Resident Evil 4 | Yup, Still a Masterpiece

resident evil 4 is a masterpiece i've said something to that effect in a few of my videos before and i've always considered it something that goes without saying it's like two plus two equals four or keanu reeves is a perfect being these are understood truths that no one could ever call into question however each time i've passively mentioned how re4 is one of my favorite games and how i believe it to be the best entry in the rezzy series i got a small amount of pushback i've been told that having that opinion exposes me as not a true resident evil fan and i've been called a hypocrite for liking this game while crapping on other action-heavy entries like resident evil 6. my knee-jerk reaction to these criticisms has always been dismissal and mockery but i recently decided to take a step back really think about re4 with my critic hat firmly placed atop my head i made the painful decision to sacrifice my oh so perfect steam playtime for the game to see whether it's still worthy of being on that pedestal so many of us put it on and after about two minutes i concluded that yup resident evil 4 is still an absolute masterpiece [Music] resident evil 4 is to action what chaos theory is to stealth it's also capcom's skyrim that one critically acclaimed title they release over and over again on every new platform because they know fans will rebuy it i myself am guilty of buying it on four separate systems first the gamecube then the wii then on xbox 360 and finally pc it's one of those games that never gets old no matter how many times i replay it and i've replayed it a lot i probably run through it at least three times a year and sometimes i don't even mean to i'll boot it up with the intention of playing just a few levels you know relive the magic a bit and before i know it i'm watching the end credits i've blasted my way through this thing on so many occasions that it's ended up having ties to events in my own life no lie re4 is the last game i finished the night before my place caught fire in 2018 and it's the game i was playing when i finally reached 100 000 subscribers here on youtube i loved this game when i first played it over 16 years ago and i've loved it each and every time after re4 is so damn good that its very development birthed two other entire games one called haunting ground starring a canine sidekick some of you might recognize hey it's that dog and another small ps2 hack and slash you've probably never heard of called but as i've said in the past just because something is incredible doesn't mean it's flawless i should admit up front though most of this review will have me blowing re4 harder than your average pornhub star but i will also be addressing common critiques i've seen from detractors and acknowledging the handful of genuine nitpicks i have with it before i continue it's worth pointing out that technically i'm not playing resident evil 4 in its vanilla form nowadays i exclusively play the game on pc with revamped graphics courtesy of the re4 hd project mod this total texture overhaul has been worked on for over 7 years by a few extremely passionate fans and when i installed it a couple years ago i knew there was no going back there's an excellent video by one jacob geller that compares the work done here to professional art restoration and i think that's a perfect parallel these enhancements don't change how the game plays nor do they compromise the vision of the original in any way they basically make re4 look how you think it always did to the point that i doubt many of you would have noticed the difference had i not said anything i'm only pointing it out for the sake of transparency and to shout out the amazing work and dedication on display here check out the description for a download link if you'd like to experience it for yourself firsthand with that done let's roundhouse some villagers and find out what we're buying as i look back at one of the greatest games of all time resident evil 4 wasn't the first time the franchise dabbled with more action-centric ideas resi 3 and code veronica kept with the classic survival horror blueprint in most ways but each showed signs that the series was willing to dip its toe into the action genre pool but re4 was the first mainline entry to fully dive in and it pulled off the transition in spectacular fashion even over a decade and a half later this remains one of the most continuously exhilarating and satisfying shooters you will ever experience because every aspect of its design is thoughtfully executed first let's address one of the main things critics will point to as a problem control when running around leon doesn't move in the most fluid way you can't strafe nor do you have much say in what the camera's looking at plus whenever you want to fire your weapon leon is locked in place when aiming you cannot move and shoot at the same time you either navigate around danger or stand your ground to fight back it kind of feels like the old school tank controls of the earlier rezzy titles except now the point of view is directly behind your character now i know that hearing that description in a vacuum probably doesn't sound great especially if you're used to more modern action titles how can a game that restricts movement in such a way possibly be any good i'll tell you how because