Resident Evil 4

aka: Biohazard 4
Moby ID: 52872
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Picking up six years after Resident Evil 2, the fourth game in the series follows a former cop (now US agent) Leon S. Kennedy to Europe on a top-secret mission to investigate the disappearance of the president's daughter Ashley. As Leon encounters unimaginable horrors, he must find out who or what is behind everything. Old friends...and enemies...lurk around every corner as Leon attempts to find out who is truly behind the kidnapping of the president's daughter.

Resident Evil 4 is a major change from the previous installments. Instead of a fixed third-person perspective, the game features a new "behind the back" movement camera angle and an "over the shoulder" aiming feature that allows players to control their gun movement for specific body part hits. It features a brand new AI system and more open environments that allow enemies to work together to capture and corner Leon. Enemies are now humans, which allows them to climb up ladders, open doors, and use weapons throughout the game.

The entire item system has also been revamped, so that smaller items no longer require an entire item space to hold. Instead, items take up blocks of space in a briefcase according to their real-life size, to allow for many more items and weapons. Leon can collect treasure from enemies or from the surrounding area, and visit the infamous "merchant" to purchase bigger briefcases, treasure maps, weapons upgrades, and powerful weapons such as the one-shot RPG.

There is also the Mercenaries from Resident Evil 3, which allows the player to play survival scenarios as characters such as Hunk and even Albert Wesker himself.

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Credits (GameCube version)

165 People (149 developers, 16 thanks) · View all

Reviews

Critics

Average score: 96% (based on 113 ratings)

Players

Average score: 4.2 out of 5 (based on 157 ratings with 9 reviews)

What? I’ve been playing this game for over 30 hours?

The Good
Never before have I been so totally immersed in a game before, so utterly sucked into the whole experience that I have willingly played through the same scenario time and time again in successive play throughs. The amazing thing is, I never get sick of it. I have never looked at my copy of Resident Evil 4 and said “Meh, I’ll play something else.” The only other game I can say does this to me is Sonic Adventure, but for completely different reasons. No, there is something amazingly indescribable about Resident Evil 4 that transcends genre and established conventions. It’s the experience on a whole that is so addictive, so masterfully executed.

Playing Leon Kennedy from Resident Evil 2 you must infiltrate a small European village that is supposed to be harboring the kidnapped daughter of the US President. From here, the rollercoaster begins and Leon is subjected to all manner of physically demanding endeavors to save his, and Ashley’s lives. From the village you travel to the castle of a local tyrant, the sewers beneath it and even a military installation on a far island. Each location is so unique in its atmosphere and presentation that you never tire of anything, no environments or scenarios are every re-used, you’ll only ever see puzzles once and each indescribably awesome act of heroism performed by Leon is always unique and exciting. It’s this sense of driving pace and rapid transitions between environments that keeps the game feeling fresh even if you have beaten it several hundred times, like myself. Leon controls exquisitely. His movements are slick and he turns on a dime, his basic move set is pure survival horror. His weapon is readied with the a depression of the R button and it is fired when A is pressed. Holding down the L button readies Leon’s knife which can be a last minute form of defense or a method of saving ammunition or breaking boxes and barrels to collect items.

The enemies Leon encounters all have different reactions to being attacked on specific areas of their bodies. For instance shooting a standard Ganado (Basic sort of zombie like enemy) in the knee will cause his leg to buckle, allowing you to follow up with a swift kick to send him flying into a crowd giving you time to retreat. If you shoot him in the face you will get the same reaction however this will not work on all enemies and some like the Novistadors (flying, insect like things that kind of resemble Drain Demons from Resident Evil 3) cannot be staggered and must simple be overpowered. They can however be counterattacked at certain times. The way the enemies move, act and work together to block you and crowd you is claustrophobic and panic enducing. In lieu of traditional horror effects this method of panicking the player works perfectly.

From regular old enemies to cinematic boss encounters the action in Resident Evil 4 rarely slows down and just when you think you’ve got everything figured out you get burdened with Ashley; The President’s daughter. She is dead weight, but forces you to modify how you play, trying not to harm her and protect her simultaneously from the crowds of enemies that are often just as intimidating as the ones when Ashley isn’t hanging off you like a clingy girlfriend.

