Exploring the impact of Resident Evil 4 and how it redefined the series forever
Dec. 26, 2023Holiday Long Read | Retro Gamer revisits the Resident Evil game that changed everything
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While there had been a handful of innovations during its first three critically acclaimed games, the core gameplay of the main Resident Evil series had remained broadly the same by the turn of the century. As the new millennium dawned, it was time for a significant change that would redefine the series forever.
Whether you’re a fan of the series or not, there’s undoubtedly no argument that Resident Evil helped redefine video games in the mid-90s and propelled theSonyPlayStation into a more mature demographic. Open and tense locations, limited ammunition, a mysterious corporation, oblique puzzles and, of course, those shambling undead corpses all contributed massively to a successful regeneration of the survival horror genre. And back in 1996, we didn’t seem to mind the tank controls and those painful door animations. This was a frightening experience like no other.
The controls and the camera suited players at the time, but they were a high skill floor for people to learn.
“I remember walking into a lot of walls!” smiles Alex Moore, designer on Firesprite’s brutal VR survival horror game, The Persistence. “The controls and camera suited the game at the time, but they were a high skill floor for players to learn.”
While it retained the tank controls and pre-rendered backdrops, Resident Evil 3: Nemesis included a few nods to a new direction. Much of the original game’s anxious skulking of tight corridors was gone, as was the laborious trudging across the map to find a specific item. Instead, we got the mutated Nemesis, stalking Jill Valentine with a rough gargled exhortation of “STARS” as the series took a notable move towards action-based gameplay.
Then, with further advances arriving with theSegaDreamcast game Resident Evil – Code: Veronica in 2000,Capcom’s decision to publish a remake of the original game on the Nintendo GameCube pointed the way to a new beginning. “Looking at Resident Evil now, I think it’s earned its place in gaming history,” says Alex Aniel, author of Itchy, Tasty: The Unofficial History Of Resident Evil. “But it was superseded by the legendary GameCube remake.”
This feature first appeared in Retro Gamer magazine. For more in-depth features exploring classic games and consoles delivered right to your door or device,subscribe to Retro Gamerin print or digital.
Yet despite its status today, the GameCube remake of Resident Evil, and its companion, Resident Evil Zero, were disappointing sellers for Capcom, the exclusivity to the Nintendo console harming it in the face of the incredible success of the PlayStation 2. As Alex Aniel notes in [unofficial Resident Evil history book] Itchy, Tasty, “It is likely that there would have been a drop, albeit smaller, on PlayStation 2 as well. By the time Resident Evil Zero was released, there were already various discussions in progress about the viability of the old Resident Evil gameplay formula, which had not evolved dramatically since 1996.”
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The scene was Capcom’s Gamers' Day event in Las Vegas on the 28 January. Resident Evil 4’s previous two trailers had revealed a new direction and an adherence to the old-school horror tropes for which the series had become famed. Now, all expectations were shattered as Capcom displayed its latest trailer and a playable demo.
Real-time actions are presented with a cinematic sheen as Leon jumps theatrically from a window and over fences; giant boss monsters appear, menacing the hero as he optimistically plugs away with his handgun. The camera sits behind Leon all the time, following his movements as the antagonists, a world away from lumbering zombies, dodge and attack. As the trailer succinctly claims, it will be, “One hell of an intense story.”
We all knew that Resident Evil 4 would be something different and fresh but we were expecting that in a horror context, not an action one.
Excitement and pressure from fans and (apparently) shareholders had taken its toll: Resident Evil 4 would be coming to the Sony PlayStation 2, albeit some months after its GameCube release. Even though the game became a massive hit on the Nintendo console, selling over 1.5 million units, the Sony PlayStation 2 version enabled a whole new legion of fans to enjoy the game, starting with that famous village location.
The village forms the rapidly beating heart of Resident Evil 4’s opening. Sent to a remote Spanish region to locate Ashley Graham, Leon soon finds himself surrounded by its citizens, acolytes of Los Illuminados, the mysterious cult led by Osmund Saddler that has captured the president’s daughter. The villagers are infected with Las Plagas (‘the pests’), and after a token effort by Leon to question one of them, they turn on the agent in a momentous early scene led by the chainsaw-wielding Dr Salvador.
