Resident Evil 4

Resident Evil 4
Logo Japanese logo
Developer(s)	Capcom Production Studio 4
Publisher(s)	Capcom (GCN/PS2), UbiSoft (PC)
Designer(s)	Shinji Mikami(director), Hiroyuki Kobayashi (producer), Kuniomi Matsushita (director of PlayStation 2 version), Masachika Kawata (producer of PlayStation 2 version
Platform(s)	GameCube, PlayStation 2, PC
Release	Nintendo GameCube: January 11, 2005 January 27, 2005 March 18, 2005 Sony PlayStation 2: October 25, 2005 November 4, 2005 November 11, 2005 December 1, 2005 Windows (PC): May 25, 2006
Genre(s)	Action-adventure, Survival horror
Mode(s)	Single player

This article is about the video game. For the untitled film informally called "Resident Evil 4", see Resident Evil 4 (film).

Resident Evil 4 (Japanese: バイオハザード４, Biohazard 4) (often abbreviated RE4) is a survival horror game published and developed by Capcom. It is the sixth installment of the Resident Evil series. It was released for the Nintendo GameCube on January 11, 2005 in North America, on January 27, 2005 in Japan, and on March 18, 2005 in Europe. The PlayStation 2 version of the game was released on October 25, 2005 in North America, on November 4, 2005 in Europe, on November 11, 2005 in Australia, and on December 1, 2005 in Japan. The PC version was going to be released on April 28, 2006, but it was postponed to May 25, 2006.

Tagline: Evil Evolves.

Story

Template:Spoiler Set in 2004 (six years after the events of Resident Evil 2 and 3), the Umbrella Corporation has finally been destroyed. Following the events of the previous titles, news spreads of Umbrella's involvement in the viral outbreak which led to the destruction of Raccoon City. The news causes the company's share prices to plummet. Once the U.S. Government formally and indefinitely suspends the corporation's business, Umbrella goes bankrupt and discontinues research. For all intents and purposes, Umbrella is finished.

The player takes control of U.S. Agent and former Raccoon City Police Department rookie, Leon S. Kennedy(the S. standing for Scott, which explains why Salazar refers to him as "Scott Kennedy" at the end of Chapter 4), as he is sent on a mission to an undisclosed Spanish-speaking European village near Spain (that can be seen when Wesker uses his Umbrella satellite camera to watch Ada). His mission is to rescue the President's abducted daughter, Ashley Graham. The mission naturally goes awry as Leon uncovers and clashes with Ashley's kidnappers, "Los Illuminados" (from Castilian, The Illuminated; not to be confused with the Illuminati). During his adventure, Leon crosses paths with Ada Wong, a spy who met Leon during the Umbrella incident (the events of Resident Evil 2), and Jack Krauser, a former colleague thought to have died in a crash two years ago. He allies with Luis Sera, a researcher once involved in Los Illuminados movement who seeks to undo their work and retrieve a sample of Las Plagas (a breed of parasitic organisms that turns its victims into Saddler's servants). Luis dies at the hands of the main antagonist, Lord Osmund Saddler, the leader of Los Illuminados.

Leon undergoes a long, grueling odyssey that spans a village, a castle and a military complex on a remote island. Against monstrous odds, he manages to survive the Plagas-infected hordes and eliminate Krauser, Salazar and Saddler. He succeeds in rescuing Ashley, and escapes. However, Ada retains a sample of Las Plagas, and the threat of Umbrella begins to resurface.

Gameplay

File:RE4screen1.jpg

Leon in Salazar's Castle.

Resident Evil 4's game mechanics have been completely revamped to incorporate fast paced gunplay and third person shootouts, which is the polar opposite of previous RE games which focused on atmosphere, exploration and storytelling. Though wasting ammo is not advised, the player will without a doubt fire more ammo and kill more enemies in one playthrough of this game than in all of the other games in the franchise combined (not including the Gun Survivor sub-franchise, in which the player is deliberately given infinite pistol ammo).

New gameplay

The new gameplay of Resident Evil 4 is more akin to that of a third person shooter than a traditional RE game. Because it contains no zombies, this installment is a radical departure from the series formula. Instead, the main subhuman enemies are "Ganados" (Spanish for "livestock"). Somewhat smarter and quicker than the zombies from previous games, Ganados can wield melee and projectile weapons. Ganados are the product of an infestation of Las Plagas, parasitic monsters revived by the Salazar family to repay their debt to the religion associated with the parasite, Los Illuminados. Although a departure from the game series, the concept of "intelligent zombies" was previously covered in the original novel Resident Evil: Caliban Cove.

Resident Evil 4 also contains changes to the inventory, camera, and movement control systems of earlier games. The perspective is an over-the-shoulder view similar to that of the Splinter Cell games, a perspective Cliff Bleszinski dubbed second-person in reference to his own Gears of War in an interview with Game Informer. Normally, the camera remains behind the player character, who is visible from the waist up (although a lower angle is sometimes used), and stands just left of the center of the screen. The camera zooms in close behind Leon for an over-the-shoulder view when the aiming button is held.