Graphically Resident Evil 4 is by far the most beautiful game on the Gamecube. Character’s move fluidly and realistically, there is no ghosting and very few frame rate problems. I was very, very impressed with the way Leon looked and animated from his swaying hair to his immaculately detailed jacket. There is no faulting the aesthetics of Resident Evil 4, nit pick if you must however you will come up with nothing. The only graphical trick the game seems to lack is bump mapping.

The sound design in the game is to be applauded. The enemies don’t speak English with forced European accents, they speak Spanish. They actually speak Spanish. The acting is very competent and the music is exciting, chilling and works seamlessly with the action onscreen to work you into a fevered panic.

The best part about Resident Evil 4 however is the various little extras that are bestowed upon you for finishing the game. When you’ve finished the main scenario which can take anywhere from 7 to 12 hours you are then able to play Ada’s little side story wherein you are tasked with finding 5 Plaga samples on the Island. When this is over you unlock yet another weapon which can be bought and used in successive play throughs of the main scenario. After buying all of the extra weapons and trying out all of the costumes you can then play through Mercenaries Mode, unlock yet another hidden weapon and then go back to the main scenario, buy it, play around with it and then simply poke around and try and find everything the game has to offer. You will NOT find everything in the game the first time through, unless you’ve already watched someone play it or you‘re incredibly meticulous. I’m still finding things I’ve missed in the past. Even if these things are small like treasures or little cache’s of ammunition or money, the point is the game is packed with these little surprises to encourage to keep playing. Which you will, for many, many hours.

The Bad
The bad things about this game are small and piddling, however there are issues related to the fundamentals of the Resident Evil series which cannot be skirted around.

I’ll get all of the specific things out of the way first.

To begin with Resident Evil 4 is letterboxed and if you’re playing on a small CRT, forget about it. Also if you’re playing without component cables on a High Definition television this game is going to look muddy and horrible. Playing it in 480p or on a wide screen CRT TV are your only options to enjoy the visual fidelity as it was intended.

There are many moments in Resident Evil 4 that you will probably hate. I know there are certain parts of the game I’d rather weren’t there at all, they won’t completely spoil your run of the game, but they will frustrate you greatly. Expect Ashley to die a lot and expect to spend a while on the slider puzzle in the Castle.

At first the bosses in the game are intimidating and often times gargantuan struggles that you will just scrape out of in the harder difficulties. However, once you learn that the Rocket Launcher kills everything in one shot, including bosses then you won’t be able to resist the temptation to simply buy one before the fight and blow the boss to hell in the opening moments.

Then there is the elephant in the room. What the hell happened to the Zombies? I was one of the people asking that very same question when this game came out. Sure, it is fantastic however it also has next to nothing to do with the well established Resident Evil mythos. I love the characters but the characters don’t mean anything if the other elements us Resident Evil fan boys and girls love so much are completely missing. The horror is gone, the zombies are gone and the T-Virus is a total no show. I have a big problem with this. It is all well and good having a sort of reboot of your franchise, but completely omitting every single element that was popular with the fans in the first place is akin to spitting in their face. Would it have been so hard to make this game, but with Zombies? Replace the Ganado’s with Zombies and no one would be able to tell the difference. Is it the speed you’re worried about? You introduced Crimson Heads in the remake back in 2002 for crying out loud. To me, the remake of Resident Evil back in 2002 had enough of a contemporary edge to make the series relevant again. It introduced strategic elements like burning bodies, gave us a fluid control scheme and the fantastic defensive weapons system.

The Bottom Line
I hate Resident Evil 4 as much as I love it. I hate it because it ended the franchise I loved so dearly and openly mocks me every single time I turn on the game by calling itself Resident Evil 4. As masterful and technically solid this game is, it still isn’t Resident Evil.

GameCube · by AkibaTechno (238) · 2011

The Resident Evil Game To End All Resident Evils!

