It's utterly unlike any previous RE game out there. The closest comparison would be Resident Evil: Code Veronica, but only because the environments were rendered in real-time. RE4's major interface change is an over-the-shoulder camera, making the environments feel much more open initially, but once you realize you can't see what's coming up behind you, the game gets considerably more sinister :)
Control is very tight and responsive. You still can't run-and-gun - you have to stop to aim your weapon, but it's not a hindrance - the controls are very quick to respond, and I never felt like that particular method of moving and shooting was a problem (even playing on Hard). The thing that stands out the most, though, is just how absolutely /massive/ the game is. It just doesn't quit. The full environment is easily several orders of magnitude greater than any previous RE game, and I was continuously amazed at the level of detail and care that went into each room, hallway, house, sea, catacomb, attic, antechamber, laboratory, cave, lake, village, bridge, balcony, sewer, museum, base, mansion, trail, forest, castle, river, prison, factory, loading dock, mine... You get the idea. What's also very different is the inclusion of a method of purchasing weapons and purchasing upgrades. Some things you still have to find, but throughout the game, you come across money and various treasures you can sell (or combine, then sell) for cash. So, adding a stock or something to a weapon becomes more a matter of management of cash rather than hoping you come across one in the course of the game (which you may). One big point, is that you can't buy ammunition or grenades - you have to come across that, so you still need to keep an eye on your stock of ammo for any particular weapon, although the game does provide it in abundance. It also does offer different methods of replay - You keep your items and money once you play through once, and are allowed to buy some super-weapons once you finish the game or some of the minigames that open up once you win - once is Assignment Ada - where you go through a large portion of the game as Ada Wong (from RE2 again), and Mercenaries, where you're basically on a time-limited killing spree with all manner of things like power-ups and the like. Discounting role-playing games (since they're designed to be awesomely massive in scope), I'd compare the size of this game with Metroid Prime or Half-Life, which were both hugely complex and deep, which is a precious commodity for an action title. If you have a Gamecube, this is worth a rental, surely, but you'll end up buying it anyway simply because it's just wickedly fun. The graphics are /easily/ on par with high-end Xbox titles, and the gameplay mechanics are some of the best out there. Note: If you want to split hairs, there isn't actually a single zombie in this game. However, if you have an intense dislike for religious sects or villagers from Spain, this will definitely be manna from heaven. Don't worry about the official designation, though, they still go for the neck-bite when they're in close. - Jim Kevin Graeme wrote: >I really wanted to like the RE games. I'm a sucker for zombies. But I >just sucked at them so bad that I couldn't play much of them. A lot of >it was the camera and controls. Some of it had to do with the need to >squander ammo while the zombies wouldn't stay down. > >Is RE4 significantly different in those respects? > >-Kevin > >On Mon, 07 Mar 2005 09:31:34 -0600, Jim Campbell <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > > >>I'm a big fan of Resident Evil as a whole - I've always liked the old >>control/camera methods, since they made you feel always on edge and >>right on the edge of a loss of control, which I think added to the >>experience as a whole. However, taking elements of games like Devil May >>Cry (which most of the production staff had a hand in*) has really >>opened up the series and the game design in a terrific way. I'm looking >>forward to the next installment. >> >> > > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~| Discover CFTicket - The leading ColdFusion Help Desk and Trouble Ticket application http://www.houseoffusion.com/banners/view.cfm?bannerid=48 Message: http://www.houseoffusion.com/lists.cfm/link=i:5:149405 Archives: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/threads.cfm/5 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/lists.cfm/link=s:5 Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.5 Donations & Support: http://www.houseoffusion.com/tiny.cfm/54
