Resident Evil 4 completely changed game development philosophy after releasing in 2005. Nearly every third-person shooter released today can attribute their design to Resident Evil 4, the first game to adopt an over-the-shoulder perspective. This led to massively successful franchises like Gears of War, The Last of Us, Mass Effect, and several more. The game still stands the test of time, as it’s been ported to just about every system, but a remake on the PS5 could completely revolutionize the genre once again.
After the success of the remakes for Resident Evil 2 and Resident Evil 3, it’s only the next logical step to remake one of the most popular games of all time, Resident Evil 4. Both titles were lauded for their updated controls, gorgeous graphics, and improved acting and animation. On the PS5, Resident Evil 4 could take all of these improvements and push them up to the next level.
The most noticeable upgrades on the PS5 are the solid-state drive and the DualSense remote. Sony’s next-gen console can load 2GB of data in just 0.27 seconds, making it nearly 100 times faster than the PS4. That coupled with 4K graphics and being able to load much more data on screen at once would provide a completely different experience for Resident Evil 4. Enemy variety would increase, and Capcom would be able to force Leon into scenarios where he has to fight dozens of unique zombies at once.
PS5 Brings New Possibilities to RE4
For a horror game, nothing takes players out of the momentum more than a loading screen. While Resident Evil 4 isn’t as bad as its predecessors, there are several scenarios where backtracking and moving between areas kill immersion with long loading screens. On the PS5, this would be a non-issue. With the SSD, the entire game could be loaded at once, and cutscenes could be incorporated into the game engine similar to God of War.
Controls can highly enhance the Resident Evil 4 experience as well. With the new adaptive triggers, the DualSense could become the new best way to play the game since the Wii remote. Different weapons could require unique amounts of force in order to fire while haptic feedback on the remote can signal where Leon has been attacked. Coupled with 3D audio, the opportunities to enhance the fear factors are nearly endless.
After 15 years, Resident Evil 4 could use a facelift. The Plagas villagers have many repeating character models, the animations are stiff by today’s standards, and new enemies could be introduced in order to make it feel fresh. An online mercenaries mode would also add great replay value to the game, something that has already been proven to be successful in previous entries. A remake for Resident Evil 4 also has new opportunities to reintroduce cut content, expand on certain areas like the underground caves to make them more in-depth, and even create new content like extra Ada Wong missions.
One of the most influential titles of all time, Resident Evil 4 is guaranteed to be lauded for many years to come. However, a remake of the seminal title could be just as influential as the original, and the Playstation 5 seems like the perfect opportunity to do so.