The Good
So I finally played Resident Evil 4 last Memorial Day Weekend what took me so long you ask? Well I had my initial doubts while this game did surprise me with its quality it still isn’t as good as some have said some would have you believe this game has no flaws however as you know(or at least should know) there is no such thing as a perfect game as a matter of fact this game is by far the best Resident Evil Ever!!! So much so that I don’t care if RE5 ever comes out they could stop making these games with this one, but then again this was doesn’t conclude much of anything so there still is story to be told Now on to actual features of the game.

As you must likely know by know the plot of this game revolves around Leon Kennedy being assigned to rescue the president’s daughter which I don’t care for it sound like the plot of a 80’s action movie but it gets better upon his arrival Leon finds that a cult is responsible for Ashley’s capture the enemies are very much in the vein of something pulled from H.P. Lovecraft at least they borrowed from something good and these new enemies are all smart, ruthless, and relentless very different from the zombies of previous entries Considering the fact that many reviews told me how this game was really hard only a few parts were difficult and none of them were bosses all the bosses were easy and the hardest one wasn’t the final boss or even the biggest boss the hardest boss was one of the earliest. Although it does seem out of place I like the new shopkeeper where you buy and upgrade items and sell treasure items for cash.

Alike past Resident Evil this one does an excellent job of presenting the atmosphere and making you think quickly to deal with the chainsaw men coming at you while still not scary it does a good job making you jump or when a chainsaw man takes off your head I was heard to remark “Oh Shit” the game also has better integrated puzzles less ones that would be impossible to figure out yourself This game also keeps you on your toes even during cut scenes if you’re not paying attention during a cut scene you might end up dead like with a knife in your chest, or falling in a pit full of spikes.

The Visuals are some of the best seen on the Gamecube it really sets the mood for the game and the controls allow for even better immersion I also liked the new behind the back view while it was awkward to get used to at first once I started playing I couldn’t imagine it any other way and the new targeting system makes this game blast who doesn’t like exploding heads with your shotgun?

The Bad
Now the bad mostly its little stuff like how for some reason in the boxes that you see around sometimes have snakes in them and even though the new inventory system is good I do have a gripe all the same type of ammo should take up only one space instead of taking up a different space each time you pick one up.

The Bottom Line
All in all this is a great new entry and is so good that even if you do not like the past Resident Evils this is worth a play. In the immortal words of the Shopkeeper “What are You Buying?”

GameCube · by Classic Nigel (108) · 2011

No disrespect to my fellow Mobygamers, but am I the only one who notices the bad things in this game?

The Good
The game looks absolutely gorgeous, I didn't even know the GameCube was capable of producing anything that looks like this, hell I didn't even know the Wii could handle these graphics. Everything just looks insanely awesome and it was during a boss-fight with a giant fish that I was halfway expecting the system to just explode because of all the awesomeness on the screen. Yes, everything is brown and a lot of character models are recycled, but I don't give a damn, it's great.

The best part about this game is its variety, you never solve the same puzzle twice or encounter the same scenario more then once. I was always filled with glee once a certain section was finished, just because it meant I could discover what the game had in store for me next. The earlier mentioned fight with the giant fish is a great example, but there was also a great scene in which you and a support character hide in an abandoned building while dozens of angry peasants try to enter it from all sides.

I also really love the characters, while the story is what you expect from Capcom (it's absolutely retarded, but that's why we all love the company so much). The mysterious Luis felt like a true friend and Ashley was much more enjoyable to have along then I expected. Salazar was also just a barrel of fun, but I won't spoil him because that might rob you off the biggest "rofl" you'll ever have.

The inventory screen is revolutionary; the idea is that you have a suitcase and every item (bullets, weapons, herbs etc.) takes up a certain amount of spaces. A herb is only two spaces, but a pistol already takes up four and if you want a rocket launcher (or some other big weapon) you'll have to cut corners. Items can also be stacked and combined in order to save space and you can also destroy anything in your inventory at any time you wish. It's also interesting to spend a few minutes puzzling around with all the items in an attempt to still fit another gun somewhere.