Chuck Beaver was co-designer for the 2008 sci-fi horror Dead Space, and he cites the opening village encounter as his favourite scene in the game. “That was great design – in fact, I think that whole opening town zombie rush is pretty epic – talk about feeling in the moment.” The village serves as the perfect primer to the horrors ahead of the player and the new gameplay style in Resident Evil 4, a claustrophobic nightmare as the Ganado (‘cattle’) relentlessly pursue Leon, led by the near-invulnerable Dr Salvador. With ammunition scarce at this early stage, the player must frantically explore the buildings in search of weapons, ammunition and health items, clambering over roofs, crashing through windows and kicking down ladders to avoid the pursuing mob.
“I remember being wowed by the intensity of that scene and the enemies coming from all directions,” recalls Alex Aniel. “With Resident Evil games being fixed-camera affairs up until that point, the level of immersion was a new experience.” The fast-paced, action- movie ambiance of this early scene continues throughout Resident Evil 4 as enemies hurl themselves in their droves at Leon, the brief moments of respite precisely positioned to give the player some much-needed breathing space. “My first experience [playing] Resident Evil 4 was the demo disc included in a one-off special of Famitsu [magazine],” continues Alex. “That sold me on the new formula – it was unlike anything I had ever tried up until that point, and easily the most visually beautiful 3D game I had laid eyes on. I knew then that Capcom had a hit on its hands.”
It was very brave to make the shooting static.
Having shaken off the shackles of its antiquated gameplay, Resident Evil began gathering new fans, intrigued by the mix of horror and action. The centrepiece of this fresh approach, at least initially, is the novel viewpoint, the game’s camera constantly sitting behind and to the protagonist’s right, shifting to a sharper, more focussed view when Leon aims his weapon. “I was aware of that type of camera angle – but not to the extent that Resident Evil 4 took it,” says Alex Moore. “It felt very new, fresh and much more cinematic.”
The constant flow of action setpieces means that, even during the many cutscenes, there’s no rest for the player as the Ganado push boulders at Leon or a QuickTime Event boss battle unexpectedly crops up. The persistence with tank controls (rather than, for example, the ultra-fluid movement of Devil May Cry’s Dante) also works in the game’s favour, helping to make each encounter a frantic battle against the onrushing Ganado.
“It was very engaging to swing through the core loops of combat and then out to cutscenes,” recalls Chuck Beaver. “And then back into those foreboding settings, exploring with those tank controls!” The early Dead Space prototypes had lovingly recreated Resident Evil 4’s control method – but this was one influence that didn’t last. “Back in those days, when the [EA Redwood Shores] team was tiny, I was in charge of focus testing,” says Chuck. “Gears Of War and Halo had become cultural touchstones by then – all the focus tests clearly voted down the now-outdated controls as too sluggish, despite being horror genre standard.” Nevertheless, Resident Evil’s continued use of the rotational control method perfectly suits its gameplay, although it will be interesting to see how the remake adapts this for a contemporary audience.
Despite the move away from tank controls, Dead Space continued to be highly influenced by the Capcom game, often called ‘Resident Evil 4 in space’ during early development.
As a Resident Evil virgin, the new camera angle did not faze Chuck Beaver. “I was genuinely surprised at how engrossing and fun it was, and didn’t realise how well they had perfected the atmosphere and vibe. At the time, each wave of new game releases seemed to bring a huge leap in resolution, and it was fun to enjoy that wave.” Released in widescreen format – back when it was not common – a colossal number of Resident Evil 4’s elements made it into Dead Space, not least its seemingly invincible monsters, the Regenerators.
“Ha, yes, those for sure,” laughs Chuck when we ask him about Resident Evil 4’s effect on Dead Space. “And the little red dot as the targeting reticule, holding a button to aim, the abandoned tank controls and over-the-shoulder third-person orientation. So many of the basics of combat, control and, of course, the enemies. The exploding head with a whipping parasite was definitely an inspiration for some of our early Necromorph concepts – especially those with a body-horror angle.”
For gamers brought up on Resident Evil and its frustratingly imprecise aiming, that red line and dot (which increased in size when an enemy was in Leon’s sights) was a blessing, helping Leon target vulnerable locations – in other words, the head – and with this came Resident Evil 4’s glorious wound animations.
