Resident Evil 4

Category: Game

Tinkering with a successful formula is always a gamble, especially when it's one as celebrated and long-running as Capcom's Resident Evil. In this case, however, the gamble has paid off. By ditching tired and overdone conventions and replacing them with a new theme and a more action-heavy style, Capcom has created a half-familiar, half-original masterpiece of atmosphere and menace.

The game opens with Leon (Brendan Frazier look-alike and secret service agent), traveling to Europe in search of the President's missing daughter. Once there, he's ditched by his escort and left to fend for himself, with only a pistol to hold off the locals, who don't seem to be entirely, well, human.

While playing a Resident Evil game without zombies is a bit shocking at first, the villagers you face early in the game might as well be undead -- they've got the vacant stare, the shuffling gait, and the burning desire to relieve you of your major organs. They're just not what you might call dead. Yet.

Assisting you in the disposal of these not-zombies is a considerable armory of high-powered weapons. Before long, you'll ditch the pistol in favor of the shotgun, scoped rifle, sub-machine gun, rocket launcher, and numerous other toys, all of which have to be squeezed into your limited inventory space. Most weapons can be upgraded in a variety of ways, and each has its uses.

Losing the undead isn't the only way Resident Evil 4 differs from its predecessors. The often clumsy fixed perspective view is also gone -- now the camera sits behind Leon's shoulder and shows more-or-less what he sees. Pressing in the right shoulder button raises his gun, and you can aim using the analog stick, targeting whatever parts of your attackers' bodies you think best. However, you can't move in aim mode and there's no strafing at all.

So even with this new view and heavy action bias, Resident Evil 4 is a long way from being a first-person shooter. Despite using the analog stick for movement, it's a distinctly digital process, and has a heavy feel that harks back to the "tank" movement control of the earlier Resident Evil games. But it doesn't feel like a handicap, since aiming is quick and easy and the over-the-shoulder perspective rarely interferes with your shot.

Unlike many other third-person action games, there's no complex list of moves to learn. One context-sensitive button does just about all the actions, be it climbing a ladder, jumping through a window, flipping a switch, or picking up an ammo pack. Some sequences also include Shenmue-style timed button mashing sequences, like hammering the A button to run away from an approaching boulder. And don't set the controller down during cutscenes -- you never know when you might need it.

True to the series' strong graphical history, Resident Evil 4 looks stunning. Some of the environmental effects, like rain or lava, must be seen to be believed, and the character animations in both gameplay and cutscenes is first-rate. Hit an enemy in the leg and he'll stagger or fall to the ground. Pull off a headshot for a delightfully satisfying explosion of gore.

Sound is also near-perfect. Dolby surround sound is ideal for this style of game, and RE4 has some of the meatiest and most satisfying weapon effects. The subtle soundtrack and ambient noises underline the action and suspense without being overbearing -- and the whole package has such a convincing splatter-horror feel that it's easy to forget it's just a game.

And the plot? OK, it's pretty daft, and the dialogue has its share of howlers. But then, it's questionable whether it would be a Resident Evil game without a low-budget translation. We suspect the localization team is well aware of this -- there's an in-joke or two if you've played the earlier games.

Resident Evil 4's gunplay, while delicious, may not please fans who are more into the "horror" part of "survival horror." While it has creepy moments, it's a long way from Fatal Frame or Silent Hill. Still, zombies jumping out of closets was scary back in 1999, but things have come a long way since then.

Meanwhile, fans should be delighted to see the old "typewriter ribbon" save-system chucked out. Instead, you have unlimited saves at typewriters around the level, and if you die, there are well-spaced restart points to keep the frustration level low.

With somewhere over 20 hours of gameplay, plenty of hidden bonuses and secrets, and a perfectly-tuned dynamic difficulty level that adjusts itself according to your performance, Resident Evil 4 is a fantastic adventure. Few games create such a strong sense of atmosphere and involvement, and fewer still do it with this level of smoothness and attention to detail. This is a must-buy for any Gamecube owner... of appropriate maturity, of course. Don't miss it.

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