Gaming Resident Evil 4

[Brasil]

[quote name='satan665']I really wanted to go into the buildings and use them as a defense position but I really found that the villiagers are much more dangerous in the houses compared to outside.[/quote]

Oh, absolutely. In other games, being inside a building is a strategic advantage...in RE4, however...it's a fricking liability, because the AI is just brilliant. I'd say that RE4 is probably the smartest game I've ever played, because the villagers are constantly coming at you from all sides, no matter where you try to hide.

I've tried defending myself in the upper floors of the first few houses, only to have the villagers grab ladders and start pouring in through the second-story windows. When I'm on the lower level, they're still breaking in both floors.

In no other game ever have I been this impressed with the AI. While the AI in other games is really more of the same, RE4's is giving me a workout, both mentally and emotionally, lol.

[quote][Spoiler] When you get Rebecca the game really changes a lot. She is a pretty big liabilty especially if she gets hurt because she soaks up your healing items which are in pretty short supply. When the goons grab her its actually pretty easy to protect her, but you really can't leave her too far away [/Spoiler][/quote]

Don't you mean Ashley?

[quote]I've gotten pretty far, not without my own fair share of death. I've gotten as far as the weapons upgrade, got the riot gun and the magnum which I haven't tried out yet but am reaally excited to explode some heads. I got rid of the rifle because I never used it much, but as soon as I got to the castle I really wish i had it back.[/QUOTE]

I'd be careful about getting headshots unless you're a dead aim with the magnum, or have a shotgun handy with plenty of shells...John Carpenter's The Thing is alive and well in this game, heh.

I enjoy sniping, and as soon as I was able to purchase the rifle (and scope), I did. It came in handy pretty much immediately, and has continued to provide a very important pre-emptive strike weapon. I've yet to figure out how to use the binoculars in regular gameplay (i.e., not cutscenes), but the scoped rifle serves a better, more lethal function: deadly binoculars.

[Cagari]

[COLOR=DarkGreen]I wish I could see the pics though...It says forbidden when I click on them. When is Resident Evil 4 coming out? I really wanna get that game and make my sis watch me play it....hehehehe......Do you know a good place to buy Soul Calibur 2 and Super Smash Bro melee?[/COLOR]

[satan665]

Oops, I don't know where I got Rebecca. I just got to a cool target practice minigame where teh merchant runs a Hogan's Alley like shooting gallery, and you can win bottle caps which are basically mini-figurines. The first two I got were [Spoiler] Luis and Ada Wong [/Spoiler]. Its kinda nice because the whole game is pretty treacherous and you need to be on your toes.

I like that there are a lot of different handgun options, I've stuck with the Punisher because its pretty useful to be able to plug bullets through more than one baddie, even if it sacrifices a little bit in power. Even a weak shot to the knees is pretty effective though if you have time to run up and blast their heads til they explode.

I've also come across a rather vicious bad guy in the castle [Spoiler] prison there is a really freaky guy with his eyes sewn shut that springs to life when you get close. He's really tough and doesn't get pushed back by shotgun blasts. There were two bells in that room two but I don't know what they did or if they can work against him at all. Maybe he fights by hearing you? [/Spoiler]

[Ma-zaku Yusuke]

I heard that this Resident Evil game is the best one,since it doesn`t have bad camera angles,the zombies could use weapons,and the zombies could think for themselves m eaning they can run now.Also all of the animals like birds are good to kill too.I hope when it comes out for the PS2 later this year will have online component,that would be so cool

[Charles]

I completed it over a week ago. The central story anyway. Now that I've fully completed both unlockable mini games, I'll comment.

Overall, this is one of the finest games I've played this generation or any for that matter. It goes without saying then, it easily ranks alongside Metal Gear Solid 3 as my favorite modern-day video game. It's ironic, because like that game, Resident Evil 4 manages to rejuvenate a stale series I have nostalgic feelings for. Which, makes the experience all the more special.

