2005's Resident Evil 4 was a title that set out a trend for many of the current third-person shooter titles today, and with Capcom's remake of the cult classic now available to players, it has reignited and strengthened the flame of the original.
While the jump in terms of quality could be argued to mostly come down to the astronomical gap in the years of their releases, Capcom managed to double down on the survival horror title and create another memorable experience for fans. Despite the original and remake having their positives and negatives, the latest rendition outshines the original in various ways.
5 Greater Combat/Gunplay
One of the most prominent and most effective aspects of the Resident Evil 4 Remake is the improvements made to combat. Not only has Capcom allowed for more freedom in terms of movement while aiming, but stunning enemies and performing kicks feel more satisfying and fun than ever. While the original certainly had a large element of fun to its gunplay and combat loop, playing the reimagined version only shows how outdated the original is within this region.
Going hand-in-hand with adjustments to player movement, enemies are now far more aggressive and deadly, offering more of a challenge this time around. As the nostalgia and greatness of the original's gameplay loop will remain for fans to look back on, Capcom has pushed this to its optimal level, which leaves little room for competition here.
4 Serious Story/Tone
When speaking of 2005's Resident Evil 4, many fans will be aware of its B-movie tone, and it is much more light-hearted and cheesy tone. While the remake maintains some of these elements with Leon S. Kennedy's one-liners and quips still present, the overall tone and story are far more dark and gritty in comparison to the original. Some moments display more realistic and grounded outcomes within situations where characters would likely be helpless rather than cool or over-the-top heroic actions.
The horrors and deadly nature of the Ganados and cultists are fleshed out and brought into the spotlight on this occasion, ultimately giving players a deeper understanding of the dangerous situation both Leon and Ashley are placed in. Players can very well get the sense that if not for Leon's special agent capabilities, the situation could be far worse.
3 Stronger Relation To Resident Evil 2
Given the drastic change in tone, gameplay, and camera angles when Resident Evil 4 was first released, it was understandable that the story would be less tied to the events of Resident Evil 2. While the intro sequence in both the original and remake refer to the matter, the latter doubles down on this by not only giving fans further details as to what Leon went through in the aftermath of the Raccoon City incident but also addresses the connection between Leon and Ada.
Capcom's attention to character development seems to have been a crucial part of the remake, and this is clear to see particularly with Leon, as players will note a drastic change from a less experienced and vulnerable character to one who is well-versed and has a good understanding of others and how to operate under pressure. Despite characters such as Claire Redfield having no mention in the remake, the acknowledgment of prior events from characters in the remake is more than enough to link the character to the title.
2 Graphical Upgrade
From the character models of Leon, Ashley, the Ganados, and all other enemies within the game, the Resident Evil 4 Remake is an incredible jump in graphical fidelity compared to its 2005 version. With every single environment changed to fit a more modern standard, this is arguably one of if not Capcom's best-looking titles yet, capturing the detail the original version did in even greater quality and capacity.
Given the fact that the original's graphics were always going to be less preferred in comparison to a modern title released in 2023, fans would have already been anticipating this, but the upscale here is incredibly drastic running on the successful RE Engine.
1 Greater Replay Value
Even with its old age, Resident Evil 4 (2005) is a game that fans always tend to return to due to its great level of replay value, not only with its Mercenaries, Separate Ways, and Assignment Ada DLC modes but with the costumes and weapons players could unlock when attempting a second playthrough. With the remake, Capcom has announced the addition of a Mercenaries mode as free DLC and numerous weapons and outfits to unlock within the base game's campaign mode.
The addition of challenges and new difficulty modes, with the prospect of the original Ada DLC modes making a return, has created an even greater experience for players who wish to jump back into the game multiple times. Given the love and care the original title has received from both Capcom and its fans creating a plethora of mods, it is safe to say that this rendition of Resident Evil 4 could benefit from this even more.
Resident Evil 4 Remake is now available on PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.