is just to recreate a "US president" through biological and chemical weapons, his lost comrades will not return, and people will lose more things in the future.
It's just that, as a small person, the world does not give him many options, either to be "sacrificed" in a political struggle or to become a pawn of another careerist.
So, when the great battle with him was over and the defeated Jack lay on the ground, instead of seeing remorse or sadness in his expression, he put the dagger in his hand to his chest and said to me, "Leon, you know what you have to do." "At that moment I was indeed able to substitute for Leon, and somewhat reluctantly sent away this former instructor, who was also a teacher and friend.
There is also our best assist (male) Luis, born 4RE postponed his time to receive the bento, arranged a heroic enough exit for him, and the shaping of the character is also further in a fuller foreshadowing.
The best assist (female) is naturally Aunt Wang spicy
He is optimistic by nature, always finds a way to say something witty to ease the tension in a crisis, he always fantasizes that he is the protagonist of the novel, even if there is no war horse and only a wooden stick in his hand, he will still happily launch a "charge", he also likes to use the name of Don Quixote's servant Sancho as Hulyon, sometimes, this man is very mysterious, he is very familiar with the experimental research of the Sun Sect, and has a secret deal with the mysterious bad woman King Ida.
The character image with a slightly dark side under the sun gives him a unique charm of both good and evil. Although Louis only appeared briefly in Raw 4 and was a relatively marginal supporting role in the biochemical worldview, it did not prevent him from becoming a hero of his dreams/in my mind with the complete shaping of a work, worthy of me lighting a cigarette for him and then remembering him for the rest of his life.
In general, none of the several main characters with independent modeling are tool people, and each has arcs, growth, and exit points full of memory points.
Raw 4RE also handles it very well - a lot of key story information is not directly told to the player through the better cutscenes, but needs to be discovered by the player himself.
We can find the detailed planning plan and emergency filing of Jack's plan to kidnap Ashley in the combat command, as a small cult on a small island, the Sun Cult can kidnap Ashley under the strict protection of the US president's bodyguards, why the congregation can transform the entire island into a fortress, and the birth of 4RE has also been explained more reasonably.
When the story comes to a later stage, we can find Louis's original laboratory and learn how this former Umbrella researcher went undercover on an isolated island ruled by an evil religion, trying to bring in external forces to save the people, and from his research reports and correspondence with Aunt Wang, he witnessed that "Don Quixote" easily took on the task of saving the world.
In this corner of the small world, you can find clues to the story, and gradually uncover the huge conspiracy behind this kidnapping. To experience this story for yourself, the process of peeling back the cocoon to find the truth, is definitely more immersive than experiencing the complete plot as a bystander. In the current era of growing player base and people's inevitable higher and higher requirements for the game itself, this is undoubtedly the part of Resident Evil, the IP that changes in line with the times.
The successful creation of the character by 4RE is more than just a supporting role.
Ashley, who is no longer in the way, and Leon, who ascends the tuba
If you want to choose the most unlikable character in the original, I think the heroine Ashley, who is jokingly called a hindrance by many netizens, will definitely get a lot of votes, or comment on a list of the most hated teammates in the history of the game, and the original Ashley is definitely on the list.
In the original 2005 version, Ashley was the first time the production team designed a follower/auxiliary NPC in the Resident Evil series, which can be said to be the fun of the production team challenging the gameplay and a new narrative method, but the actual presentation effect is quite like a buyer show.
Ashley is like a completely unscrupulous but taunting entourage in battle, she will be captured/killed at every turn, and then the player will need to spend their own resources to revive her. And maybe it is to reflect the later growth of the character, Ashley's personality when she first appeared can almost be described as a very bad young lady, ignorant, selfish, and by today's standards, it is the kind of female imp who is very arrogant but useless, or the player can't let her taste the kind of "adult powerful".
Fortunately, God of War is on PC (laughs)
The one I remember the most was when she had an awkward fight with Leon, and then fell into a trap and was taken away, wasting my three-tube mixture of herbs, which is a blood pressure experience in both the plot and gameplay, and I think Shinji Mikami designed this character to think that the difficulty of the game was too low and wanted to give the player some strength.
So much so that every time she shouted "leon" in the later stages, my heart jumped with it, just like when my mother called me by my full name
Ashley in 4RE made me think a lot about her. No, the game has not been released for a few days, and the CP party dispute about Ri Ai and Ri Wang has already been quarreling on the forum.
Part of the reason for this must be attributed to Ashley's new image is more in line with the aesthetics of modern players, isn't there a saying - as long as you look good, the three views follow the five senses.
She is no longer the original kind of hairy little brat, plus a close-fitting sleeveless sweater that has been very popular in the past two years, it can be said that she has added just the right fragrance to the tension of escaping Resident Evil, and has not been affected by any European and American popular ZZZQ, absolutely protruding and upturned native gender without any poisonous points, the child really likes it when he sees it.
And Ashley has black silk, which is too astringent
Another important point is that with the advancement of storytelling and level design, Ashley's character has also become fuller, as a 20-year-old girl who has been kidnapped and away from daily life, Ashley will be helpless and afraid, and she still distrusts Leon when she first meets him, and after working with Leon several times, Lyon's firm "Trust me" is conveyed to Ashley.
