Game review: Resident Evil 4 remake is a masterpiece

Journey with Leon Kennedy, an agent tasked with rescuing the president’s daughter in a tucked away Spanish village. (Image: Resident Evil 4 remake)

If there’s one title uniting Resident Evil fans across the world, it’s the highly anticipated remake of the pivotal Resident Evil 4. The original title back in 2005 was a game-changer, remembered as one of the greatest games of all time and a major influence for many of today’s third-person survival games. The remake of this iconic game is a perfect example of how remakes done right can create an unforgettable experience that new-age gamers can imbibe, and veteran gamers can relive. Here’s why you need to add Resident Evil 4 remake to your collection.

Simplicity in a compelling narrative

With today’s games getting increasingly intense with themes that are highly relevant to modern times, the Resident Evil 4 remake brings back the days of a simple narrative that kept you going ahead for more. Journey with Leon Kennedy, an agent tasked with rescuing the president’s daughter in a tucked away Spanish village. The village folk are not particularly friendly (or even human) and you discover the ongoings of this place left behind in time, trudging through with just your survival instincts.

Though this is the fourth installment in the series, you don’t need to have experienced the previous titles and can dive headfirst into this one. Resident Evil 4 can in fact accentuate your experience with other Resident Evil games if this happens to be your first.

Survival horror game Resident Evil 4 first released in 2005.

The gameplay is fire

The typical trait for most survival horror games is skulking about, waiting to shiv the next enemy in front of you. Resident Evil 4, however, does not hold back on the action. There’s something absolutely satisfying about disorienting an enemy with a single bullet to the head before finishing them off with a roundhouse kick to the face.

Resident Evil 4 is not all guns blazing – you will often find yourself thinking on your feet, choosing fight or flight. Dodging, parrying and just making a dash are all options at almost every point in the game – how you utilize these tactics and your arsenal determines how far you’ll get. Leon’s movements can feel a bit stocky at the start but become fluid as you progress, getting over first-time grasps.

Resident Evil 4 does create a tense atmosphere for most parts of the game but it’s pretty easy to distinguish when you’re in the clear and when you’re in for a tough time. The game is pretty generous with these cues but doesn’t hold back in the riddled tense moments.

Survival is everything

Resident Evil 4 is not an easy game but that being said, it’s definitely fair. You will find yourself counting bullets as is customary to every Resident Evil game, however just a tad bit less given the action-packed nature of this title. There are scrummage areas for herbs, tools and first-aid items that determine how far you’re going to proceed in the game. The aids are quite adequate for the journey through the game – it thoroughly relies on your skill and learning. How you spend your currency at merchants too is a big deciding factor for your victory.

The iconic inventory management system, of course, claims its place in the game as you navigate and rearrange every item that accelerates your progress through the story. The addition here is a crafting mechanic that lets you discover new items and organize your inventory better.

Resident Evil 4 remake inventory management system.

Commendable photo mode

An addition, in almost every game I’m biased towards the photo mode. Resident Evil 4 delivers on this promise to make almost every moment in the game capturable the way you want it. Barring some cutscenes, you can freeze every moment in the game, and create some excellent wallpapers for your PC or phone with the game’s robust photo mode. Using a simple array of effects and tweaks, you can get the best moments of your game captured to your liking. The photo mode doesn’t have unnecessary complications, making even newcomers to this concept curious about what they can achieve with it.

Barring some cutscenes, you can freeze every moment in the game, and create some excellent wallpapers for your PC or phone with Resident Evil 4’s robust photo mode.

Who should play Resident Evil 4?

If you’re a long-term fan of the series or a newcomer to survival action games, Resident Evil 4 is a must-play for sure. Easy to pick up and tough to master, the game offers a challenging experience along with great accessibility features to first-time gamers to get the hang of the genre. Great story, fantastic fan service and an invitation from Capcom to discover their capabilities.

Reviewed on Playstation 5. Also available on Playstation 4, Xbox Series X/S and Windows. Review code provided by Games The Shop