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RE:4 The RE4 remake will be more like survival horror...

I'm still looking forward to the game but at this point should I just give up on the original canon and accept that it's dead? It seems all these remakes are creating a new alternate timeline in which its feeling more and more disconnected to the original lore. It's ridiculous we have to pick and choose what's canon/non-canon/grey canon.

It makes you wonder if REmake 4 will just be another companion piece or a replacement of the original in terms of lore. I am betting this will feel disconnected from Darkside Chronicles with Krauser being reimagined. He will probably have a mohawk and have a different accent like Carlos.

This is a weird time to be a fan of the series.
 
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I dont know, thats going to be moving in a more serious direction, so its likely going to remove the scenes of levity, and make everything darker. Then there's the issue of Ashley, so they will likely give her a weapon and have them split up more often or just give her more sections where she runs away from enemies or hides. I have no idea what they will do with Ada, so maybe that will stay mostly the same.
I'm still looking forward to the game but at this point should I just give up on the original canon and accept that it's dead? It seems all these remakes are creating a new alternate timeline in which its feeling more and more disconnected to the original lore. It's ridiculous we have to pick and choose what's canon/non-canon/grey canon.

It makes you wonder if REmake 4 will just be another companion piece or a replacement of the original in terms of lore. I am betting this will feel disconnected from Darkside Chronicles with Krauser being reimagined. He will probably have a mohawk and have a different accent like Carlos.
I'm with you. I consider the recent remakes to be non canon, but the more reimaginings they make the more it seems like they dont care about what was set up, and instead want to change it to fit what they think it should be. Ada will probably lose the dress, Ashley is definately going to lose the skirt, and Luis will probably lose the accent as well.
 
I personally have a habit of seeing each title as a pocket universe. It's hard for me to believe that old games, retellings and reimaginings can be part of the same continuity because of how they differ in tone, approach to different aspects and vision in general. And the same goes for other games as well. If we take titles like Resident Evil (2002), Resident Evil 6, and Resident Evil 7, for example, then it's also hard for me to believe that they represent one universe. Each game tells and shows a story and setting that feels natural in itself, but when you try to compare these aspects between titles and see three different Redfields, it's kind of a suspension of disbelief for me.

Do I want to say that the mythology of the Resident Evil universe is a mess? No. On the contrary, I strongly believe that the lore of this universe is incredibly consistent, which is an anomaly for such a large franchise that so many authors have worked on. If we take Metal Gear, which had Hideo Kojima almost all the time, even this series is less consistent in what it did.

But I feel that every story that this or that game tells us is somewhat unreliable, so we always have a chance to see a retelling of it in a different shape and form. And for this very reason, it's not a big deal to me that Chris changes his face and voice almost every appearance.

I am betting this will feel disconnected from Darkside Chronicles with Krauser being reimagined.

It's very possible for sure.

This is a well-known fact, but I think it is sometimes useful to look at some stories without taking into account extensions that were written retroactively, because the authors who wrote them back then could not expect you to know those things that will be established in the future.

Does this mean that some untold story between Leon and Jack could be important for the narrative of Resident Evil 4? I think not, because there is no point in relying on non-existent things. Such a story is something that could give more substance, yes, but it is quite clearly not necessary for the story that Mikami-san told.

Shinji Mikami told the story of how Jack Krauser kidnapped Ashley to earn Saddler's trust, since he was a double agent and Wesker's lackey. The very idea that Leon and Jack worked together before the events of this story could have been written as a way to tell the players Wesker's plan to resurrect Umbrella, because Jack would not say such things to someone with whom he does not have a proper relationship.

In other words, if Mikami-san had found another way to give such information, I believe Kennedy and Krauser could have met for the first time at all, and the narrative would hardly have lost something important. Maybe it will even improve the storytelling, because meeting Krauser in this game is like if we met Wesker in CODE: Veronica without the first game.

And I think I've described a perspective that developers can easily choose because they're remaking specific narratives.

In fact, this perspective is also the reason why, for example, Ada Wong pretended to be an FBI agent in a new interpretation. This is an idea that, in my opinion and the opinion of the developers, works better for the Resident Evil 2 story, but in return you sacrifice a callback to another title.
 
I'm looking forward to seeing how they can improve on the original. But I think in some ways, the remakes are a step backwards. They're not new storylines. I'd rather see new storylines as they did with 7 and 8, even if they're not my preferred storylines of choice. But they should also probably forget about Raccoon City. It's time to take things forward.