the game itself is built to complement these limitations you'll notice that enemies aren't constantly sprinting at you wildly swinging an axe because if they did you'd stand no chance instead enemies move in a sort of start and stop pattern sure they'll run to close the gap but then they'll slow down walk towards you maybe try to spread out before doing a clearly telegraphed attack this gives the player time to read the situation and react accordingly choose whether to engage or disengage depending on where you choose to shoot an approaching threat they'll stumble back or fall over giving you much needed breathing room especially if you follow that up with a context-sensitive roundhouse and if crazed villagers do get close enough to get a swing in you'll notice they tend to take turns attacking and even if multiple strikes do come your way at once only the first is really counted against you with leon's own stumble animation providing invincibility frames how each encounter plays out is affected by how you choose to handle things making them dynamic and engaging for numerous playthroughs further complementing the violent ballet is excellent feedback leon doesn't have the most expansive arsenal in the world but that's because re4 goes for quality over quantity each handgun shotgun rifle whatever feels great to use with the aforementioned enemy reactions to hits only further helping that feeling but while weapon feedback is important the game does an arguably better job at giving the player important info about what's happening around them audio cues are abundant and effectively communicate every threat in the area whether you can see them or not ganatos frequently mumble to themselves to inform you of their position [Music] they yell or grunt when they're about to throw something crossbow users can be heard readying their shot and tougher foes like chainsaw wielders or regenerators make distinct noises as long as you're paying attention you should always know what's coming and where they are in relation to you quick impression for you god [ __ ] i'm dead despite all of that i'm not going to pretend the controls are flawless there are times though infrequent where the stiff movement can make it difficult to quickly avoid danger this is a bigger issue in the second half of the game where projectiles specifically crossbows are more common and trying to avoid arrows while dealing with whatever else is being thrown at you can be a bit too much plus while the vast majority of environments are laid out in intelligent ways that further complement the movement giving you different paths or obstacles to hide behind there are a few here and there that aren't as well thought out the infamous water room is the most often used example of this for good reason it's a large open area with no safe haven from the snipers and cultist swarms that greet you meaning the best tactic here is to sprint past everything and put your back against a wall also there are the novista doors these guys suck i'm not a fan they only show up i think four times in the entire game but when they do these bug-eyed bastards are way too nimble and numerous given how this game works every time i know i'm about to encounter them i let out an exasperated sigh and i doubt i'm the only one another point of contention is the inventory system the attache case where leon stores all his supplies has limited space especially in the early goings and making sure you can fit every bullet or herb you find requires some micromanaging mark my words this fish will fit in this case you're also forced to enter this screen each and every time you want to switch weapons or heal personally i'm so used to how this works that it's practically second nature and doesn't detract from my enjoyment during fights i'm in and out of this screen in two seconds and neatly organizing everything the way that i do scratches a specific ocd itch that said i'm not going to argue against people that find it archaic because they're right having some kind of quick swap for just two or three favorite guns would go a long way it would also be nice if there was some way to designate sections of the case for certain categories of item so i didn't have to move crap around every time i picked up an extra herb or grenade in regards to the quick time events that are present throughout both during gameplay and cutscenes i've also never really had an issue with them there are some people that despise qtes no matter the context but if they're presented well and not overused i'm fine with them and re4 checks both of those boxes in my opinion okay times where you have to mash x to not die aren't my favorite but that doesn't happen much and they're spaced out enough to not feel like a gameplay crutch or substitute when it comes to cinematics the prompts pop up at sensible times and add a special tension to that initial playthrough although there are a few that don't give you enough time to reasonably react unless you already know they're coming and dying to these does feel cheap let's talk balance resident evil 4 is hands down one of the most perfectly balanced games i've ever played it manages to simultaneously maintain a constant power creep as you unlock more guns and upgrade the ones you have while also steadily adjusting the challenge dial to make the experience consistent this