I've really never considered myself a Resident Evil fan, as I played the first game a few years ago and didn't really care for it. Recently, however, I've really begun to rethink that stance, as the games after 3 completely revamp the series. This game is not perfect, but it is probably one of the best action-based horror games ever made.
I'm going to spend a very small amount of time on the story, because it's really not what you play a Resident Evil game for (in my opinion). It's pretty standard Resident Evil: There's some mysterious event, an agent is sent to deal with it, it turns out to be some crazy cult using disease for world dominaition/destruction/etc. The voice acting is fairly good, albeit a bit hammy at times, and that reflects on the story at large. It's science-fiction-y, it's action-y, and it's a good time. To me, complaining about a story that doesn't really make sense or isn't very well paced in a Resident Evil game is really a waste of breath (or keystrokes, in this case). The action is where the real meat of this game is. It isn't quite a traditional 3rd person shooter, but it takes the older RE formula and takes it in a direction more suited towards that. The C-stick doesn't aim. Instead, when you hold down R, you enter an aiming mode where the control-stick aims. When not in this aiming mode, the control stick moves you with tank controls. Reading "Tank controls" may be a turn off to some, but because you can do a quick 180 degree turn with holding down and pressing B, I never had any problems with mobility. The result is a system that's very tense and also very skill based. You HAVE to stand still to attack at all. This puts a heavy emphasis on keeping distance between you and your target, and keeping your shots precise. I never thought the game was terribly difficult. I'm fairly bad at console shooters, but even I didn't have much trouble with the boss fights. I found the final boss very easy, really, with the second to last boss really being the hardest. Ammo conservation is required, this being a survival horror game, but I had a TON of magnum and shotgun rounds left at the end of the game from being too conservative. Those handgun shots really count though, so save 'em! You can find money to use at the merchant as well, but you can only buy guns, gun upgrades, and healing items there, not ammo. The only part of the game that gave me any trouble were the QTE's. As a rule, I think QTE's usually make a game worse, but this game used them, usually, in ways that enhanced the experience. As opposed to a dedicated dodge button, when an attack that the game says can be dodged is about to hit you, a prompt comes up on screen to either press A and B or R and L, making you do an invincible animation to avoid the attack. These did get in the way at some points. Being that A also fires when you're in aim mode, if you have to dodge with A and B, the QTE takes precident for your action, so there would be times where I'd be trying to shoot a boss while he was about to move and the gun wouldn't fire because I'd be being prompted for a QTE. Additionally, there are some sections, one in particular, that relies on succeeding a succession of QTE's to avoid instant death, and I thought those were pretty wank. Their only saving grace is that the continue points are very forgiving, so only your death counter (and your patience) will suffer from those bits. Verdict: Highly recommended. When Nintendo Power ranked RE4 as their #1 Gamecube game in their 20th anniversary issue, I was frankly fairly dubious that a non-Nintendo game could top their platform, but my skepticism was clearly wrong. This is probably one of the best shooters and action games on the Gamecube, and it's a ton of fun that's totally worth playing in any of its ports if you don't wanna fork out 20 bucks for the Gamecube original.
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AuthorI'm an avid gamer who likes to detail their thoughts about what they play in the hopes it might aid someone else's search for a game to play. Archives
April 2024
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