scottie

User Score
9.3

Presentation - 9.0
Gameplay - 9.5
Value - 9.5

Resident Evil 4 was one of my favourite gamecube games, one which I played through many times. You can imagine my joy when a Wii port was announced, it would have the better graphics of the GC version, the extra features of the PS2 version and controls only possible on the Wii.

I've got to tell you, I was not dissapointed by this game. The graphics, despite being from a last gen game, can still shame many current gen titles. The environments are all expertly done, and create a sense of isolation in the player that only comes from survival horror.

The music is equally good, creating a feeling of tension and suspense at times, and some of the boss battle tracks really serve to get your pulse going.

Now on to the big question - what aspects of older RE games are kept, and what are left behind.

It is still mostly a survival horror game, it does have its scary moments, and it has a nice combination of subtle, suspensful horror and flaming zombies jumping out and try to hug you style horror.

The dialogue is still full of cheese. It's entertaining, but it's hardly going to win any literature awards.

Ammo and healing herbs are still scarce, heightening the tension as you wonder if you have enough bullets to survive.

What has changed is mostly for the best. The save system no longer requires typewriter ribbons, a system that stopped me enjoying RE1 as much. The inventory management is greatly upgraded. A herb no longer takes as much room to carry as a grenade launcher. The controls are much better, with the pointer replacing the clunky aiming system, and waggle replacing button mashing in Quick Time Events. The one downside of the improved controls is that this game is much easier than the other versions of RE:4. However with the features that unlock after completing the game, you will still be challenged.

Not only do you get a harder difficulty setting, you also get 3 extra modes; The mercanaries, in which you use a variety of characters to kill as many enemies, as you can within a timelimit. Assignment Ada and Seperate Ways in which you play as Ada, and fill in much of the back story and side story of the game. These modes add extra value to an already lengthy game, and unlock extra, overpowered weapons for the main game.