The game also features a more cinematic presentation by using letter boxing, like that used in Beyond Good & Evil. Though the controls are largely the same as previous installments, free-aiming is now possible with the inclusion of a laser-pointer for every weapon except those with telescopic sights. Previous Resident Evil games allowed players only to tilt their weapon up, down, or in front; Resident Evil 4 expands this considerably, and enemies respond differently to bullet impacts to various parts of the body. For example, a shot to the foot may cause an approaching enemy to stumble, while a shot to the arm might make an enemy drop their weapon. Ammo is more plentiful than in previous installments, primarily because enemies drop ammo after they are defeated. Similar to the system used in Dino Crisis 2, weapons may be purchased from and continuously upgraded by the merchant using the currency in the game, the peseta. The combat knife no longer takes up space in the player's inventory, but can be drawn at anytime with its own button. The knife is also much more useful than in the previous games, considering it can destroy crates and barrels, which often contain items.

Item management has also undergone significant change. While previous installments restricted a character to carrying a set number of items, Resident Evil 4 bases the number of items a character may carry on a grid system in which each item takes up a set of squares on the grid, similar to the inventory system in Diablo and Deus Ex. The player's carrying capacity may be expanded by purchasing larger attaché cases. In addition, key items are now kept separately from weapons and healing supplies, allowing the player to acquire them without dropping current items or backtracking to the nearest item chest to make room. Treasures may be collected and sold to the merchant for pesetas. The healing herbs from the previous games are back. The blue herb (which treated poison) has been replaced by the yellow herb (which increases the player's max health when combined with a green herb or a mixture of green and red herbs).

Another new aspect of Resident Evil 4 is the inclusion of a context-sensitive button. Based on the situation, the player can interact with their environment, such as by kicking down a ladder or jumping out of a window. The player can even perform a mêlée attack against a Ganado (as well as other enemies) while the enemy is stunned or crouching. There are also dynamic cut scenes, (similar to Shenmue's Quick Time Events) in which the player must hit the corresponding buttons shown on-screen to protect their character's life, such as dodging a falling boulder by pressing two buttons simultaneously. This technique is also sometimes employed in boss fights against one-hit kill attacks to give the player a fighting chance.

Loading times are kept to a minimum, unlike previous Resident Evil games where moving between areas required a load screen (in Resident Evil (GCN) and Resident Evil Zero, these load screens were kept in as a homage to the original PS1 games). In Resident Evil 4, the game loads only between areas denoted by green action text. An area may feature anything from a few buildings to a huge military base. Doors are manipulated by hitting 'action' next to them, after which the character opens the door slowly and quietly or the character will give it a kick or push (which can send enemies to the ground) if the player presses action twice. Cutscenes load almost instantaneously, keeping the pace consistent.

Game Weapons

See: List of weapons in Resident Evil 4.

Pistols

• Handgun- This is the basic pistol that Leon starts the game with. It uses plentiful 9mm bullets.
• Red9- The first handgun that you can purchase from the Merchant. The gun is the most powerful of the 9mm pistol class, but has a horrendous kick, that can be fixed with a buyable stock. Uses 9mm bullets.
• Punisher- Winnable from Resident Evil 4's first minigame (or purchaseable for 20,000p), the punisher is the first truly capable pistol you'll come across. It has the ability to penetrate multiple enemies with a single shot. It's still inferior to other firearms in terms of destructive power.
• Blacktail- The final pistol in the regular game. Quick and (relatively) powerful.
• Matilda- The most powerful pistol, it can shoot three bullets in rapid succession. However, it's quite useless as it can only be obtained AFTER the game has been completed, meaning that the Infinite Rocket Launcher/Chicago Typewriter have been unlocked. It is known as the bullet muncher for its excesive use of ammunition. A expert player avoids this gun, because he/she knows that one bullet and a roundhouse to the face, followed by a bullet to the leg and suplex, is more effective then 7 or 8 pistol rounds.

Magnums

• Broken Butterfly- A magnum revolver found in a small chamber in the castle. Its ammunition is extremely scarce. It's one of the most powerful weapons in the game.
• Killer7- Named after the game of the same name, it's one of the only weapons that doesn't have an exclusive upgrade. You can buy it from the merchant. It is often bought over the Broken Butterfly due to the fact that its power rating is higher in the beginning. It is significantly weaker once the Butterfly is fully upgraded.
• Handcannon- The most powerful gun in the game, period. Only obtainable after achieving a five-star rank on every level of the "mercenaries" mini-game. Its exclusive upgrade gives it infinite ammo.