is all possible thanks to a dynamic difficulty system yeah this game has dynamic difficulty did you know that because i didn't until a couple years ago a testament to how masterfully it's implemented see i'm generally not the biggest fan of systems like this because they tend to swing way too hard in one direction or the other it can often feel like a game is outright punishing you for the crime of playing well resident evil 4 doesn't have this problem thanks to its more subtle tweaks elements like enemy aggression how much damage you take per hit or how much ammo you'll find will change depending on player performance but these alterations are really only noticeable if you're actively looking for them these slight adjustments are unintrusive and ensure that the game never loses its sense of flow i honestly don't think difficulty scaling has ever been handled better than this ashley don't come hey take it easy but craig what about ashley she's like the most annoying character ever you have to babysitter all the time this entire game is one long escort quest isn't that terrible no not at all miss graham is one of if not the best protectee in the history of video games think about some poorly designed escort quests what do they have in common most likely it's an npc acting outside of the player's control and getting themselves killed there's nothing more frustrating than seeing a game over because the idiot you're supposed to look after barreled right into an ambush in contrast ashley absolutely excels at staying the hell out of the way first off she's not even with you the majority of the time of the 18 total chapters re4 has ashley is only present for five of them arguably six because sometimes she's not around for an entire level but at most you only have to look after her for one third of the whole game but when you are in charge of her safety she is every bodyguard's dream client when following you she is always an arm's length behind making it impossible to lose track of her when you aim your weapon she glues herself to leon's back ensuring she isn't anywhere in the line of fire she also does this cute little fist bump every time you kill something if for whatever reason she is in front of you when you aim she quickly ducks down minimizing herself as a target and giving you a clear line of sight to approaching threats and some arenas have dumpsters you can tell her to hide in letting you thoroughly clear an area without having to worry about her if ashley is ever in a bad situation it's because you left her alone you weren't paying attention it's your fault she's currently shouting for help speaking of which if you find ashley yelling for leon to be grading that's by design it's yet another effective audio queue that communicates she's in danger it immediately signals that you need to switch priorities plus the faster you save her the faster she'll shut the [ __ ] up the one and only time i think ashley is genuinely annoying is this scripted moment where she bolts away from leon and gets recaptured you're right i'm fine leave me alone ashley wait i mean he knows about the infection he knows what coughing up blood means there's no reason for her to act like such a brat here it's dumb but even this doesn't bother me too much mostly because i'm aware of steve don't worry claire your knight and shining armor is here shut the [ __ ] up you [ __ ] all right so re4 does the whole shoot shoot bang bang thing really well but there is one element to the older games that was mostly sacrificed in the transition puzzles it's not that there are no puzzles in this game whatsoever but they're few and far between and require very little in terms of mental power basically none really if you come across a door with an indent in it the object you need to open it is always around the corner if you need to line up a symbol or match a pattern a few quick inputs and you're done in all honesty this slide puzzle is the hardest brain teaser in the game and it's solved in the time it takes me to finish this sentence while this understandably alienates hardcore fans of the classics i think making the puzzle so simple was the right move being able to breeze through them keeps up the game's brisk pace and matches the more linear design re4 just wouldn't work to the same degree if it kept with the usual backtracking and key hunting and hey while the puzzles are kindergarten level i appreciate they were included at all cause they act as a sort of homage or acknowledgement of the series roots but what are you to do after your initial 12 to 15 hour playthrough of the campaign doesn't resident evil typically have cool extras to unlock and mess with you bet your sweet ballistics it does we'll start with the additional game modes there's assignment ada a non-canon minigame where you rush to collect five plaga samples it takes less than half an hour to finish and while there's nothing wrong with it there also isn't much reason to play it twice it's the most throwaway piece of content in this game next is separate ways a three-hour side campaign also starring aydah that shows what she was up to while leon was trying to rescue ashley it moves at a brisk pace gives some appreciated context and has a few unique firearms to battle cultists with though 95 of its environments are simply recycled from the main game there's also