The most impressive facet Resident Evil 4 has to offer is its sheer scope. As I mentioned earlier, the variety of environments you'll traverse through is simply incredible. Now that I've completed the game, it's imperative that I not only reiterate the fact, but stress it. That's simply because it's such a bold, yet somewhat overlooked new quality. People are quick to list the not zombies, polygonal backgrounds, or easier control management as Resident Evil 4's most sweeping change, but I'd say it's the fact that you're constantly moving from one distinct location to the next. I could understand the important role backtracking served in previous titles. It wasn't just a tedious way of lengthening the game. It was there to keep players confined to one area, to make them feel claustrophobic or trapped. Each inch gained in previous titles was well earned.

What I didn't like was that progress was well earned not through intense combat or survival--but through sloppy item management and out-of-place puzzle elements. Resident Evil 4 circumvents these issues by eliminating not only the terrible item management system and the puzzles, but also the very process of backtracking itself. Yet, it feels even[i] more[/i] claustrophobic because every area you do visit is so devoid of friendly life and overrun with the thread of death. There's definitely a difference between the scenarios Resident Evil 4 puts the player in, and the vacant interiors of past titles.

I love how enemies can trap you in a rickety shack, crash through the windows, prop ladders up, and bust the doors down. Although you won't spend four hours in that area, the game keeps you on the run. Instead of somber survival horror, it's frantic, run-for-your-life, survival horror. And that's just great. Especially in the context of the hauntingly beautiful locales. I can't get over how well they immersed me into the game--so much that I felt compelled to play on just to see the next area the game had to offer. Although the textures can be muddy at times, I think it's an intentional effect and makes your surroundings even more atmospheric. Factor in technical achievements such as curtains flapping in the wind, terrific water, and the best lava I've ever seen in a video game, and--you're essentially "there" in the visual sense whether you're exploring a medieval castle, a sewer, a lab, or a tomb.

Perhaps the only shortcoming in relation to this wide variety of spectacular places to visit is that you're not there in the interactive sense. Aside from remedying camera issues, the change to three dimensional backdrops provided a huge opportunity for immersion via direct interaction with your surroundings. This game is in no way Metal Gear Solid 2 or Max Payne where you're able to shoot nearly anything in the environment. Granted, shooting some hanging pots and pans didn't impact the experience a whole lot in Metal Gear Solid 2, but it would have been amazing seeing not zombies flip over tables as they stalk you--or your surroundings being torn apart by the violence on-screen. As it stands, they offer almost no improvement over the pre-rendered backgrounds from an interactive standpoint. Also, it [i]is[/i] easy to encounter bad clipping, like transparent trees, since they're directly in your path.

I like the approach taken with the enemies. It never became boring fighting them. Ultimately, their scariness wavered at times. Capcom faced two problems when it came to the scare of the enemies wearing off. The sheer amount of constant combat you engage in with them and the heavy fire power you have at your disposal. They overcame these problems by offering location specific enemies that all have their own distinct behavior patterns, by infusing the encounters with large volumes of the enemies, through the tight camera work/environments and by creating the most death animations I've ever seen in a game. There are so many possible ways for Leon to meet his demise, it's not even funny. Each is gruesome and cringe-inducing. It's painful to watch, which is good incentive to avoid it (or not depending on your penchant for violence).

The lack of variety in enemies made the experience suffer somewhat. I wasn't convinced a legitimate village was victimized because there were only about eight or so constantly repeating foes attacking me. Also, the village's population should have been extinguished in the first hour of the game judging by how many kills Leon racks up. But, these are only small short-comings and are easily forgivable. Especially when you look at the effort Capcom put into other details, like providing some great unlockable treats.

Some odd observations: I noticed that this is the first RE in the main series to abandon the combat knife as a usable weapon. I'm glad; it would have been useless in this one.

The same goes for blue herbs. Being poisoned was annoying. The yellow herbs are a great replacement.

The voice acting has been complimented in reviews--but does it really matter when the scripting is still terrible?

The merchant system was odd. And, yes, I know there were merchant characters before Ninja Gaiden--but it's [i]executed[/i] in exactly the same matter. Meaning, the merchant frequently felt out of place and detracted from the suspension of disbelief. On the other hand, he was a fun addition and I enjoyed the system in practice. So the game breaks even on that one.