Rifles and Shotguns

• Shotgun- Found in a house in the first village. This gun attacks in a "spray" pattern, attacking a large radius around the aimed area. Firepower decreases dramatically with distance, however, which only makes it ideal for close group encounters, at least until its exclusive upgrade is obtained.
• Riot Gun- An upgrade of the shotgun, that can hold one more round, and does 1.0 more damage. It is less clumsy then its counter part.
• Striker- The fastest, most powerful shotgun. It is also the final upgrade of the shotgun. As such, it's only available near the end of the game.
• Rifle- The first sniper rifle you can acquire. It's powerful, but Leon has to exit the scope to pull the bolt back after every shot. Based on the Springfield 1903 Rifle, commonly used by American troops in both World Wars.
• Semi-Automatic Rifle- The king of rifles. It's both powerful, the scope is improved and it doesn't ruin your viewpoint each time you shoot. The final upgrade lets you shoot as fast as you press fire.

Assault Weaponry

• TMP- The first machinegun you can acquire in the game. It uses a prodigious amount of ammunition without much of a firepower benefit. Often avoided.
• Chicago Typewriter- The second machinegun, only obtainable after the game has been completed. You can buy it from the merchant for a million pesetas. It doesn't need to be reloaded, has infinite ammunition, and can take out most bosses within seconds. In the Playstation version, this gun can be combined with a suit change for Leon, turning into a "30s gangster" style tommy-gun.
• Mine Thrower- Shoots timed darts that wait a second or two, then blow up in the unlucky face of anyone in the local vicinity.
• Rocket Launcher- Big. Tough. A single-shot weapon that fires rocket that can kill any boss in one hit and "splash damages" anything in the vicinity. Including you.
• Infinite Rocket Launcher- You can get it after you complete the game. It's the rocket launcher. But instead of just one rocket, you get an endless supply.

Creatures

Resident Evil 4 contains many unique creatures new to the Resident Evil universe. Some share common bonds to old creatures and act in similar ways giving you that bit of nostalgia that fans of the old series will enjoy.

List of creatures in Resident Evil 4

Extras

In-game

• Ashley's Skirt: When Ashley is standing on a ledge waiting to be caught, if the player moves Leon over and looks directly at her, at an angle the player will be able to look up her skirt, she will blush and ask Leon, Leon, where are you looking? or push her skirt to her knees and yell, Hey, what are you looking at?! Even more comical is the random Ahh! You pervert.

• Crows: Shooting crows will give you cash, spinels, or ammo (including grenades). If there are a large group of crows in an area, use a flash grenade to kill them all, since they die after a minimal amount of damage and so will be killed by the grenade up to a relatively far distance away.

• Bell: At the graveyard/church, shooting the bell two or three times will bring more enemies, from which you can get extra cash or ammo.

• Fish: You can shoot fish and sell them, or eat them for health. A large fish will completely restore health. If you shoot a fish from the dock of the lake using a shotgun or pistol, Del Lago will leap from the waters and eat you.

Unlockables

After the player completes the main game, the following features are unlocked:

• Professional - A difficulty setting available when starting a new game where the enemies can sustain and deliver more damage. The title screen also changes to a panoramic view of the village.If you beat it on this difficulty, you can obtain the P.R.L 412 laser gun (PS2 version only)
• The Mercenaries - A minigame where the objective is to kill the most Ganados during a limited amount of time. The player can pick up time extensions to remain in a stage as long as possible and gain bonus points for consecutive kills or by picking up hourglasses hidden in chests. There are four stages in all, with the first three being altered versions of areas from the main game and a fourth stage (the "Waterworld" stage) exclusive to this minigame. Each stage also has a sub-boss, with the "Waterworld" stage featuring a giant version of the enemy Dr. Salvador with a double-bladed chainsaw, who is not featured in the main game. The player can play as different characters other than Leon.
• Assignment Ada (Ada the Spy - Available in all versions of the game) A scenario starring Ada Wong where the objective is to retrieve five Plaga samples located within the initial Island stage. Ada wears a black spy suit in this scenario instead of her usual red dress.
• Separate Ways (Another Order - PS2 version only) A scenario starring Ada which is available only in the PlayStation 2 version and is comprised of five chapters, all which reveals previously undisclosed plot details. After completing each chapter, a portion of the documentary Ada's Report will available for viewing.
• Movie Browser - A cut scene viewer that allows the player to select any scene from the main game. Once Separate Ways is completed, scenes from that scenario are added too. The movie browser is only available in the PlayStation 2 version.

Hidden Characters (Mercenaries mode only)

• Ada Wong - Unlocked after achieving a four-stars rank in the Village stage. She wears her outfit from Resident Evil 2 in this mode.
• Jack Krauser - Unlocked after achieving a four-stars rank in the Castle stage. Can use his claw as a special attack, and uses a bow and arrow.
• HUNK - Unlocked after achieving a four-stars rank in the Island (Base) stage. Hunk was a secret character in Resident Evil 2.
• Albert Wesker - Unlocked after achieving a four-stars rank in the Island (Waterworld) stage. He possesses extremely powerful melee attacks for use against stunned enemies; he also carries a silenced pistol, which is not in the main game. Wesker is perceived as the main antagonist of the Resident Evil series.

