Resident Evil 4

"Resident Evil 4- An action game that defines top-notch action games"

Resident Evil 4 is a sequel to the infamous Resident Evil series. This game completely changes the way that so many Resident Evil fans were used to. This is a good thing, however. This is the Playstation 2 version. While the graphics aren't as good as they were on the Gamecube, it more than makes up for it in the extras. That being said, let's proceed to the actual review.

Warning: The following contain spoilers for the game

Graphics 10/10

The graphics in Resident Evil 4 are absolutely phenomenal. This game has some of the best graphics the PS2 can offer. Some of these examples are that the there are many forms of trees in the game, and they are so different that you'll think that you're seeing a new tree each time. Each and every enemy has a detailed body. The blood splatters from the enemies, and Leon has at least fifteen or more ways to die. Leon is very detailed and almost any scene or cut-scene is photo realistic. They have an extreme amount of detail in each cut-scene. The environments are also awesome. Some very memorable environments are the lava room, the castle, the military base, and more. With a wide-screen HDTV and some component cables with progressive scan, These are some of the best graphics in video game history.

Gameplay 10/10

The gameplay is extremely different than the previous resident evils in a very good way. Some of the differences are: there is no longer a camera that is switching views, the new camera is positioned over your shoulder and you can control it with the right analog stick. You can save at the many stationed typewriters in the game and you can have up to 20 saves for the game. You can use the knife at will, and the camera, instead of taking you into a first-person perspective, lets you control it from a third-person perspective. You also have an attaché case that you put your guns in. You flip and flop things so that everything fits. You can also purchase extensions to you attaché case from the merchant. You find pesetas and those are your form of currency and money that you can use to purchase things from the merchants. Merchants are found throughout the game and let you sell your items, buy items, and you can even custom tune-up your guns. There are some types of guns. Some of these types are handgun, shotgun, rifle, magnum, grenade, machine gun, and special. Tuning them up ranges from increasing their capacity, upgrading their firepower, reducing their reloading speed, and increasing their fire rates. Once you upgrade a gun fully it has an exclusive. All but one gun, the killer7, has an excusive. You can't purchase ammo from the merchant, so use your ammo wisely. Most guns have a laser targeting system, and rifles and rocket-launchers take you into the firs-person perspective. There are 3 types of grenades, flash grenades which allow you to temporarily blind your foe, Incendiary grenades which set your opponent(s) on fire, and regular grenades that blow stuff up. Some of the cut-scenes are now interactive, and you use the [ ] and X buttons/ the L1 and R1 buttons to dodge certain things, hang on to or climb ledges, cut/stab things, etc. Thanks to the new aiming system, if you shoot enemies in the kneecap, they crouch so that you can suplex them, and if you shoot the in the head they also crouch so you can kick them. These features are only useable by the protagonist of this game, Leon. You can also do different things with different people. Another great feature that this game introduces is combining health and treasure items. Also, this game has the puzzles that made the previous Resident Evil games so respected. There are also a huge variety of things you do in this game. You ride a jet ski, a mine cart, a boat, and you fight as sea monster, battle with gigantic monsters, fight with a 10 foot Ganado, fight blind prisoners with claws, fight regenerating monsters that have specific parasites that you need to destroy to kill that enemy, gigantic mosquitoes, protect Ashley while she does things, and more.

Story 9/10

The story isn't as deep if it were compared to a game with a story that was a masterpieces such as Metal Gear Solid, but it is still very enjoyable. Basically, you play as Leon Scott Kennedy, often referred as Leon, is the main character and was also in Resident Evil 2. The story of Resident Evil 2 was that 6 years ago, a virus broke out and happened by a company called Umbrella. The U.S. Government decided that it didn't want this information to go public, so they fired off nuclear missiles and Raccoon city and its epidemic were finished. However there were some survivors. And Leon Scott Kennedy just happened to have survived the incident. Now, he's a government agent and his mission is to rescue the president's daughter, Ashley Graham. Will he succeed? You decide.

Sound 9/10

The sound in this game is also excellent. The sound is also very realistic. The crows crow, the wind makes the leaves blow, the ganados shout out Spanish cries, you can hear the chainsaw reving up, etc. etc. You also tend to depend on the sound to see where and when the enemies will attack you.The voice acting is also very professional. They have the voice talents of Paul Mercier as Leon Scott Kennedy, Carolyn Lawrence as Ashley Graham, Sally Cahill as Ada Wong, Jim Wardlngrid as Jack Krauser, Salli Saffioti as Ingrid Hunnigan, Rene Mujica as Ramon Salazar, Jesse CortiJack as Bitores Mendez, Michael GoughAlbert as Osmund Saddler, Richard Waugh as Albert Wesker, and Carlos Carrasco as the Villagers/Zealots. This game also supports dolby digital 5.1 surround sound.

Replay Value 10/10

This game has a huge amount of replay value. You can unlock an R.P.D. Police Uniform by beating the game. Ashley also has a pop-star outfit that you unlock after beating the game. The infinite rocket launcher also becomes available when you beat the game and it costs 1,000,000 pesetas. There is also a handgun that you can purchase called the matilda and it costs 70,000 pesetas. You also unlock Assignment Ada, a mode that is non-canon and covers the later part of the game and lets you play as Ada, and Separate Ways, a mode that is canon and lets you play from the beginning to the end of Ada's mission. Beating Separate ways lets you buy the Chicago Typewriter, a SMG mostly used in WWII, for 1,000,000 pesetas. You can only buy the Chicago Typewriter on a second playthrough. It has infinite ammo. Also, if you beat Separate Ways you get the Mafia gangster oufit for Leon and the indestructible knight outfit for Ashley. Ashley can't get carried away in this outfit and Leon can do a special hat trick if he has the Chicago Typewriter equipped. To do this trick, reload 4 times consecutively and he will do the hat trick. If you beat Assignment Ada you can buy the Chicago Typewriter in Separate Ways for 300,000 pesetas and it is only available on a second playthrough. There is also a mode called Mercenaries, and that lets you kill enemies and try to get a high score of 60,000 or above points to get five stars. There are five characters, and they are Leon, Ada, Wesker, Krauser, and Hunk. They all have unique abilities. There are also four maps and they are the village, the castle, the military base, and waterworld. Getting five stars with all of the characters on all maps allows you to purchase the handcannon for zero pesetas. You can upgrade it and its exclusive is that it can have infinite ammo. There is also a pro mode that is unlocked after beating the main game. After beating pro mode, you can buy for zero pesetas, the P.R.L. 412. The P.R.L. stands for Parasite Removal Laser.

Conclusion

Buy or rent, that is the question. I say buy because it has amazing graphics, gameplay, story, sound, and replay value. It will probably last you forty to fifty hours.

Overall 10/10

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 02/13/06