This game has the best boss battles ever (and there are a lot of them); it easily obliterates Metal Gear Solid 3 in that department, which is a huge, [i]huge[/i], compliment coming from me.

There you have it. I know I did a bit of complaining so I do need to clarify--despite its shortcomings, Resident Evil 4 is one of the most enjoyable games I've played in recent years and is a masterpiece. It's the kind of game that makes it impossible to go back to earlier games in the series because it just makes them feel to archaic and poorly executed by comparison. Furthermore, ironically, Resident Evil 4 has tremendous length and replay value, which has been an asset absent from the series since it ditched the dual character set-up.

It's just such a shame that the team responsible for it has seemingly separated from what I've heard.

[satan665]

I actually haven't finished it yet, but I'd like to comment on a few things you said (Charles).

I actually did use the combat knife a few times pretty well. As long as the villiagers didn't have weapons you can aim low and slash at the knees to knock them down, then kick/suplex or just cut them up when they hit the ground. It works pretty well in easier situations when you want to save ammo.

Also the first section with the villiage with the ladders and climbing through the window was really amazing. The rest of the game is a little bit of a letdown after it though. They never really match it in terms of enemy AI, there just isn't the right kind of level design fort the enemies to do much more then sneak up from behind on you. The game doesn't suffer at all from it, but it makes me want to play that section again because it was one of the most fun parts of the game so far.

[Charles]

[QUOTE=satan665]I actually did use the combat knife a few times pretty well. As long as the villiagers didn't have weapons you can aim low and slash at the knees to knock them down, then kick/suplex or just cut them up when they hit the ground. It works pretty well in easier situations when you want to save ammo.

Also the first section with the villaige with the ladders and climbing through the window was really amazing. The rest of the game is a little bit of a letdown after it though. They never really match it in terms of enemy AI, there just isn't the right kind of level design fort the enemies to do much more then sneak up from behind on you. The game doesn't suffer at all from it, but it makes me want to play that section again because it was one of the most fun parts of the game so far.[/QUOTE]Wait a minute--you're actually able to use the combat knife? I'd never noticed. How do you do it?

To comment on your second full paragraph--although the scripted AI sequences of visible planning and coordination from the introduction never really made another appearance, the intensity and relentlessness of the AI actually improved throughout. So, it wasn't only consistent, there was a bit of an upward curve. I reference the monks in the castle who sometimes attempt to trap you by fleeing, and deliberately lure you into an awaiting ambush. Although this behavior is much more subtle than what you see at the outset of the game, I'd say it's just as impressive.

Also, there are sequences later on that pretty much put the opening attack to shame if you think about it. [spoiler]The cabin scene where Leon fights alongside Luis remains one of the best sequences in the game. I also greatly favored the escape on the bulldozer. The near head-on collision capping it off was the icing on the cake. In addition to those scenes, when you take the left route after rescuing Ashley, Capcom shows how crafty they are by using close quarter environments to exhibit some truly intense enemy challenges by facing you off against two chainsaw-wielding maniacs and a whole horde of not zombies.[/spoiler] Only a few examples of great stuff that deserves recognition.

I was a bit disappointed that enemies applied the kamikaze rule to their attacks, simply walking into gunfire instead of seeking cover; but I think it's just an example of their lost humanity and single-minded focus.

[Brasil]

[quote name='Charles']Wait a minute--you're actually able to use the combat knife? I'd never noticed. How do you do it?[/quote]
Any pistol equipped, then tap L (or hold L, depending on what Knife control Type you're using). You'll whip out the knife, and it's very handy throughout the game, not only during the first few sections. Most of the time, it's invaluable, except for boss battles.

[satan665]

[QUOTE=Charles]

Also, there are sequences later on that pretty much put the opening attack to shame if you think about it. [spoiler]The cabin scene where Leon fights alongside Luis remains one of the best sequences in the game. I also greatly favored the escape on the bulldozer. The near head-on collision capping it off was the icing on the cake. In addition to those scenes, when you take the left route after rescuing Ashley, Capcom shows how crafty they are by using close quarter environments to exhibit some truly intense enemy challenges by facing you off against two chainsaw-wielding maniacs and a whole horde of not zombies.[/spoiler] Only a few examples of great stuff that deserves recognition.