Hidden Costume Sets

• Special 1 - Leon's Raccoon Police Department uniform and a pop-idol outfit for Ashley. In the GameCube version, Ada wears her spy suit from Assignment Ada.
• Special 2 - A mafia-like outfit for Leon and a suit of armor for Ashley. The armor makes Ashley invulnerable to attacks from Ganados; she will be too heavy to be picked up by them. Even El Gigante is unable to grab Ashley, as he will cringe in pain if he tries to crush her. Leon will also grab his back in pain when he catches Ashley from above. Special costume set 2 is only available in the PlayStation 2 version.

Graphics

The game's graphics are fully three-dimensional: everything is rendered in real-time (in the Playstation 2 version however, the cut scenes are FMVs made from the GameCube version's cinemas), allowing for a mobile camera, a change from most of the previous games in the series, which used pre-rendered, occasionally animated backdrops with superimposed 3D characters. (Code: Veronica was 3D, but hardly used the available camera mobility.) There is a surprising amount of detail in every scene, with raindrops bouncing off of the character's shoulders, bullet casings visibly being ejected from the weapons, realistic flames and explosions, and subtle additions such as dead leaves fluttering in the autumn wind. The game keeps a steady frame rate even in the most action-packed sequences, a fact that many critics and gamers have praised. The game is presented in widescreen, although the GameCube version is letter-boxed only, with no anamorphic support.

Reaction

The GameCube version was released in the US on January 11, 2005 with US sales exceeding 320,000 copies in the first 20 days. The European release on March the 18th mirrored this success, selling its entire 200,000 unit allocation within the first month. As of January 2006, reported sales of Resident Evil 4 show that it has shipped over 3,000,000 copies world wide. Sales totals include the PlayStation 2 port that was released on October 25, 2005. [1]

The radical departure from the Resident Evil formula has riled some fans of the series who preferred the traditional gameplay elements left over from the 32-bit era such as claustrophobic corridors, limited save states, limited ammo and weapons, exploration over action, and frequent backtracking. Fans were also outraged at the game's lack of connection to the established RE story and how it essentially ignored the previous game in the series Resident Evil: Code Veronica by saying that Umbrella was shut down right after Raccoon City was destroyed at the end of Resident Evil 3: Nemesis, yet Umbrella was still fully operational 3 months later in RE:CV. Nevertheless, the drastic changes paid off, and the game was considered by industry insiders and the casual gaming public as a top contender for 2005's Game of the Year. The fourth iteration (although, realistically the sixth game in the main series, which includes Code: Veronica and Zero) has made "fans" out of players who would not otherwise have given the Resident Evil series a second glance [2]. Both versions of Resident Evil 4 scored over 95% on GameRankings and 100% on Rotten Tomatoes, two review aggregator sites. [3] [4] Subsequently, Resident Evil 4 was named 'Game of the Year' at the 2005 Spike TV Video Game Awards. [5]

GameCube exclusivity controversy

In September 2001, Capcom announced that the core Resident Evil series would become exclusive to the Nintendo GameCube with three new games: a remake of the original Resident Evil (better known by its informal abbreviated name, REmake), a prequel titled Resident Evil 0, and Resident Evil 4. This caused a stir among longtime Resident Evil fans who owned the series on PlayStation and PlayStation 2. In fact, Capcom had previously proposed a version of Resident Evil 4 for PlayStation 2, but the idea was revamped into Devil May Cry.

Many believed that Capcom would follow their actions with Resident Evil: Code Veronica, which was originally marketed as a Sega Dreamcast exclusive, but eventually made its way to the PlayStation 2 and GameCube in the form of an updated version. The fan's beliefs were helped by the financial losses Capcom took in 2002 and 2003 due to lower sales of Resident Evil (remake) and Resident Evil Zero on the GameCube, as well as high sales of Resident Evil Outbreak on PS2 (see next paragraph). Despite this, Capcom, especially Shinji Mikami, touted the three new games as GameCube exclusives. In an interview with a Japanese magazine, Mikami even claimed that he would "cut [his own] head off" (Japanese colloquial for firing a person) if Resident Evil 4 came to the PlayStation 2.

After the announcement of the exclusivity policy, Capcom still announced two Resident Evil titles for the PlayStation 2; Gun Survivor 4 (Resident Evil: Dead Aim) and Outbreak. Capcom's justification for these titles appearing on the PlayStation 2 was that they were side stories and such, were not subject to the GameCube policy, also required the use of additional peripherals (a light gun and online support) that were not available for the GameCube.

