Now that is a remake...
In a time where games are being remastered and remade, it was an amazing feeling playing through Resident Evil 4 (2023). Having played the original 2005 version on the Nintendo Gamecube, I was curious to see how almost 20 years of progress in the video game industry would either benefit or degrade the longtime classic survival horror/action game that redefined the third person shooter with its iconic over-the-shoulder look. Luckily, any concerns were immediately squandered - Resident Evil 4 (2023) is a super remake that enhances gameplay mechanics without removing the areas that made us fall in love with this world so many years ago.
Story
For those who have not played the original classic, a summary: you play as Leon Kennedy, a former cop of Racoon City that survived the horrors of the original outbreak in Resident Evil 2 (which also got a fantastic remake a few years ago). In RE4, Leon has been transferred to a part of the United States President's patrol and has been assigned to locate and save the President's daughter who has gone missing in a foreign land (assuming Spain). You are provided her last known location and come across a village that is full of locals who want you dead. From there, you have to wonder, scavenge, and kill the members of this mysterious community in order to save the President's daughter.
There is more to this story as it progresses, including understanding more around the lore as to why the villagers are the way they are as well as why the President's daughter is in this area. You will also meet some interesting characters, both friend and foe, along the way that provide extra context as to why mysterious things are occurring and, more importantly, how to stop it from spreading.
While the main story beats remain the same, some things have changed from the classic 2005 version. First off, the writing of the story has been revised, which may or may not be a big deal to folks of the original. Compared to the original, the 2023 RE4 is more serious and less campy (or cheesy, whatever you prefer). The dialogue has been revised, which removes a lot of the characters' quirkiness. At the time, the cheesiness of the original game's story added to the character of the game. Leon came off as a character that was searching to be the hero and the characters around him acted like Saturday-morning cartoon characters. That version of the game has been replaced with a more serious tone. From my perspective, it is a big benefit here. There are callbacks to certain cheesy dialogue but overall the seriousness of the story actually gives the game the opportunity to flesh out certain supporting characters. For example, Luis in the original game was pretty much a sheet of paper that turned up at exact moments to move the story along. Here, Luis is given the opportunity to explain his side of the story as well as inform Leon why he was there in the first place. It makes the later part of the game more satisfying and the climax of his story all the more impactful. However, I will say the villains have been negatively impacted from a change to a more serious tone. Where in the original game, Leon would have awful banter with some of the later villains prior to their eventful defeat, the remake's tone does not give the same opportunities. In fact, the final battle against the main villain almost seems meaningless because there was not a lot of interaction with Leon prior to it. That being said, this is a minor complaint that is well overlooked because of how much the story has been enhanced because of these changes.
Gameplay
The original RE4 redefined the action shooter game with the over-the-shoulder look; however, it had some limitations. For starters, you could not move and shoot at the same time. Your left stick was used to move Leon throughout the map and then would transfer to Leon's aim when Leon was aiming his firearm at the swarms of enemies coming at him. In addition, Leon could not reload a gun outside of the aiming system, which also limited Leon's ability to run away and reload his weapon outside of a sticky situation. In the remake (and thanks for almost 20 years of progression in the shooting area of video games), this is no longer an issue. Leon is able to walk around and reload while aiming down sights.
REST OF REVIEW IN DEVELOPMENT BUT SCORE REMAINS THE SAME
Score: 10/10