I was a bit disappointed that enemies applied the kamikaze rule to their attacks, simply walking into gunfire instead of seeking cover; but I think it's just an example of their lost humanity and single-minded focus.[/QUOTE]


Hmm, maybe you are right, I forgot about the [spoiler]cabin part[/spoiler]. That was pretty messed up and reminded me a lot of Night of the Living Dead. Maybe the difference is in the weapons, since the later you go through the game, the less I used the pistol. The villiagers are a little more scary when you can only peck away at them with a handgun, raather than take it to them with the shotgun etc.

Every time I pick up a key item in the game I hold my breath waiting for some door to pop open and bad things to come flooding out. Late game spoiler: [spoiler]The oh so obvious part in the cryogenic freezer where you need to defrost the lab to get the heat vision scope is the kind of stuff that freaks me out. Those regenerators are creepy as hell, especially when you get hints that they are around. I knew it was going to come for me when I defrosted it, it still pinned me and I barely managed to take it out while frantically firing the rifle at way to close range [/spoiler]

But yeah, the knife works just by holding L, which it wasn't until halfway into the game where I realized that it was good for breaking boxes instead of wasting ammo.

[Charles]

Wow! Thanks for pointing that out to me, you two. Throughout the game I primarily used the shotgun and the semi-automatic rifle. My experience with the pistol was so limited that I had no idea it had a secondary function like the combat knife. Nor did I imagine it would be useful in the context of the game. Both of your opinions dispel that thought. I should read my instruction manuals more.

I've always found it annoying that there wasn't a way to break open boxes without wasting ammo; I had complained that there should be a way to kick them open with the action button. So the ability to break them apart with the knife sounds infinitely useful. Also, Alex's description of its usefulness in combat shows that Capcom has continued the trend of making the combat knife a viable weapon after increasing its effectiveness somewhat in Resident Evil: Code Veronica.

I agree with you about the lab too, satan. [spoiler]The light, difficult breathing of the Regenerators is startling. Not to mention their imposing size, fierce attacks, and initial invulnerability. It's especially creepy when you encounter the upgraded form that wears a parasite on its back and has the ability to project sharp spikes from its body. Do you remember when Leon and Ashley fall into the dumpster and are pursued by several of them? I had a difficult time there until I discovered that you could shoot out their legs in order to expose their back. But imagine my surprise when one began to belly flop across the ground at an astounding speed towards me! The portion of the castle in which you play as a relatively helpless Ashley is tense too; especially when the suits of armor come into play.[/spoiler] Scary indeed. lol

[XxLinkinParkxX]

I just can't see a Resident Evil game without Zombies and Umbrella, I am dissapointed. And I'm not sure if im going to buy this game. Resident Evil has been dissapointing me lately. I mean with Resident Evil 2 The movie, which was a complete disgrace to the whole game. The movie was horrible. And now a RE game without zombies, Im one sad panda.

[Brasil]

[quote name='XxLinkinParkxX']I just can't see a Resident Evil game without Zombies and Umbrella, I am dissapointed. And I'm not sure if im going to buy this game. Resident Evil has been dissapointing me lately. I mean with Resident Evil 2 The movie, which was a complete disgrace to the whole game. The movie was horrible. And now a RE game without zombies, Im one sad panda.[/quote]
Just play through it. You'll be pleasantly surprised if you think Umbrella isn't in there at all, in some form. ~_^

And the non-zombies will shock and awe you far greater than those sluggish targets ever did. The last half of the game is probably one of the, if not the most, nerve-wracking and unsettling section of game I've played in a long, long time.