the cutscenes see this mode was originally a ps2 exclusive and its cinematics were pre-recorded movie files meant for low resolution displays when separate ways was ported to other systems later they didn't bother to redo these and the result is cut scenes that are horribly compressed you can still tell what's going on but these fuzzy bits look plain ugly when compared to everything else that's here of course there's also mercenaries for high score combo junkies i've said in the past that mercenaries isn't really my thing but the mode definitely fits better here and is good for what it is there's five distinct characters to play as with unique loadouts and abilities to try out though you are forced to start with leon as your only pick look we all love leon but his kit just isn't all that great for racking up high scores once you get over that hump the others have much more flexibility and are undeniably more fun if you choose to go for a five-star rating on every level with every character mercenaries provides around four more hours of gameplay to the package as far as swanky new costumes go re4 sadly only has two options for leon and ashley and their outfits are paired together so you can't mix and match the first set puts leon in his classic rpd uniform while the president's daughter dresses like a pop star according to the wiki oh and aydah gets some extra tactical gear too the second costume pair sees leon embracing his inner italian gangster and ashley decked out in a full set of medieval armor this suit makes her completely invulnerable from any and all damage and prevents her from being captured as she's too heavy for ganatos to lift these are nice and all but i've always been irritated there's no option to let leon keep his jacket from the intro it looks so cool but he only gets to wear it for one chapter that my friends is a travesty but all that's just icing the real stars of this show are the bonus weapons there's the matilda a three-round burst handgun that's a direct nod to re2 of course there's an infinite rocket launcher that's always fun a big old hand cannon for all the berry stands out there i mean who isn't the plaga removal laser or prl for short basically an aimbot win button and finally my baby what i believe to be the best unlockable weapon in any resident evil the chicago typewriter sprays like a fire hose and kills everything instantly with this absolute beast you can sprint through the whole game in two and a half hours plus when paired with the mobster outfit you can make leon do this re4 is a rewarding experience all on its own but this stuff transforms it into a glorious power fantasy that's just as gratifying if not more so before i began this lengthy seminar about how amazing rezzy4 is i mentioned that some believe liking this game but disliking other action-heavy entries that came after makes one a hypocrite that enjoying this leon adventure but loathing this other one obviously shows a clear double standard this argument has never made any sense to me but let me put all my counterpoints out there in case there are any of you watching with your nose up and arms crossed not all action is created equal the same way not all comedy is or horror or whatever you just can't paint entire genres with one broad brush like that media whether it be games movies or books are going to vary in quality though in fairness everyone's standard for what makes something good is different so for me what makes re4 work so much better than say re 6 or 3 make well aside from re4 being a better put together game in general the biggest standout differences to me are tone and pacing when i reviewed the re3 remake i called out the dumb contrivances that kept happening to ensure jill survived how she'd make it through a no-win scenario simply because the game said so it felt lazy and only served to remove any and all tension re 3 also tries to establish nemesis as a ruthless unstoppable force of death and destruction but this is constantly undermined by him letting jill go for no good reason it doesn't feel like she's overcoming the odds it feels like she's covered in plot armor re4 also has plenty of cliches the bad guys have opportunities to outright kill leon or at least incapacitate him but they keep letting him go because plot and yet i don't care about any of that because of one main reason re4 isn't taking itself very seriously sadler and salazar chew the scenery around them and cackle about how super evil they are and leon fires back with one-liners that would get him laughed out of middle school i've been expecting you my brethrens no thanks bro 14 year old me thought his comebacks were so cool but adult me realizes they're super not i've sent my right hand to dispose of you your right hand comes off leon might have the skills of an elite secret agent but deep down he's kind of a big dork and that's what makes him so endearing when you have characters acting this way unintentionally mind you they think what they're saying is totally normal it allows contrivances to be easily forgiven or overlooked since they don't feel out of place plus leon is routinely shown to be a badass capable of tackling the insane situations he's in while three make jill relies mostly on dumb luck to not die leon survives crazy [ __ ] in large part due to his own skill he has plenty of luck on his