Because of all the different weapons in the game you are able to decide your own style, you don't have as much choice as in an RPG, but you can still throw away all your weapons in favor of an SMG if you really want. Personally I stuck to the always reliable pistol and shotgun with a sniper and rocket launcher as back-up. Here is a little hint though: Always have a sniper on you, if you don't, you will not make it past the sections in the military base.

I don't get why this game is filed under the horror category, there were maybe two sections that made me feel afraid were that one part where you have no weapons and one moment very early on when a farmer I presumed to be dead placed a pitchfork in my throat while I was looking for secret coins. The crowning moment of this game is in a boss-fight with the village elder that looks like a scary enemy at first, but after a few shots his lower body will drop off and he will swing around the barn like a hyperactive monkey on Red Bull.

This game was a gift from a good friend, so it will always be a cherished part of my collection.

The Bad
Every once in a while this game will pull a dick move extraordinaire and randomly throw a Quick-time event at you. There are the standard ones like spam a button to free yourself from a grip and kicking a stunned enemy, but during some cutscenes you will also have to quickly press a button combination in order to avoid an instant kill. However not all cutscenes do this, even if Leon is in danger, so you never know when to be ready for it. The game also cheeky habit of placing a snake in like six boxes spread across the entire game, so if you are low on health and hoping a box will have herbs in it, you'll get to eat shit.

The controls are horrendous, is there any other game out there where you use the right-trigger to aim your weapon and A to fire? If so, then that means that more then one developers needs to start making sense. The now free left-trigger is used to ready your knife instead which is also fired by tapping A, can we leave the A button alone for mercies sake? The A button is for performing actions like jumping and crawling, that's what it's comfortable with! Aside from that there is also the slow movement, the fact that you need to arse Leon to open the door faster even if a mad Spaniard is throwing axes at him and the lack of precision when trying to navigate past traps.

Talking about traps, why the hell can enemies walk over them without hilariously screaming as the sharpened metal chops off their feet? When they walk over them nothing happens, even if you join them it still doesn't work (the metal only hurts you). You can cause some traps to explode and that will hurt enemies, but it still doesn't make much sense.

The game has no autosave, so if you start playing this game at night and get stuck halfway through the chapter, I hope you weren't planning on going to work the next day. There are typewriters which can be used to save progress mid-chapter, just like the radios in Medal of Honor: Rising Sun, but they are hidden (oddly enough also like in MoH). You can see them on your map, but I forgot I had the map because finding the right way to go on your own is much more fun than opening your inventory every ten seconds. Also, this is the kind of game where a boss-fight can be around every corner, so don't ever skip on a chance to safe.

The game kind of collapses when you arrive at the military complex, the problem is that from that point onward you won't see any of the peasants and cultists anymore and you'll just end up fighting lots of armed soldiers like every other damned shooter. At this point I was ten hours into the game, but it felt like freaking thirty and then there were the regenarators... oh Christ. Here is the deal, these bastards have parasites in them that regenerate all their damage, so in order to kill them you have to kill the parasites (not the parasites doing the actual healing work, those are somehow unrelated). The only way to see the parasites however is to use a scope that turns the game into a blurry episodes of "My Little Pony", but the damned scope only fucks ON SNIPERS! If you were planning to go through this game without using once, well too bad, you won't. After running into yet another one (I checked his body, no parasites, but he still activated when I opened a nearby door) I officially quit this game.

The Bottom Line
I don't know why everybody is complaining about Ashley, throughout the game she was only captured twice. There was one time when my Viking background got to her and she suddenly attempted to block an incoming boulder fired from a catapult with her face, but it was well comically timed, so I didn't hold it against the game. I am the only one who doesn't seem to love this game, which places me in an awkward position as a reviewer, but I think it is because I have so many games I'd much rather play waiting to be reviewed (Majora's Mask OMG!!!!).

The bad timing aside though: Resident Evil is without a doubt one of the best shooters you can possibly find. There are lots of flaws. but it's also completely unique and the amount of variety will guarantee you a good time. The game also looks spectacular, so if graphics are a big deal to you, you won't have to miss out on this game (as opposed to say... Psychonauts).