[satan665]

[QUOTE=Charles]


I agree with you about the lab too, satan. [spoiler]The light, difficult breathing of the Regenerators is startling. Not to mention their imposing size, fierce attacks, and initial invulnerability. It's especially creepy when you encounter the upgraded form that wears a parasite on its back and has the ability to project sharp spikes from its body. Do you remember when Leon and Ashley fall into the dumpster and are pursued by several of them? I had a difficult time there until I discovered that you could shoot out their legs in order to expose their back. But imagine my surprise when one began to belly flop across the ground at an astounding speed towards me! The portion of the castle in which you play as a relatively helpless Ashley is tense too; especially when the suits of armor come into play.[/spoiler] Scary indeed. lol[/QUOTE]

Yes indeed. [spoiler] The thing flopping towards you and chomping onto my neck was pretty nasty. Once it stretched out its arm and grabbed me when I thought I was at a safe distance too. When you get to the two in the garbage disposal, its pretty freaky but you can pin them by shutting those cell doors on them and snipe away at their parts. Once I panicked and blasted ones legs out from under it, then unloaded my full 16 shots from the stryker until I managed to pulverize all of the paracites. Its a nasty waste of ammo though.[/spoiler]


I think that if anyone has any reservations about how they will like this game, then you WILL like it. It doesn't so much follow the formula of the last few games with the T-virus, but it hasn't lost any of its Resident Evil-ness. Comparing this game to the movies is like comparing the Batman comics to Batman Forever, or whichever is the terrible one with Clooney.

[Brasil]

My browser refreshed or something, so I lost my post...here goes the re-write.

I just beat [spoiler]the large aquatic predator[/spoiler], but instead of going to the next objective point, I decided to backtrack a bit. If you want to experience what I consider to be the most unsettling and yet electrifying portion of the entire game, backtrack a bit after beating the lake boss.

If you get the same cut-scene I did, you'll find that there was much, much more of a John Carpenter's The Thing influence than what you see with the villagers...it's [spoiler]tenticular carnivorous canine chaos[/spoiler] at its best.

[AzureWolf]

[FONT=book antiqua][SIZE=2][COLOR=blue]I just beat the game today (or was it yesterday? God, what a bad memory I have. >_<). This has been the first game I've played since... Ninja Gaiden. O_o Anyway, I was very pleased with the game: easily the best RE to date, and possibly one of my favorite games, haha. This goes up there with my other favorites: DMC and Ninja Gaiden (funny enough, each is on a different system).

Why do I put this game alongside DMC and Ninja Gaiden? Because in those games, your chance of survival is directly proportional to how darn good you are. It's a welcome change from the previous "HP races" you had in the other RE games. You can actually beat most bosses with a perfect, which was never the scenario in other RE's.

I have to disagree with the idea that the knife is "indispensible," though. You can use it near the beginning, and it's used in a few QTEs, but as far as manually using it goes, it loses what little value it had after you leave the village. Hell, I sold my handgun (the variant I had at the time) in the middle of the second disc (and didn't buy another handgun). With the generous amount of ammo you get, you can sell the kinds you don't use and be efficient with what you have.

Oh, something interesting happened early on in the game for me. You know when that really big dude [SPOILER]chokes you after you go to that really nice-looking house[/SPOILER]? Well, I was showing my sister the interior, and when I went back to the one room, a cut scene occurred. I think it was optional, heh.[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]

[OtakuSennen]

[QUOTE=AzureWolf][font=book antiqua][size=2][color=blue]
Oh, something interesting happened early on in the game for me. You know when that really big dude [SPOILER]chokes you after you go to that really nice-looking house[/SPOILER]? Well, I was showing my sister the interior, and when I went back to the one room, a cut scene occurred. I think it was optional, heh.[/color][/size][/font][/QUOTE]
Well, you may as well explain what happens in it. You of all people should know to explain things, Azure. :P

It occured to me today that I have discovered, purchased, played and beaten this game without every posting in this thread. I may as well now.

