Highlights
- Capcom has expanded and improved the Separate Ways DLC for Resident Evil 4 Remake, adding new content and increasing the tension and stakes for Ada Wong.
- Players can now journey through regions with Luis Sera, allowing for more story development and interactions with Ada.
- The trailer suggests that there will be a new dynamic and depth to Ada's relationship with Albert Wesker, including a potential betrayal or disagreement, raising the tension in the final stages of Separate Ways.
In 2005, Resident Evil 4's base campaign experience was one to behold in the eyes of its fans, providing a balance of action and survival horror. While the journey with Leon S. Kennedy and Ashley Graham was a memorable one, its DLC Separate Ways allowed players to see the horror and chaos unfold through the perspective of Leon's love interest, Ada Wong.
Despite its short length, Capcom managed to give players a good and worthwhile experience that many could often return to for replayability. On this occasion, Capcom has taken Separate Ways to another level entirely, not only in this DLC's production value with its full-fledged cutscenes and story beats but also in the realm of newly added content unlike what fans initially experienced.
5 Ada Infection
Without diving into spoilers, Separate Ways' trailer showcases a new obstacle in the way of Ada's mission of securing the Amber for Wesker, with what looks to be the same Las Plagas infection both Leon and Ashley suffer from.
This is a completely new aspect of this DLC, as the original consisted of Ada Wong coming out unscathed most of the time, but the tension and stakes are far above and beyond what fans have been accustomed to, this time. With the help of Luis Sera as seen from both the base campaign in the aftermath of the cabin fight with Leon and the Separate Ways trailer, players will be working hand in hand with Luis for a variety of reasons, including Ada's removal of the parasite.
4 Luis AI Co-Op
Speaking of Luis Sera, players will yet again be able to journey through regions with the researcher further extending the amount of screen time for the character. This stands as a huge win for fans who were still frustrated with the lack of Luis' presence in the base game, and also a major improvement for Separate Ways as this has opened the door to more room for story and plot points, and how this all connects to the main game.
Given the lack of development or appearances from Luis Sera in the original title's DLC, especially in the main story, Capcom has taken the perfect opportunity to further establish and flesh out the character and allow players to witness his different interactions with Ada as opposed to Ashley and Leon, despite his eventual death.
3 Wesker Appearance
A big surprise revealed from its trailer is Albert Wesker's appearance in what is suggested to be the Island towards the end of the base experience. Again avoiding spoilers as aforementioned, the trailer hints at some form of betrayal, disagreement, or misunderstanding between Ada and Wesker, leaving fans with the expectation of some raised tension and suspense toward the final stages of Separate Ways.
This is a complete shift compared to the original, as Wesker's appearances were only through a video call source communicating with Ada on what her next move would be. Whether this scenario in the trailer occurs earlier than fans may anticipate or within its latter stages, it promises to shake up the narrative and provide a new level of depth to Ada's relationship and dynamic with Wesker.
2 Verdugo/U3
Those who are familiar and accustomed to the original 2005 Resident Evil 4 will be aware of Salazar's boss encounter that sees himself and one of the Verdugos merging to become one for Leon to eventually defeat. With the base game completely omitting this, one of the notes in the latter stages of the title suggests that the Verdugo is indeed U3 which is a boss that many fans were upset to see cut from Leon's campaign.
Now, players will get to experience the terrifying boss through the eyes of Ada Wong, and the trailer suggests that there will be multiple encounters with the Verdugo/U3, leaving for a similar experience to Leon's run-ins with Chief Mendez.
1 Cut Content From Base Game
The most pleasing change in all of Capcom's efforts to revamp the Separate Ways experience on this occasion is that the content that fans had initially thought was cut from Resident Evil 4 entirely, will now be present in its DLC. While much of the Resident Evil 4 Remake's praise stems from the fact that the large and most popular areas of the game were maintained and not omitted, there were some sequences that fans were hoping to see present.
This includes the aforementioned U3 boss encounter, the cable car segment with players facing off against enemies, and the laser room, all of which will now take place in Separate Ways controlling Ada to many players' delight. Alongside the canon DLC, fans' frustrations have now been relinquished as both Ada and Wesker are now playable in Resident Evil 4's Mercenaries mode, which was not the case at the point of its release leading to the confusion of many. With original content from Leon's campaign now present within Ada's, the level of replayability has risen to an even greater level, and Separate Ways looks to continue Capcom's positive form not only within the realm of Resident Evil but will all of their franchises.
Resident Evil 4 Remake's Separate Ways is now available on PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.