A fan of the Resident Evil franchise may dislike the lack of zombies or the distance from the original plot (Wesker is only briefly mentioned and Leon and Ada are the only characters in the game that appeared in other RE games). This is however the perfect game for new people like me who want to give the long-running Horror series a try. Just remember, you will have to pay for the privilege and I didn't :D.

GameCube · by Asinine (957) · 2011

[ View all 9 player reviews ]

Trivia

Development

The earliest version of the game was announced for the PS2 under Resident Evil 2 with director Hideki Kamiya. This build was eventually cancelled as a Resident Evil installment and became the title known as Devil May Cry. Eventually, development was moved to the Gamecube console and another build emerged. This was the first version to feature Leon from RE2. The game's main menace was to sport a hook on one of its hands, and the logo for the game reflected this (this can still be seen in the final logo). More versions were created and cancelled before Shinji Mikami took over and transformed the title into what it is today. Of all the builds developed, only one of them was never unveiled to the public (it was the one that was being worked on right before Mikami took over). Early in the development stages the game's setting was Japan, not Europe.

German index

On June 30, 2005, the English version of Resident Evil 4 was put on the infamous German index by the BPjM. For more information about what this means and to see a list of games sharing the same fate, take a look here: BPjS/BPjM indexed games.

References

  • There is a laser room (hallway actually) much like the one in the original Resident Evil movie, where Leon has to dodge laser beams and pull various stunts. He survives the lasers, however, unlike the S.T.A.R.S. team in the movie.
  • The Killer 7 handgun was named after the title of a Shinji Mikami-produced game.
  • Krauser and HUNK's music that plays in The Mercenaries game mode is actually from P.N.03: the music from the 4th and 8th mission, respectively.

Sales

According to publisher Capcom, the GC version of Resident Evil 4 has sold 1.6 million copies worldwide since its initial release (as of June 30, 2016).

Voices

In the typical fashion of depicting Spanish inhabitants, the voiceovers were made by Mexican actors (some of them trying to do Spanish from Spain) rather than by real Spanish actors.

Weapons

All the weapons used by Leon in the game are based on real weapons. The standard handgun looks similar to a Beretta 92 (with nickel plating, which the original gun wouldn't have); the Punisher handgun looks somewhat like the H&K VP70; the shotgun is a Remington M870; the Striker is an actual shotgun developed in South Africa; the rocket launcher is a Russian RPG-7 (which can actually be reloaded and fired again). The "Red 9" 9mm pistol is a "Mauser C-96" from the World War I era. The Red 9 version actually had the number 9 carved on the grip, painted in red. It was heavy and slow to reload, but offered good power and range at the time.

Awards

  • 4Players
    • 2005 – Best Game of the Year
    • 2005 – Best GameCube Game of the Year
    • 2005 – Best Graphics of the Year
    • 2005 – Best Successor of the Year
  • Game Informer
    • January 2006 (Issue #153) - Game of the Year 2005
  • GamePro (Germany)
      1. February 2006 - Best Console Game in 2005
      1. February 2006 - Best Console Action-Adventure in 2005
  • GameSpy
    • 2005 – #2 Game of the Year
    • 2005 – GameCube Game of the Year
    • 2005 – GameCube Game of the Year (Readers' Vote)
    • 2005 – GameCube Action Game of the Year
  • Golden Joystick Awards
    • 2005 - GameCube Game of the Year
    • 2005 - Best Film-Based Game of the Year
    • 2005 - Editor's Game of the Year
  • IGN
    • 1 by IGN Reader Reviews

Information also contributed by Big John WV, glidefan, kelmer44, MAT, MegaMegaMan, sealboy6, Tiago Jacques, TonicBH, Xoleras

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Contributors to this Entry

Game added by Corn Popper.

GameCube added by MegaMegaMan.

Additional contributors: MAT, MegaMegaMan, CalaisianMindthief, Patrick Bregger, piltdown_man, legofan94.

Game added September 14, 2011. Last modified March 11, 2024.