This game was one of those "AAA" titles released in the past few months, but for me it wouldn't be a drastic leap to say that it was my favorite. The controls took me a little while to get used to (though by the time I bought the game, I had played the demo enough to do well enough in the full version), but the game sort of forces you to fix that issue early on. I finally adjusted to focusing on the laser sight by the time I had my first enounter with [spoiler]Mr. Chainsaw Man.[/spoiler]

The story was decent. Dialogue was, at times, hilariously atrocious (i.e. Leon saying "Hasta luego"), and subtitles had absolutely no regard for punctuation, but that's really a moot point. The cutscenes were great, and the fact that you could actually interact with them to some degree made them that much better. [spoiler]The first knife fight with that American military guy (Who cares about names?) was one of my favorite parts in the game.[/spoiler]

Unfortunately, everything seemed to come to a screeching halt near the end. The village was cool, and the castle was even better, but the island was, for the most part, miserably unentertaining by comparison. At times, I felt that parts of it were out of place in this game (Medieval Europe-styled areas > Metal Gearish island).. Sort of like it was trying to be too cover too many action cliches at one time.

And the final encounter was far too simple. [spoiler]By the end of the game, the shock value of bloody-looking mutants had worn off. It was even to be expected. I must admit that I didn't see the Ada-betrayal thing coming. Perhaps if I had played Resident Evil 2..?[/spoiler]

Don't get me wrong, I absolutely loved this game. I just always focus on the negative side. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm off to play Mercenaries mode.

[Brasil]

[quote name='AzureWolf']I have to disagree with the idea that the knife is "indispensible," though. You can use it near the beginning, and it's used in a few QTEs, but as far as manually using it goes, it loses what little value it had after you leave the village. Hell, I sold my handgun (the variant I had at the time) in the middle of the second disc (and didn't buy another handgun). With the generous amount of ammo you get, you can sell the kinds you don't use and be efficient with what you have.[/quote]
AW, when you've got a swarm of enemies coming after you--the flatbed truck sequence comes to mind as a perfect example of this--and you don't have time to reload your clip/shells/etc, the knife definitely comes in handy. I believe you can actually use it regardless of which weapon you have equipped. A few quick swipes is all it takes to knock a group of enemies down, which buys you enough time to jam in a new magazine.

Also, don't forget the range of the knife arc; it's fairly wide and covers a substantial area in front of you. With many of the enemies being melee attackers, the knife is invaluable. I wouldn't go around using it exclusively, but it's an excellent close-quarters deterrent.

[satan665]

This game is definitely replayable, I'm to chapter 4-1 on my third time around. Mostly I went through a second time and upgraded all of my weapons to the max, then the third time is a money gathering mission so I could buy the Chicago typewriter.

If you haven't figured it out already, stick with the broken Butterfly Magnum when you get it. The Killer 7 is pretty cool, but not nearly as powerful when its fully upgraded. I also like the Red 9 as the handgun of choice, it makes a really cool sound and really blasts through the first few levels like nothing.

My biggest problem is some of the ammo quirks. I really like the Exploding dart gun, but you never really get much ammo for it. The only way I was able to keep using it really was to upgrade it every time I ran out of ammo. Does anyone know a better way to get ammo for it?

[Semjaza]

All RE games give some sort of "incentive" for replaying them, but RE4 is the first one I actually wanted to play through again almost instantly after finishing it. I think that says a lot for how much more enjoyable this game is compared to the other ones, at least to me.

I found the knife to be invaluable. For one, it actually can kill things in a reasonable amount of time. Slicing at legs to knock enemies down is quite useful. Plus, if you already have an enemy lying on the ground, slicing at his limp body saves a ton of ammo in the scheme of things. Ammo is certainly plentiful compared to earlier titles, but I certainly ran out on a few occassions.

As for guns, I mostly used the shot gun and later the riot gun. They're just extremely useful in taking out large groups. Well placed shots do pretty much unparalleled damage in the game (outside of the rocket launcher).

[Charles]

What did you guys think of the ending? OtakuSennen's post is a good catalyst for discussing that issue.

[spoiler]I thought that it was extremely disappointing personally. We've addressed the fact that this is easily the longest, most difficult Resident Evil title in the series. It's much more epic in scale than previous installments when you consider the size of the environments, the boss characters, and the sheer scale of the combat situations you're placed in. It's also more cinematic than past Resident Evil's (when you take into account the interactive cut scenes) which were heavily cinematic to begin games with. Furthermore, people kept stressing the raised quality in voice acting and direction.