Capcom is probably unwilling to do this.
 
I could be onboard with a Resident Evil 4 Remake, as long as they make the game darker than the original 4th game. My favorite part is the castle because of the architecture and villains there and if they do a remake of 4, I hope they make it looks more sinister than before, or at least like 3.5's mansion. Perhaps they can have that guy with the chain hook from 3.5 go after Leon.
 
Well, do remember that the game is strongly rumoured, but I think if Capcom were smart, they would remake CV first, since CV is an important sequel.
 
Looking at the trailer, it seems they're going the dark and spooky route rather than the cheesy action movie route. I can't help but wonder how much of the game they're going to change, and how much they're going to leave out. I do think the music sounded great, though.
 
Not that it's surprising.

Although the English version sowed the seed of the perspective that Biohazard 4 is a title with some kind of "self-awareness", the Japanese original takes itself very seriously. And moments like sharp bickering and dramatic choreography were something that was considered genuinely cool.

I think I got this vibe best when I was a kid. The game wasn't some nonsense for me to laugh at. It was a truly scary and stressful experience with cool moments that even inspired me to be like Leon.

It may seem that I am against self-irony in any shape and form, but this is not true. All I want to say is that I have nothing against characters who laugh off the ridiculous sides of the series. Like Ethan, who asks who built that shit in the main hall. Or Heisenberg, who called Chris a boulder-punching asshole. It's a natural thing for people to do. But I'm against turning Biohazard RE:4 into a comedy, because some people see the original that way. The setting of the game is quite dark and creepy, and if we read Benny Matsuyama's novel, we can learn more about Leon's inner conflict that took place in the story. About his trauma from Raccoon City and such. Because Leon S. Kennedy is not a buffoon, but a serious and even nihilistic character.

Nevertheless, it is well known that the story of the game is not as deep by the standards of the series, and many aspects lack substance. People who see Resident Evil 4 as a comedy believe it's intentional because the developers didn't take the game seriously, in their opinion. But in fact, this title had a long production history, and Shinji Mikami, who is not a writer, wrote the script in three weeks. That's why he also agreed that the remake should have a better story.

And I agree with that, too. I like this world, so I would love to explore it deeper. And I think that the inherited experience from classical and neo-classical titles, such as a wider palette of colors and realism, will only contribute to this journey.
 

Yama

Owner
1996...
Not that it's surprising.

Although the English version sowed the seed of the perspective that Biohazard 4 is a title with some kind of "self-awareness", the Japanese original takes itself very seriously. And moments like sharp bickering and dramatic choreography were something that was considered genuinely cool.

I think I got this vibe best when I was a kid. The game wasn't some nonsense for me to laugh at. It was a truly scary and stressful experience with cool moments that even inspired me to be like Leon.

It may seem that I am against self-irony in any shape and form, but this is not true. All I want to say is that I have nothing against characters who laugh off the ridiculous sides of the series. Like Ethan, who asks who built that shit in the main hall. Or Heisenberg, who called Chris a boulder-punching asshole. It's a natural thing for people to do. But I'm against turning Biohazard RE:4 into a comedy, because some people see the original that way. The setting of the game is quite dark and creepy, and if we read Benny Matsuyama's novel, we can learn more about Leon's inner conflict that took place in the story. About his trauma from Raccoon City and such. Because Leon S. Kennedy is not a buffoon, but a serious and even nihilistic character.

Nevertheless, it is well known that the story of the game is not as deep by the standards of the series, and many aspects lack substance. People who see Resident Evil 4 as a comedy believe it's intentional because the developers didn't take the game seriously, in their opinion. But in fact, this title had a long production history, and Shinji Mikami, who is not a writer, wrote the script in three weeks. That's why he also agreed that the remake should have a better story.

And I agree with that, too. I like this world, so I would love to explore it deeper. And I think that the inherited experience from classical and neo-classical titles, such as a wider palette of colors and realism, will only contribute to this journey.
Well said. I also do not think RE4 is cheesy, it has its moments with dialogue but I'd go with campy. When it comes to overall tone however I do think it can be a bit disjointed. The village is unique and fairly terrifying, especially when it switches up the time of day, weather, etc. Music plays into this as well.


Then you get to the island and it's just... meh. The exterior especially, it feels more like an action movie and loses much of what the Village and Castle set as far as tone. The interior has some of the best areas with the Regenerators though. The music once again plays into this overall tone shift.