Soon she showed the qualities that a highly educated college student should have, not only sensible in the plot, but also brave and resourceful (even driving an iron ball crane).
And Ashley has black silk, which is too astringent
The most important thing is that as a follower/auxiliary NPC, Ashley has made progress in mechanics and gameplay that meet the needs of the current era - for example, the game has added a lot of small puzzles that require two-person cooperation to solve, and each time the puzzle is solved, there will be a small interaction between Ashley and Leon, the two sometimes spit on each other, and sometimes look forward to a good life after escaping danger, which is also a very key healing power for me off-screen.
And even after falling to the ground, Ashley doesn't need to consume additional player resources to revive, and she doesn't even have a damn progress bar, so you can find an opportunity to help her up between enemy attacks.
On the one hand, we play Zhao Zilong on the slope of Nagasaka in the game, and we also need to always pay attention to Ashley's state in addition to seven in and seven out, and her injury or capture will increase the difficulty of passing the level, which undoubtedly enhances the sense of substitution of "protecting the daughter of the President of the United States";
On the other hand, I can clearly feel that the difficulty of guarding Ashley is far less heavenly than the original, and it can be said that it takes care of the level of the vast majority of players, which belongs to the reasonable distribution of the ratio of hardship and enjoyment, sets the challenge for the player and does enough "psychological massage".
And Ashley has black silk, which is too astringent
Yes, in my opinion, the optimization of gameplay can really capture the player's emotions - and under the new standard, Leon is finally going to be on the big this time.
As the pioneer of the "shoulder perspective", the original biochemical 4 first attempt was accompanied by many immature places, such as the operation mode still inherited the 3rd generation of very lame double joystick control character movement, once jokingly called by players "as if driving a tank".
The 4RE naturally follows the more mature over-the-shoulder perspective operation of the previous two generations of remakes, and the 4th generation of unique physical movements is almost completed in one go, and the feeling of pleasure is full.
In addition, the knife after enhancing the action interaction experience, the status of the 4RE has also been epicly strengthened, and the sense of existence is extremely strong.
For example, you can use a knife to defend against all of the enemy's melee attacks and most of the long-range attacks with bullets, and when besieged by the enemy, it is the same as Leon landing next door to the large open Royal Guard mode, jingling is very refreshing.
For example, Raw 4RE allows Leon to sneak to assassinate enemies, and in many levels, it will also design a special route for players to stealth through the level, bringing a new idea of clearing the level.
The rich gameplay of the knife is also integrated into the resource gameplay of the game itself, increasing the mechanism of durability, blocking, assassination will consume durability, durability to go to the merchant to consume gold coins to recover.
Melee, stealth, frontal breakout... You can choose your preferred way to clear the 4RE.
There is also a raw 4RE can organize the backpack with one click, the addition of this function is really good in my opinion, the fun of the Resident Evil series is that you need to use resources carefully, while facing enemies several times your own, the function of quickly organizing the backpack retains the core experience (the tension of limited resources), and does not require me to put more energy into the basic work of organizing my bags.
Please, I'm a senior agent under the direct orders of the President
In short, if in the performance of the plot/level, the raw 4RE is mainly deleted and patched, then the combat of this work is much more refreshing than the original, which is a thorough addition, remastering many immature parts of the original with the current mature technology, which may be why in 2023, we are still happy to see a new Resident Evil 4.
If nothing else, seeing that at the end of each battle are a pile of corpses and various materials/gold coins that explode them, you should be able to imagine how much I substituted Li Sanguang's original light when I played.
To sum up in one word: buy!
If I had to use a fried rice to describe raw 4RE, it is at least an authentic Yangzhou fried rice cooked seriously by the chef in my heart, the rice is wrapped in egg liquid, golden and grainy, and under the background of diced mung bean corn ham, it can already make people imagine how delicious it is, and it will definitely be the kind that will be excited.
The original version is the most highest-rated work in the series, and the remake once again defines the standard for remastered games for the industry, and the raw 4RE almost 1:1 reproduces the amazing feeling that the original brought to players that year, and the fun is indeed worthy of a masterpiece.
The original $250 collector's edition was once speculated to $500 on eBay, which shows the enthusiasm of players
Of course, the raw 4RE is not perfect, even if you put aside the original sin of "fried cold rice" that many people know, there are still some small flaws that are difficult to cover.
For example, the perspective operation is as thin as ever, especially once the enemy is close, after raising the gun and switching the perspective, it is basically the same as a normal vision person with a pair of 800-degree glasses, and it is impossible to distinguish the enemy's head, body, hands and feet.
For example, there is still a certain gap between the controller and the keyboard and mouse operation experience, even if the keyboard and mouse are easier to aim, the total game experience is a more ergonomic shooting controller operation experience is better, not to mention that the controller also comes with a quick turn, this function is simply too important for a game that needs to shoot and escape.
Then again, these are common problems of Nippon Factory with low technology and more emphasis on the host platform. As a JRPG lover who eats a lot of "" in various Nissan games every year, I can make up for this little flaw with love, I don't know if you can do it.
In my opinion, such a "Resident Evil 4RE" that deserves to be the most Resident Evil in terms of process length and playability, but it is slightly regrettable, and I am willing to give it 9.5 points.