Yet, the game's ending probably lasted between twenty and thirty seconds. I understand that the true reward in Resident Evil 4 is its replayabliity and that few of the games have had rewarding conclusions. But, did any of you feel let down as well? The resolution, if you can call it that, felt insignificant. Nothing satisfying really happened. The ending (the completed form counting Agent Ada) only served as a segue into old territory by re-establishing Umbrella and Wesker. Leon's standalone ending just sees him ride into the sunset with Ashley after rejecting her advances. I didn't find it as ambitious as the rest of the product. What do you think? Did it get the job done?[/spoiler]

[Semjaza]

You also have to remember we're talking about a series whose first (and subsequent remake) game's "best" ending was flying off in a helicopter with your teammate.

I wasn't all that disappointed by the ending because I really didn't think there was that much more to be said about anything. All the loose ends in terms of the Ganados (I can't remember how to spell that) were largely tied up through the course of the story. As for Ada and Wesker's involvement, enough was said to really only have an excuse to continue the series into another game. It wasn't unexpected as the series has done this constantly.

The ending certainly wasn't special in any sense, but I can't say I minded very much.

[Charles]

[quote name='Semjaza Azazel']You also have to remember we're talking about a series whose first (and subsequent remake) game's "best" ending was flying off in a helicopter with your teammate. [/quote]

Yeah, that's what I was referring to when I mentioned how the previous Resident Evil's had poor endings as well. But, even then that was 1997 and at least there were about six multiple variations of that ending.

[Brasil]

I was reading through Senny's post, and before I talk about the ending itself, I'd like to expand on his comments regarding Ada's [spoiler]betrayal[/spoiler] at the end of the game. The weird thing about [spoiler]Ada and Wesker[/spoiler] having roles in RE4 is...well, they both bit the big one at the end of their respective games. There was really no question that they both kicked the bucket.

I mean, seriously, you get gored through the chest by Tyrant's claw...I don't think you're going to pull through, and last I checked, getting sliced up by the second Tyrant, then falling down off of a walkway into the abyss below...survival just isn't in the cards.

But, even in light of the previous games, I don't feel that detracts terribly from RE4, because I don't really view the games in the franchise as full-blown sequels, more of re-tellings of the same concept. Yes, in RE2 Claire comes to Raccoon City to look for Chris, and Leon was in RE2, etc., but the plots were never really interconnected. In the bigger scheme of things, why Claire came to Raccoon City is unimportant. What matters is simply guiding her through the game.

Each game really focuses on a particular character and simply places them within the game. The repetition found in the franchise is evidence of that, I think. You could easily supplant Chris with Leon, or Claire with Jill and the game would still function, both in terms of gameplay and concept.

I suppose, what I'm saying here is that each RE game is its own chapter--its own remake of the original game, so each game doesn't necessarily have to fit, continuity-wise, because they're all just rehashes of the first game. I see everything as episodes to an ongoing saga, none of which are true sequels, merely just continuing the idea.

This is one of the reasons I adore RE4, I think, because it keeps the familiar characters (in keeping with the James Bond-esque sequel series), but creates an entirely [i]new[/i] game, something the previous sequels never did (they essentially just used different character models for different sequels).

Of course, Wesker has always been one of the more interesting characters in the franchise--probably my favorite character in the entire franchise--because he's not quite evil and not quite good. He walks that line, sometimes helping you (leaving ammo and so forth), but always having a sinister edge to him.

He's a much stronger character than the pussyboy goodygoodies Chris Redfield and Barry Burton, and as much as the ending was anti-climactic in the sense that the game was a rollercoaster throughout, the inclusion of Wesker was, in my mind, not so much as an excuse to have a sequel (though, I won't deny that was a reason) as it was including a character that you just loved to hate and hated to love. Wesker was both evil and good, and represented that duality that so many of those characters lack--he's really the hook for the series. Yes, yes, Umbrella and all...but who cares about Umbrella? Wesker is really the attention-grabber of the franchise; he's the star, lol.

