After almost two decades, Capcom revisits Leon's Spanish excursion with a remake of Resident Evil 4. Upon its initial 2005 release, the original title was subjected to massive critical acclaim with much praise directed towards its then-novel over-the-shoulder gunplay, outstanding visuals, and its sheer brobdingnagian story campaign.

Needless to say, Capcom has its work cut out in trying to top such a beloved title. Undaunted, Directors Yasuhiro Ampo and Kazunori Kadoi spoke to GameInformer magazine, and elaborated on the changes this re-imagining would boast.

Rescue The President's Daughter

After delegating the director's seat of the sequels to Hideki Kamiya and other members of Capcom, Shinji Mikami would take the mantle once again for its fourth mainline installment. A troubled development period resulted in numerous iterations of this entry - including a version which took on a more supernatural element. In an attempt to breathe new life to the undead series, Mikami eschewed the shambling corpses of prior titles in favor of possessed villagers who could wield weapons and even outwit unwary players.

While these changes proved contentious with long-time fans, the final product was nothing short of superb. Its new perspective changed the landscape of third-person shooters forever, and its incorporation of quick-time events are credited with popularizing the mechanic in modern gaming.

Before its remake, Resident Evil 4 would see re-releases on numerous platforms.

Back From The Dead.

Following the success of the RE1 remake, Capcom incorporated more modern touches for the remakes of its sequels. The RE2 and 3 remakes incorporated the over-the-shoulder perspective of later entries rather than the fixed-camera angles of the original releases.

Capcom aims to make further such refinements towards RE4.

One notable change is the removal of the Quick-time events, as its oversaturation has made gamers understandably fatigued with these mechanics. In its place is a brand new parry mechanic which allows players to evade even the dreaded chainsaw of Dr. Salvador. Another new mechanic is the ability to stealthily take down hostiles from behind akin to more modern titles.

While the original title was criticized for deviating a bit from the series' survival horror roots, Yasuhiro Ampo and Kazunori Kadoi aim to make the remake a more harrowing experience. For example: in the original title, the knife could be used throughout the entire campaign. However, it will gradually degrade with each use in the remake to give the player a sense of powerlessness.

Ampo and Kadoi stress that the remake will aim to provide a completely different experience than the original. The game is slated for release on March 23rd of this year for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and Windows.
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