Even without seeing the areas, just listen to the difference in music and it almost feels like two entirely different games. RE4 is one of the best games ever made, but this has always been one of my critiques in regards to its set pieces. I truly do see a huge window of opportunity to change this with RE:4 and the trailer already shows me it's well underway.
 
Well said. I also do not think RE4 is cheesy, it has its moments with dialogue but I'd go with campy. When it comes to overall tone however I do think it can be a bit disjointed. The village is unique and fairly terrifying, especially when it switches up the time of day, weather, etc. Music plays into this as well.


Then you get to the island and it's just... meh. The exterior especially, it feels more like an action movie and loses much of what the Village and Castle set as far as tone. The interior has some of the best areas with the Regenerators though. The music once again plays into this overall tone shift.


Even without seeing the areas, just listen to the difference in music and it almost feels like two entirely different games. RE4 is one of the best games ever made, but this has always been one of my critiques in regards to its set pieces. I truly do see a huge window of opportunity to change this with RE:4 and the trailer already shows me it's well underway.
I don't think RE4 is any more cheesy than the originals, and definitely less so. Its reputation for being that nutty has gotten away from itself, because moments like a giant statue chasing you are hard to forget in the context of RE and everything else the series up until that point has tried to convince you as realism.

It has its moments that are played-straight, but being overlty serious is not really what I think of when it comes to RE4 and its identity, either. I've always appreciated the story and its larger than life characters that were still very believable to me and acted out strongly enough in their performances.

At the same time, however, the remake does run the risk of taking itself too seriously due to its now mainstream reputation as being the 'kooky one.' I would still like Leon to be a little loose due to his confidence, flirty and jokingly courageous in the things his says and does. Tone isn't as much as an issue with me and RE4 personally, but I do agree the GAMEPLAY itself needs the biggest tone-change, as I completely agree with the original being too much of a murder fest as the OP put it. Just keep the characters more or less the same - especially Saddler and Salazar. They're meant to be pompous, over the top villains. Wesker, too, even though I'd like him a bit more subdued like he was prior to the version of him towards the end of his lifespan in the original timeline.

TONE in GAMEPLAY is the biggest takeaway, here, with what I'm saying I would like overhauled almost completely, and not so much story or characters to me. The more survival horror approach will only help the remake, and honestly make it more of a classic RE game it should've always been along with a few twists.

Aside from a few sections on the island that were a little too over-to-top in action towards the end, I wouldn't mind if they kept it and found a proper balance. The Los Illuminados DID want to invade other parts of the world after all with their own military, both from the inside and out. The island did represent such a plan through showing us that through gameplay.
 
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I don't think RE4 is any more cheesy than the originals, and definitely less so. Its reputation for being that nutty has gotten away from itself, because moments like a giant statue chasing you are hard to forget in the context of RE and everything else the series up until that point has tried to convince you as realism.

It has its moments that are played-straight, but being overlty serious is not really what I think of when it comes to RE4 and its identity, either. I've always appreciated the story and its larger than life characters that were still very believable to me and acted out strongly enough in their performances.

At the same time, however, the remake does run the risk of taking itself too seriously due to its now mainstream reputation as being the 'kooky one.' I would still like Leon to be a little loose due to his confidence, flirty and jokingly courageous in the things his says and does. Tone isn't as much as an issue with me and RE4 personally, but I do agree the GAMEPLAY itself needs the biggest tone-change, as I completely agree with the original being too much of a murder fest as the OP put it. Just keep the characters more or less the same - especially Saddler and Salazar. They're meant to be pompous, over the top villains. Wesker, too, even though I'd like him a bit more subdued like he was prior to the version of him towards the end of his lifespan in the original timeline.

TONE in GAMEPLAY is the biggest takeaway, here, with what I'm saying I would like overhauled almost completely, and not so much story or characters to me. The more survival horror approach will only help the remake, and honestly make it more of a classic RE game it should've always been along with a few twists.

Aside from a few sections on the island that were a little too over-to-top in action towards the end, I wouldn't mind if they kept it and found a proper balance. The Los Illuminados DID want to invade other parts of the world after all with their own military, both from the inside and out. The island did represent such a plan through showing us that through gameplay.
Tougher enemies, slower more weighty battle akin to RE:2 but with a bit more action to still be RE:4. Nail the melee system and stamina and it'll be perfect.

I do agree about the tone more with the ambiance though like @Yama said, it takes a nose dive late game. Rumors say Krauser may be cut though, which could be a lot of island differences.
 
Tougher enemies, slower more weighty battle akin to RE:2 but with a bit more action to still be RE:4. Nail the melee system and stamina and it'll be perfect.