While Rare’s GoldenEye and the PC game Soldier Of Fortune had already notably done body-part-specific damage and the subsequent AI reaction, it was Resident Evil 4 that truly popularised the process. Shoot a Ganado in their leg and they clutch the limb in agony before Las Plagas overpowers the pain and the villager continues their attack. And, naturally, headshots come to the fore, enemy bonces exploding in a mass of gore, sometimes a bladed Las Plagas sprouting from their open necks and resuming the assault on Leon.
The agent’s inability to move and shoot at the same time also increases the game’s tension. “My first reaction to Resident Evil 4 was, ‘How do I shoot?’ followed by, ‘Why can’t I move and shoot?’ followed by, ‘Oooooh’” recalls Alex Moore. “I instantly clicked with the game far more than I’d ever done with earlier entries.”
Resident Evil 4’s shooting, naturally a significant part of the game, had been perfected, accentuating its move to a more action-based template. “It was very brave to make the shooting static,” continues Alex. “But it just fits perfectly with the game and adds a depth to the gameplay that, until that point, shooters hadn’t really had.”
Even better, shooting an enemy can stagger them. Leon can take advantage of this if he is close enough, delivering a swift and powerful kick to his opponent’s head via another cinematic tangent. These little asides and filmic interludes pepper Resident Evil 4: villagers push a giant boulder after Leon; ancient suits of armour crash towards Ashley; a mysterious alien-like creature stabs at Leon with its tail; and then there are the bosses.
From bizarre bosses such as Resident Evil’s Plant 42 to the unstoppable (well, almost) hulking Tyrant Nemesis in Resident Evil 3, this is a series that has always revelled in its fights against rampaging, mutated super enemies. The variety of these disgusting and horrible creatures has motivated a whole generation of horror game designers, and not just those behind Dead Space’s regenerating Necromorph.
Says The Persistence’s Alex Moore, “We were set on having different-sized enemies from the start, and a lot of that came from the contrast that the Resident Evil 4 bosses bring to the game – for example, we wanted the Berserker to have the same, ‘Oh shit!’ feel as an El Gigante encounter.” Additionally, Resident Evil 4 brings regular enemies to life, the slow mindless zombies of the previous games a far cry from the villagers and soldiers Leon encounters. “I remember most of the Ganado behaviour of rapidly closing – that was always freaky,” remembers Chuck. “And there was always some icky person right in your face about to brain you with an axe!” Throughout Resident Evil 4, enemies sway from side to side to dodge Leon’s shots, hold their hands up to protect their heads and wield dangerous implements, often throwing them at the agent.
Even Resident Evil 4’s inventory management, smoothed out from the tight and laborious process of the earlier entries, has inspired its own game, Fractal Projects' Save Room. “We looked at Resident Evil 4’s inventory system when we were making Rogue Trooper,” says Alex Moore, “especially how the herbs and other items combined. While [Resident Evil 4] is a very different game to Rogue Trooper, there’s always something to learn from the best games out there.”
Every little element to the game’s design leaves an impression.
All the inspiration derived from Resident Evil 4 springs from admiration of its aesthetic, ground-breaking technical details and gameplay. As the game enjoys its latest iteration, a ground-up remake following countless HD ports and conversions, it’s clear that this goes beyond mere nostalgia.
For Alex, the Resident Evil franchise fostered a deeper interest in Japanese culture, culminating in a move to Japan shortly after the release of the fourth game. Fluent in the language, he connected to many of the people behind Resident Evil throughout the years for his book, Itchy, Tasty. “Without Resident Evil, I would be a very different person.”
It feels like Retro Gamer could dedicate a whole issue to Resident Evil 4. Over the last few pages, we haven’t even discussed its beloved unlockable, the adrenalin-fuelled Mercenaries, or the most quotable of all of its characters, the ubiquitous Merchant (“What’re you buyin'?"). “Why is that so iconic?” laughs Chuck Beaver. “No one knows. But it is.”
This feature originally appeared inRetro Gamer magazine. For more fantastic features and interviews, you can subscribe to Retro Gamer in print or digitalhere.
Graeme Mason is a freelance writer with an expertise in all things retro gaming. Alongside his bylines at GamesRadar, Graeme has also shared his knowledge and insight with Future’s Retro Gamer and Edge magazines, as well as other publications like The Guardian and Eurogamer.
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