However, on October 31, 2004, Capcom officially announced that Resident Evil 4 would come to the PlayStation 2 near the end of 2005, citing increased profit, changing market conditions, and increased consumer satisfaction as the key reasons. Resident Evil (remake) and Resident Evil Zero will remain GameCube exclusives. Similar to the fans' outrage in 2001, a vocal majority of GameCube fans were angered that Capcom had remitted three years worth of exclusivity promises. It is rumoured that the decision was made against Mikami's consent and was one of the factors which led to his departure from Production Studio 4 to Clover Studios.

File:Re4 chainsaw controller.jpg

The Special Edition chainsaw controller.

Among more impressive graphical effects and sound quality, the GameCube version also saw an exclusive Special Edition yellow chainsaw controller, available packaged with the game in limited quantities. However, this too later saw a Playstation 2 release in orange. Due to its cost and less-than-ideal layout and feel, the chainsaw controller is seen more as a collector's item rather than an enhancement to the gameplay.

On February 1, 2006, Ubisoft announced that they would be publishing the game on the PC. [6]

Cultural inaccuracies

The currency used in the game is pesetas (abbreviated PTAS), which would seem to make little sense with the story taking place in 2004, when pesetas were long gone, replaced by Euro in Spain (and many other European countries). A plausible explanation to this could be that the village in question is of an isolationist mindset, where old customs die extremely hard, and the residents may have deliberately refrained from adopting the change in currency.

A larger mistake is that the enemies speak with an accent similar to that of Mexico and use words that are rare in the Iberian Spanish but are more common in Latin America. Moreover, some Spanish names of people and organizations are written in incorrect form, for example, the word “Illuminados” is correctly spelled with just one L, not two. They may have added the extra “L” so you could pronounce it the same way as you would in Spanish. Another example is the creature called the "Garrador," which is not actually a Spanish word but has "dor" added in order to seem Spanish. Its name comes from the word "Garra" which means "Claw". The proper name of the creature should be "Desgarrador". The Spanish is largely sloppy English to Spanish translation.

Certain signposts in the villages in-game depict arrows that guide the player to the next destination. Unlike an arrow that would appear on a North American One Way traffic sign, the in-game arrows appear to only be the upper half of the forementioned arrow. This style of half-arrow is only used in Japan, and is therefore out of place in the game's setting.

Dialogue notes

In the Japanese version of Separate Ways, when Ada picks up the plagas sample, she says "this is gonna be hard to explain at Customs", but the Japanese subtitles may be translated as "now I don't have to visit the DUTY FREE [sic] shop". This refers to the stereotype that Japanese people will always visit the duty-free shop when travelling abroad. However, this stereotype is unknown outside Japan, and the different spoken dialogue reflects this.

Leon states that the name Los Illuminados is "a mouthful", as in, it is difficult to say. This is unusual because he utters the name easily. However, the Japanese katakana transliteration adds extra vowel sounds, as well as posessing an "L" sound that is difficult for a native Japanese speaker to pronnounce. Therefore this line was meant for a non-English audience.

After Saddler has a Ganado shoot down Mike's helicopter, he calls Leon up. After a few moments into the dialogue, Leon says (quickly) "Saddler you bastard!". The subtitles at the bottom of the radio screen omit the word "bastard", possibly due to Leon saying it so fast.

Packaging art

Nintendo GameCube

• North America
  North America
• Japan
  Japan
• PAL
  PAL

Sony PlayStation 2

• North America
  North America
• Japan
  Japan
• PAL
  PAL
• PAL Limited Edition
  PAL Limited Edition

Alternative versions

Regional differences

The GameCube version of Resident Evil 4 went through slight modifications in each regional release since the initial one. The North American version was the first to be released, followed shortly by the Japanese version (titled Biohazard 4). These two versions are reportedly identical in most aspects (excluding localization), with the only difference being that animation involving decapitation were removed in the Japanese version. This was presumably due to the fact that Biohazard 4 was the first game in the series (not including re-releases and ports) to be rated by the Computer Entertainment Rating Organization, which objected to the game's depictions of decapitations. When Leon is killed by a chainsaw wielding ganado, instead of losing his head, Leon's face is unrealistically mutilated instead, showing a half-exposed skull. In Japan, the Assignment: Ada minigame is titled Ada the Spy.

The PAL versions of the game went through several changes from the North American version. This includes more balanced gameplay, a new Easy mode and increased firepower in some guns. In addition, the listed firing speed for rifles has been changed to reflect their actual firing speed in the game more accurately.

In terms of violent content, all the PAL versions are identical to the North American version. This is with exception to the German version of the game, which has less graphic animations for various ways that Leon dies (ie. Garrador, Chainsaw), explosions of enemy heads are almost unseen, violent cutscenes have been edited, and assignment Ada and Mercenaries mini-games are left out. The Swiss version, however has all the original violence of the normal game, but is missing the two mini-games that other versions have.