side too yeah but it isn't as much of a crutch is it silly that our hero does a perfect backflip through this laser trap absolutely but i buy he can do that and it's also the coolest goddamn thing i've ever seen resident evil 6 has the above problem tenfold it takes itself so seriously it's trying to be this dark gritty drama with world ending stakes but then throws 20 different set pieces at you in quick succession each one more ridiculous than the last there's no concept of subtlety the breakneck pace not only becomes exhausting but it doesn't match the tone of the narrative capcom is trying to tell compare it to re4 which i think has damn near perfect pacing it has the over-the-top set pieces too but they're spaced out much more effectively the core gameplay is given plenty of time to speak for itself so when the bombastic crescendos occur they feel earned they feel special unlike re 6 where so much [ __ ] is blowing up all the time it becomes boring hell even resident evil 5 a game that i like and think gets way more [ __ ] than it deserves suffers from this on some level less is more the slow moments are just as important as the fast ones and re4 has an expert understanding of this there is one last point i'd like to address that's in the same vein quite a few rezzy titles post four miss the mark in fan's eyes and this has led some to retroactively blame for for the declining quality they consider it the reason the series lost its way and for that reason alone it is a bad game now this is a take i can actually understand and sympathize with resident evil 4 was such a massive critical and commercial success that capcom spent the following decade desperately trying to recapture that glory stumbling many many times along the way i will concede that games like re 6 operation raccoon city and umbrella corps likely wouldn't exist if resident evil 4 had gone in a different direction but that doesn't in any way take away from the masterful quality of the title itself the publishers the suits in charge they made the bad decisions they're the ones that deserve the blame for what came after we don't blame die hard for a good day to die hard we don't blame sonic the hedgehog for sonic 06. we don't blame game of thrones season 1 for game of thrones season 8. if you're personally not a fan of the action-centric direction this game and series took that's valid if you prefer the slower more atmospheric style of the original resident evils that's cool too i myself enjoy both game types but labeling what we got here as bad solely because what came after was underwhelming is just plain unfair i started this video by stating that resident evil 4 is a masterpiece i believed that when i first played it i've believed it ever since and i'll believe it till the day i die re4 is still a joy to play through each and every time and many of today's action games don't measure up to it yeah there are small pieces of it that seem limiting or outdated by today's standards but since everything around these elements is so well thought out and polished even they become little more than slight nuisances you can easily hand wave i mean i just replayed this thing to capture all the footage you've been watching and spending all this time talking about it makes me want to boot it up all over again it's really that good in the last year or so capcom has announced both a resident evil 4 remake and more recently a port of the game to vr given how the last couple re remakes panned out which tossed aside key features that gave the originals their identity i can't say i'm optimistic about one of my favorite games getting the same treatment there also seems to be conflict behind the scenes about the project's direction which only serves to lower my confidence in it even more on the other hand i think vr is super damn cool and i'd love to see how rezzy4 translates to the platform the small amount of gameplay that's been shown of it does seem neat but unfortunately vr is going to be exclusive to the oculus quest 2 headset not the oculus family of headsets just the quest 2. as someone who owns an oculus rift s which costs the same amount as a quest 2 by the way this is infuriating there's no reason in the world this thing can't come to pcvr and i really hope this exclusivity turns out to be a limited deal so i can try it myself but regardless of how either of those turn out will always have the stellar original bottom line resident evil 4 is fantastic and worthy of all the hype it's ever received if you haven't played it yourself i hope this video inspires you to do so and if you have already well have fun replaying it for the 100th time we both know you're going to thank you for taking the time to watch rate comment and subscribe and never forget that while your right hand might come off your head isn't supposed to you

Channel: Critical Nobody

Views: 329,144

Keywords: critical nobody, video games, gaming, gameplay, criticalnb, resident evil, resident evil 4, biohazard 4, resident evil 4 review, masterpiece, capcom, village, castle, action, adventure, horror, survival horror, re4 hd project, resident evil 4 vr, separate ways, assignment ada, mercenaries, unlockables, leon kennedy, ada wong, ashley graham, funny, overview, review, re4, re4 review

Id: nP67GABgcgE

Length: 29min 44sec (1784 seconds)

Published: Sat May 08 2021