Resident Evil 4 - GameCube (GC) Reviews


	Platform GameCube Genre Survival Horror Publisher Capcom Developer Capcom ESRB M (Mature) Released January 2005

- Killer graphics - Killer gameplay - Killer soundtrack - Killer cutscenes - Some cutscenes require player participation - Brand new RE storyline

- No side stepping or strafing - Some muddy textures - “LEEEOOOON HELLLLP!”

Review: Resident Evil (GC) Review: Resident Evil Zero (GC) Review: Eternal Darkness - Sanity's Requiem (GC)
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Resident Evil 4

Score: 9.8 / 10

Love survivor horror games but don’t have a GameCube? Well, take my advice and go and get one ASAP (if you have the extra cash that is) and pick up a copy of Resident Evil 4 while you’re at it. If you don’t have the extra loot, which I’m sure a lot of you don’t, but have a PS2, then have no fear, Resident Evil 4 will make its way to the PS2 (eventually). However, the graphics and load times will surely make a downfall in the PS2 version and the visuals in Resident Evil 4 on the GameCube are so good, that it’s considered art in my book. This is definitely the best survivor horror game ever made and you need to play it no matter what!

Remember rookie cop Leon S. Kennedy from Resident Evil 2? He is now a well-trained agent for the U.S. Government and is sent to a remote location somewhere in Europe to investigate the whereabouts of the President’s missing daughter, Ashley. The mission; to bring Ashley back to America unharmed. Problem? How about relentless attacks by villagers and other menacing foes? Doesn’t that just sound awesome?

This is what differentiates Resident Evil 4 from previous installments of the popular series. I remember a friend of mine playing the first Resident Evil remake on the GameCube a couple years ago. He memorized where all the zombies were and literally stayed still until a zombie would show himself to make his attack. In Resident Evil 4, the villagers (not zombies) will attack, but this time they exhibit some degree of real intelligence. If you’re stuck in a cabin, they won’t just leave you alone or try the barricaded door, no, they problem solve. A couple of villagers will try to force their way through the barricaded door while a few others will try to smash a window and some will even try to take you by surprise by jumping through a window on the top floor using a ladder. These are not the same mindless zombies that we’re used to, oh no, Resident Evil 4 brings us something brand new. While the villagers themselves are pretty freaky, the game only gets scarier as you, the player, encounter huge wolves, monks, things that pop out of people’s heads and more. The bosses in RE4 are definitely unforgettable! Quite possibly the coolest looking and the most fun boss fights that I’ve come across in a long time.

The camera is set behind Leon’s right shoulder. This gives the game some extra depth and perspective because you have a widened view of everything in front of you. Oh sure you might think that seeing more of your surrounding will make things a lot easier for you and it’s easy to see where your enemies are coming from, but personally I think that’s what gets the player really paranoid. Why? For example: I see a bunch of cabins and corners to turn into and I just don’t know if I’m going to be ambushed or not and if I am ambushed, will they surround me? Turning around once in a while couldn’t hurt because your enemies love to surprise you from all directions if the opportunity comes up.

I’ll dish out any beef I have with the gameplay right now before I forget because sometimes I’m so blinded by this game’s greatness that I completely forget about any disappointments. You can’t sidestep. It would be nice to be able to strafe or sidestep while shooting, but you just can’t do it. It’s not a big deal and could be just personal preference, but plenty of action games have benefited from adding the ability to sidestep. I guess Capcom just felt that it wasn't needed. The controls also feel similar to the previous games like having to turn your body around before actually moving forward. It’s not so much of a big deal as it was in the previous games because it doesn’t feel near as clumsy when you move. Again, this could be a personal preference, but I’m sure there are others who would agree with me.

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When you ready your weapon by holding down the R button, the camera zooms in and the laser sight turns on for easy aiming. At first I thought that Leon was a terrible shot, then I realized he’s just like Hellboy. (“Listen, I’m not a very good shot but the Samaritan here uses some really big bullets.” That may sound cheesy but hey, it’s the truth.) When I finally started to get hang of the whole aiming thing I couldn’t believe how well it worked. When a villager would throw his axe at Leon, I was easily able to deflect it with a bullet. What looks really sweet is shooting a stick of dynamite while it’s being thrown at you. It’s a convenient way to save bullets and to dispose of nearby enemies.

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Capcom has implemented an action button that can perform various maneuvers. If you shoot someone in the face, you can easily follow it up with a nice roundhouse kick to the o’ noggin. If you shoot enemies in their shins and make them fall to their knees, you can give the villagers a spinning sidekick or, even better, you can shoot the monks in the shins and once they fall to their knees Leon can perform a nice supplex that usually smashes their heads to pieces. Even though kicking and supplexing is all in good fun, Leon has many weapons at his disposal.

Like the previous Resident Evils, Leon can only carry a certain amount of items on him. He uses a briefcase, which you can be expanded by buying the upgrades from a merchant. The merchant is who you go to for your goodies. He sells shotguns, rifles, TMP, handguns and yes even rocket launchers. Every weapon has its own advantages and disadvantages.

The merchant doesn’t only sell weapons but buys practically anything you have and also has the ability to upgrade your weapons. For example: Guns can be modified to hold more capacity, increased firepower and reloading speed. Throughout his mission, Leon will also come across grenades, flash grenades and incendiary grenades, which are extremely useful against large enemy encounters.

The graphics in Resident Evil 4 blow…. my….. mind. They are, without a doubt, the best graphics I’ve ever seen in a console game. Everything looks so realistic, especially the character models. If you’re playing on a big screen T.V., you can spot out the odd muddy texture, but that’s not near enough to care about when you see just how beautiful the game is. Explosions, flames, splattering blood, everything looks superb.

Sound is sort of a mixed bag. I don’t really mind Leon’s voice actor, but I know there are quite a bit of people who do. Ashley’s voice is what really bothers me, well more or less one certain line that you will hear quite a bit. “LEEEEEEEEEEON HEEEEEELP!” That scream is not as annoying as baby Mario’s cry, but it’s still pretty annoying. Music is eerie, creepy and definitely sets the perfect mood. I don’t know any Spanish, but the voices of the enemies sounded great to me, particularly the monks.

So how does Resident Evil 4 hold up against other survivor horror games? Like I said, Resident Evil 4 is the best survivor horror game ever made. It’s also one of the best action games I’ve played in a very long time. If you’re a GameCube owner there’s no excuse for not picking up this game.

- J’Tonello

(March 10, 2005)