PlayStation 2 port

The PlayStation 2 port of the game was released in America on October 25, 2005. Release dates for other regions are listed above. Despite earlier rumors of a downgraded port due to the PS2's hardware capabilities, impressions of the port based on a preview build have been generally favorable, with many critics stating that the PS2 version's graphics are very close to the GameCube original despite a lower polygon count, suffering only a slight loss in detail, such as those found in lighting and texture detail. However, a comparison has been made by ruliweb shown here. The screens show a noticable drop in overall detail. Many levels have been remade with lower polygonal count and mostly lower texture detail, as have the character models. The overall look was comparable, though inferior, to the original Gamecube game.

Although the GameCube version was noted for its real-time cut scenes, almost all of them have been converted to movie files for the PlayStation 2. This is especially notable when Leon is wearing the tactical vest or one of the unlockable costumes. Regardless of what Leon may be wearing during gameplay, he is always seen in his default outfit during cut scenes in the PlayStation 2 version, whereas the GameCube version reflects whatever his current gameplay outfit is. This was presumably done due to the hardware limitations on the PlayStation 2. Others believe that it was a time saving measure to meet the deadline of the port's release (the port was done in less than a year, towards the end of the Gamecube original's development cycle).

To compensate for the late release, Capcom has added new content made specifically for the PlayStation 2 release.

• A new scenario starring Ada (unrelated to the "Assignment: Ada" minigame) titled "Separate Ways" (bearing the grammatically unsound title, "The Another Order" in the Japanese version). This new, five-chapter scenario runs parallel to the main scenario, covering Ada's side of the story. Ada (in her Chinese dress) can use her grappling gun to access new areas. "Separate Ways" contains new cut-scenes, fleshing out her relationship with Luis Sera and Albert Wesker, serving to explain details in the game's storyline. This scenario also includes two new weapons exclusive to Ada: a pump-action shotgun and a bowgun with explosive arrows, and includes a new boss.
• A five-part documentary titled "Ada's Report," in which Ada reveals information about her mission objective to the viewer. In each chapter, Ada analyzes her relationship with a particular character and their role in the plot. Each part of Ada's Report is unlocked for viewing after completing the corresponding chapter in "Separate Ways".
• A new weapon exclusive to Leon, known as the P.R.L. 412 (an acronym for Plaga Removal Laser). This is a laser gun which kills an enemy by destroying the Plaga parasite internally.
• New outfits for Leon and Ashley, a Chicago gangster outfit for Leon and a knight armor outfit for Ashley.
• A cut scene viewer ("Movie Browser"), which becomes available after completing the main game once. The player can view cut scenes from both, the main game (by chapters) and "Separate Ways."
• Anamorphic support for widescreen televisions, in addition to letter-boxing. True support, rather than the GCN version which was letter-boxed even on a widescreen television. Progressive Scan and Dolby Pro Logic II support remains.
• The Japanese version of the game includes a new "Amateur" difficulty setting, causing enemies to react slowly, attack infrequently, and for the player to incur very little damage.

PC port

A PC port of this game is published by UbiSoft. This port is to be released May 25 2006 in the US, and September 30 2006 in Europe. The port will surely contain the bonus features from PS2 version, such as missions called "Separate Ways", the new weapon P.R.L. 412 laser cannon and unlockable costumes for Leon and Ashley. Yet, no screenshots or videos have been released (except those at UbiSoft webpage, which according to their resolution, overall graphic quality and the fact that they have been released since the day Capcom announced this port, it's more than sure they are from PS2 or GameCube version of the game), but it's said that the port will have graphics potentially superior to that of the GameCube. This port is rated M for mature 17+.

Development history

Officially announced in 2001, Resident Evil 4 underwent a long development period in which three proposed versions of the game were discarded by the developers before the finished product was released in 2005.

An earlier attempt in developing Resident Evil 4 was made in 2000 for the PlayStation 2, with Resident Evil 2 director Hideki Kamiya leading the project. The direction the project took was considered too much of a departure from the traditional Resident Evil style and the resulting game was revamped and released as Devil May Cry in 2001.

The development of Resident Evil 4 got its official start in 2001 for the GameCube as part of an exclusivity agreement between Capcom and Nintendo. The first proposed version, dubbed the Fog Version, was unveiled in the Tokyo Game Show in 2002 and had Hiroshi Shibata (background designer for Resident Evil 3: Nemesis) attached to the project. This version's premise featured Leon infiltrating Umbrella's HQ in Europe, getting infected by the Progenitor Virus (covered in the Resident Evil remake and Resident Evil 0) and fighting fog-like creatures. One of the most notable areas shown in this version was a flying airship.