I think I went off on a bit of a tangent there, but it was a fun tangent, lol. But Ada was always an edgy character, and I never got the feeling in previous games that she helped because she liked helping. I more got the sense that she helped because she could get something out of it (and the ending to RE4 stays true to this characterization exactly). She did soften up at the end of RE2, but she was kind of dying at that point, so I'm not sure if it was entirely sincere, haha.

Regarding the ending...for RE1, the "six multiple endings" wasn't really anything terribly major. You had three per character, and there wasn't any dramatic changes or effects between them. All that changed was the number of characters that flew away in the helicopter. There's no resolution beyond that. There are no real plot wrap-ups, apart from Destruction Of [insert lab complex here]. So, I don't really think the ending to RE4 is all that disappointing in terms of the series itself, because we've always had that kind of bland, simplistic ending.

I do think, however, that criticisms of the ending based solely on RE4 itself are legitimate, because RE4 constantly raised the bar for tension and excitement throughout the game, and the final boss battle was easy and relatively simple compared to what RE4's previous bosses involved (the lake monster, for example). It's not a bad Finale (and I can't complain about the classic rocket launcher, haha), but it could have been a bit more given RE4.

[satan665]

I was pretty ok with the ending of 4 also, the game itself gives you a pretty good sense of satisfaction for having completed it. Its mostly just relief for surviving the whole thing.

I think the best ending for the series was in Code Veronica. It was pretty simple just like the rest, but there is a good sense of closure since [spoiler]Claire finally reunites with Chris and you have sacked the best that Umbrella and the Virus had to throw at you. Even Wesker was punked out by the boss of Code Veronica, probably because he didn't save enough Magnum ammo to take him out.[/spoiler]

So yeah, RE games are usually good enough with story throughout that they don't really need to do some over the top type of ending. If they threw in cheesy twists like Ashley was really [spoiler]still infected[/spoiler]it wouldn't really fit.

[AzureWolf]

[FONT=book antiqua][SIZE=2][COLOR=blue]Sorry about my odd and random timing for replies, school is being a pain. >_< [quote name='Siren']AW, when you've got a swarm of enemies coming after you--the flatbed truck sequence comes to mind as a perfect example of this--and you don't have time to reload your clip/shells/etc, the knife definitely comes in handy. I believe you can actually use it regardless of which weapon you have equipped. A few quick swipes is all it takes to knock a group of enemies down, which buys you enough time to jam in a new magazine.[/quote] This goes back to efficienct use of ammo. I don't know about you, but I had the shotgun by that particular scene, and properly-planned (and aimed? O_o) shots will give you more than enough time to reload. Why just slash down to reload a few shots when you can almost kill them with one or two blows in the process?

But let's get back to a bigger problem: Why would you need to reload? You obviously aren't using ammo efficiently if you find yourself needing to reload while there are monsters standing. I've played through the entire game, so I'm familiar with every scenario it throws at you. With the exception of the mine cart part, I never found myself needed to reload at crucial points. Hell, I stopped using the knife early in the game and [B]still[/B] had to sell ammo to have room to grab herbs.

This isn't a boast about how good I am, mind you (my aim is terrible, haha). I'm just saying, if you know which gun to use for a specific situation, and make every shot count, not only will you find yourself never reloading in the middle of a fight, but you will have enough ammo that you'll be forced to sell/throw quite a bit away.

[QUOTE]Also, don't forget the range of the knife arc; it's fairly wide and covers a substantial area in front of you. With many of the enemies being melee attackers, the knife is invaluable. I wouldn't go around using it exclusively, but it's an excellent close-quarters deterrent.[/QUOTE] Haha, I think you and I see the Shotgun differently. Certainly, it's faster to fire when someone "melee"'s you. Did you get up to the dogs? That's as "melee" as they get, and the knife's "arc" or whatever is a waste of time and effort. The shotgun is the ultimate melee weapon, as any close-ranged idiot will be sent flying away.[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]