I do agree about the tone more with the ambiance though like @Yama said, it takes a nose dive late game. Rumors say Krauser may be cut though, which could be a lot of island differences.
I think the melee "system" from Carlos' section in 3 remake would fit nicely, with maybe a bit more combo potential with more diversity in attacks and room for error to add a skill gap instead of spamming a context-sensitive trigger.

A more action-oriented RE2 remake would strike the perfect balance and reclaim consistency in gameplay that the series so desperately needed post-CVX up until 7, camera perspective aside.

It shouldn't be hard to upstage the original RE4 island. I just personally don't hate it as much as others typically do. Definitely can use the most improvement compared to the other areas, however. Maybe they'll just make it another lab...
 
I think the melee "system" from Carlos' section in 3 remake would fit nicely, with maybe a bit more combo potential and room for error to add a skill gap instead of spamming a context-sensitive attack.

A more action-oriented RE2 remake would strike the perfect balance and reclaim consistency in gameplay that the series so desperately needed post-CVX up until 7, camera perspective aside.

It shouldn't be hard to upstage the original RE4 island. I just personally don't hate it as much as others typically do. Definitely can use the most improvement compared to the other others, however. Maybe they'll just make it another lab...
It'll be greatly improved, in RE:4 the Island will be
NEST 2
 
If they retconned Krauser as just being an Umbrella lacky/merc for Wesker with no relation to Leon's past, I'd be perfectly cool with it. Krauser is a little too likable and iconic to RE4 for me to say I wouldn't miss his presence entirely. He could still have ties to the U.S. government, too.

The fact that the original RE4 throws in a random character with unseen history within a six year gap to an already established RE character such as Leon and expect us to care made no sense from a story-building standpoint and was one of the weirder writing decisions the developers made, and Operation Javier, like every game/story during that decade following RE4 original, sucked ass.

Toss out his backstory, write a new one, and keep the same exact look and attitude as the Krauser we grew to love. He'd still be a formidable nemesis to Leon, since we're assuming Wesker and Leon wouldn't see each other face-to-face.
 
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Yama

Owner
1996...
story-building standpoint and was one of the weirder writing decisions the developers made
This is just a byproduct of Mikami-san having to write it within three weeks honestly. I’d be okay with changes taking place as such, in fact he wants them to.
 
Rumors say Krauser may be cut though, which could be a lot of island differences.
Even if the remake hadn't been promised by the developers as a faithful game to the original, I'm sure it wouldn't have happened anyway. Because Jack Krauser is basically the backbone of the whole story of BIO4.

When Umbrella's remnants found out about the Plaga parasites, Albert Wesker sent Jack Krauser to get Osmund Saddler's sample. It was through him that we learned about Wesker's plan to revive Umbrella in the first place, and the fact that Jack knew Leon gave the script a reason to tell him about it.

In order to squeeze into the cult's trust, Jack abducted Ashley, which led to the appearance of Leon. It was Jack's connection with the United States that made this possible, because the abduction was based on classified information, which is why hardly anyone wanted to send more people to rescue her in order to escalate the situation. The Americans believed that there was a rat on their ship.

Since Saddler still didn't trust Krauser, Jack requested assistance, and Wesker sent Ada.

Jack is as fundamental to this story as Albert Wesker is to the first game. And I will never believe that such characters can be cut out.
 
Even if the remake hadn't been promised by the developers as a faithful game to the original, I'm sure it wouldn't have happened anyway. Because Jack Krauser is basically the backbone of the whole story of BIO4.

When Umbrella's remnants found out about the Plaga parasites, Albert Wesker sent Jack Krauser to get Osmund Saddler's sample. It was through him that we learned about Wesker's plan to revive Umbrella in the first place, and the fact that Jack knew Leon gave the script a reason to tell him about it.

In order to squeeze into the cult's trust, Jack abducted Ashley, which led to the appearance of Leon. It was Jack's connection with the United States that made this possible, because the abduction was based on classified information, which is why hardly anyone wanted to send more people to rescue her in order to escalate the situation. The Americans believed that there was a rat on their ship.

Since Saddler still didn't trust Krauser, Jack requested assistance, and Wesker sent Ada.

Jack is as fundamental to this story as Albert Wesker is to the first game. And I will never believe that such characters can be cut out.
Well said Russ and I agree! Just stating the leaks since they got quite a bit right. But I fully agree with your analysis, it wouldn't flow or there would be some major retcons.
 
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