After the Fog Version came the Hooked Man Version. First shown at the E3 in 2003, this version was set in a haunted mansion and featured Leon fighting what appeared to be paranormal enemies, such as medieval suits of armor and living dolls. The most notable enemy in this version was the aforementioned "Hooked Man", who was intended to be a recurring enemy in the game, along the lines of the role of The Nemesis from Resident Evil 3. While the game used fixed camera angles similar to the previous Resident Evil games, the targeting system used in the finished product was already implemented in this version, with the camera changing to over Leon's shoulder when his weapon is drawn, though, in the video, there are a few times when Leon aims without the over-the-shoulder camera. Gameplay footage of this version was featured in the Biohazard 4 Secret DVD released in Japan only.

The final proposal before the finished product reportedly featured zombies as enemies once again. Not much was known about this version as it was never shown publicly. This version was considered too formulaic by the developers and was discarded. After this, Shinji Mikami took over directorial duties from Shibata and began working on the version that eventually released.

Media references/similarities

• Dr. Salvador, a chainsaw wielding ganado with a potato sack over his head, has been considered a cross between Jason of Friday the 13th fame and Leatherface of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.
• Twice in the game, Leon must outrun a giant rolling boulder. This is a reference to the classic scene from Raiders of the Lost Ark.
• Osmund Saddler, the leader of Los Illuminados, bears more than a passing resemblance to Emperor Palpatine of the Star Wars franchise.
• The El Gigante, a giant monstrous creature, shares a resemblance with the cave-trolls from The Lord of the Rings movie trilogy.
• Ramon Salazar's bodyguards bear a very strong resemblance to the xenomorphs from the Alien series, while they have a face similar to the yautja from the Predator films.
• One of the Plaga parasites which can emerge from many ganados bears a resemblance to the facehugger, which is also from the Alien series.
• Also, Luis' death closely resembles the robot Bishop's evisceration at the hands of the queen alien in Aliens.
• Also, when Leon is running from Salazars right hand through the service tunnels, it is closely related to when ripley was running from the xenomorphs in Alien 3, and the way of slowing it down by solidifying its body and exploding it into many pieces is common in RE 4 and Alien 3.
• The Garrador, a blind gladiator type of creature with claws, closely resembles Vega/Balrog from Capcom's Street Fighter series. They both bear Spanish bullfighting armor with retractable claws.
• At one point Leon must survive a laser-corridor in a similar fashion to the Red Queen's chamber in the Resident Evil film.
• At another point early in the game, there is a ganado wielding an axe too heavy for his body, so he drags it. This echoes a scene in the Resident Evil movie where a zombie drags an axe. This scene takes place when Leon and Luis are bound together.
• The setting of a remote Spanish village controlled by a mysterious cult and inhabited by hostile people who are not quite human, as well as the plot element of having to rescue the female lead, show a distinct inspiration from Dagon.
• The Ganados, with their hive-mind mentality and parasitic infestation that gives them a violent demeanor, are a possible reference to sci-fi classic Invasion of the Body Snatchers.
• The infected wolves called Colmillos, which sprout tentacles from their back have a strong resemblance to the caged wolf from John Carpenter's The Thing. Also, enemies with exposed Las Plagas and those with mutations from their infection could also be references to this movie.
• After having its leg blown off, the Regenerator hops off the ground to attack its prey. This is reminiscent of a scene near the end of Jeepers Creepers II, in which the film's villain hops in a similar fashion after it loses a leg.
• Bitores Mendez's physical appearance and clothing is designed after The Creature in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, down to the buttons on the back of his coat.
• While not a motion picture, different characters refer to current affairs in the USA. Salazar notes that terrorism is "a popular word these days", referring to the War on Terrorism. Also, Krauser suggests that "a conservative mind" cannot "bring order to this insane world", referring to the efforts of conservative George W. Bush to reduce terrorism in the world.
• When Krauser says "Whaddaya know, it's the bitch in the red dress.", it is a reference to The Matrix, specifically referring to the scene with the woman in the red dress as Neo learns about agents.
• Shortly after the first save point, the player can release a dog from a bear trap. This dog will return to aid in the fight with the first El Gigante. This could be seen as a reference to the The Watchers movies and novel.
• The last names of the main characters (Ashley Graham and Leon Kennedy) are a reference to the Australian comedic legend Graham Kennedy, whether this is deliberate or not remains unseen.
• Ramon Salazar was also the name of the drug kingpin on the third season of the television series, 24 (TV series).

Awards & Recognition

• 2004 IGN Best of E3 Awards GameCube Best Action Game
• 2004 IGN Best of E3 Awards GameCube Best Graphics
• 2004 IGN Best of E3 Awards GameCube Best Sound
• 2004 IGN Best of E3 Awards GameCube Technological Excellence
• 2004 IGN Best of E3 Awards GameCube Game of the Show
• 2004 IGN Best of E3 Awards Technological Excellence
• 2005 CESA Game Awards - Prize of Excellence
• 2005 Spike TV's Video Game Awards - Best Graphics
• 2005 Spike TV's Video Game Awards - Game of the Year
• IGN Best of 2005 GameCube Game of the Year
• IGN Best of 2005 GameCube Best Action Game
• IGN Best of 2005 GameCube Best Graphics Technology
• IGN Best of 2005 GameCube Best Artistic Design
• IGN Best of 2005 GameCube Best Original Score
• IGN Best of 2005 GameCube Best Use of Sound
• IGN Best of 2005 Readers' Choice Game of the Year
• IGN Best of 2005 Readers' Choice Gamecube Best Action Game
• IGN Best of 2005 Readers' Choice Best Graphics Technology Overall
• 2005 Golden Joystick Awards - GameCube Game of the Year
• 2005 Golden Joystick Awards - Editor's Game of the Year
• 2005 GameSpot Best of 2005 Best Action Adventure Game
• 2005 GameSpot Best of 2005 - Most Improved Sequel
• 2005 GameSpot Best of 2005 - GameCube Game of the Year
• 2005 GameSpot Best of 2005 - Game of the Year 2005 (Gamecube version only)[7]
• 2005 GameSpy Best GameCube Action Title of 2005
• 2005 GameSpy GameCube Game of the Year
• 2005 Edge magazine Awards Best Game Of 2005
• Telewest Shiny Awards Games Digest Game Of The Year 2005
• 2005 GameSpot Reader's Choice - Best Action Adventure Game (GameCube and PlayStation 2 version)
• 2005 GameSpot Reader's Choice - GameCube Game of the Year 2005
• 2005 GameSpot Reader's Choice - Game of the Year 2005 (GameCube version only)
• G4TV "X-Play"'s Best Action Adventure Game of 2005
• G4TV "X-Play"'s Game of the Year 2005
• 2005 GameFAQs Best GameCube Game
• 2005 GameFAQs Game of the Year
• GameFAQs Tenth Anniversary Contest - Ranked #14 on "Best Games Ever"
• 2005 Game Informer Game of the Year
  • In addition, Leon was ranked #3 on GameInformer's "Top 10 Heroes of 2005" list.
• 2005 Metacritic PlayStation 2 Game of the Year
• 2005 Metacritic GameCube Game of the Year
• 2005 Play Magazine Editor's Choice Game of the Year
• 2005 Play Magazine Best Graphics
• 2005 EGM Magazine Game of the Year
• 2005 GamePro Magazine Editor's Choice Game of the Year
• 2005 GamePro Magazine Editor's Choice Best Action-Adventure
• UGO.com 2005 Game of the Year
• 2005 Game Revolution Game of the Year
• Blender Magazine's Reader's Poll 2005 Game of the Year
• NGC Magazine's Game of the Year 2005
• 2005 1UP Awards Game of the Year
• 2005 1UP Awards Best Action Game
• 2005 GAME Game of the Year (GameCube version only)
• 2005 GAME People's Choice
• 2005 Gamefly Q Awards Favorite Game of the Year
• 2005 Gamefly Q Awards Favorite Gamecube Game of the Year
• 2005 Game Central's (UK) Game of the Year (both PS2 and Gamecube)
• 2005 Game Central's (UK) viewers Game of the Year (both PS2 and Gamecube)
• 2005 Nintendo Power - Ranked #2 on "NP top 200"
• 2005 Nintendo Power - Game of the Year - GCN in "Nintendo Power Awards"
• 2005 Nintendo Power - Best Graphics - GCN in "Nintendo Power Awards"
• 2005 Nintendo Power - Best Sound / Voice Acting in "Nintendo Power Awards"
• 2005 Nintendo Power - Best Adventure Game in "Nintendo Power Awards"
• 2005 Nintendo Power - Game of the Year (Overall) in "Nintendo Power Awards"
• Gaming Target's 52 Games From 2005 We'd Still Be Playing
• 2006 IGN - Ranked #1 on "Reader's Top 99 Games"
• 2006 Famitsu - 2005 Game of the Year (tied with Kingdom Hearts II)

Voice actors

• Paul Mercier — Leon Scott Kennedy
• Carolyn Lawrence — Ashley Graham
• Rino Romano — Luis Sera
• Salli Saffioti — Ingrid Hunnigan
• Sally Cahill — Ada Wong
• Rene Mujica — Ramon Salazar
• Jesse Corti — Bitores Mendez
• Jim Ward — Jack Krauser
• Michael Gough — Osmund Saddler
• Richard Waugh — Albert Wesker
• Carlos Carrasco — Villagers/Zealots
• Alex Mendoza — Villagers/Zealots
• Carol Bach y Rita — Villagers/Zealots
• Ward E. Sexton — Title Call

External links

• Official American site
• Official Japanese site
• Official European site
• Official Japanese PS2 site
• GameRankings reviews
• GameTab reviews
• Speed Demos Archive - Speedrun
• Resident Evil 4 at MobyGames
• Resident Evil 4 / Biohazard 4 Soundtrack
• Good comparison between Gamecube and PlayStation 2 versions