9.3

Gameplay: 9 Graphics: 9 Sound: 10 Lasting appeal: 9

I'd be lying if I said RE4 wasn't one of the best games I've played in a very long time.

I was a bit worried after playing Dead Rising to death to go back and play Resident Evil, but RE4 definitely filled my thirst for blood and gore.

I've been a fan of the series since the very first Resident Evil title, back in the days of the corny b-movie style voice-overs and I'm happy to say Resident Evil is still keeping things fresh but at the same time following a tried and tested formula.

Long past are the days of the "you were almost a Jill sandwich" lines that had you laughing at the incredibly lame dialog while you were supposed to be enveloped in a world of fear. Resident Evil 4 has great voice acting which keeps the theme set just right.

In the world of RE4, you start your adventure in a small European village tracking down the American president's daughter, who reportedly has been kidnapped. You play the role of Leon Kennedy, our lovely cop-for-a-day hero from Resident Evil 2. As the story progresses you meet up with an escaped researcher by the name of Louis, and Ada (the "woman in red") returns to the cast as well. There aren't many NPCs, but then again you don't want many in such a game that is supposed to create the feeling of isolation and survival. Once you meet up with Ashley, the president's daughter, things begin to get a little more difficult since you not only need to worry about staying alive, but you need to make sure she doesn't die on you. If she does, it's game over. You do get to play as Ashley for a very short period of time, but it is only to perform a few trivial tasks. Don't even think about combat with her because all she can basically do is moan like a naughty little school girl.

Unlike recent RE games, you are not fighting zombies, but another sort of virus infected cult led by the almighty Lord Saddler. Of course, Lord Saddler is not without his own minions you must deal with throughout the course of the game, and dealing with them sometimes proves to be quite a challenge. I was a bit surprised to discover that I had more trouble with a few boss fights than I did with the final boss of the game.

Fortunately, I felt the control to be very intuitive and since I am reviewing the Wii version of this title, you of course depend greatly on the Wii Remote.

A quick swing to the left or right with the remote will cause Leon to slash his knife, which fortunately is a bit stronger than in some past RE games. Of course, you really don't use the knife all that much unless you are really trying to conserve ammo.

There are quite a range of weapons to pick throughout the game and each one comes with it's own advantages and disadvantages. Not only do you have a wide range of weapons to choose from, but you also have the opportunity to upgrade each of the weapons to increase it's firepower, firing speed, reload time and capacity. The weapons are upgraded through a friendly Merchant who somehow manages to get around quicker than lightning on your adventure. Not only can he upgrade your weapons, but you can purchase new ones from him or even items such as First Aid Sprays from him with the money you pick up from defeating monsters and bosses.

Aiming is quite precise and lots of fun with the Wii Remote since you just need to hold the B button down to aim your weapon and press A to fire it. Holding the B button and flicking your wrist will reload the weapon - though I must admit to have swung my knife several times when I meant to reload due to forgetting to hold B.

The graphics are top notch for a Wii title. It's only a shame the Wii is not capable of high res graphics since it felt like playing an original Xbox game at times. But, the game did what it could to use the Wii to it's potential and almost never would drop in frame rate. The lighting affects and textures were all great quality, but there were a few rare places where I felt that the textures were a bit pixelated. Even so, it is the best looking Wii game I've seen so far, which makes it a must see in it's own right.

Fortunately, it is much more than eye candy it has a tremendous amount of game play to it. Unlike recent RE games that could be completed in 2-3 hours, you will spend at least 15-20 hours completing this one. There are quite a few secrets to discover and item customization even adds further to the game play. Completing the game unlocks additional weapons to be purchased as well, and if you are able to beat the game on the Professional difficulty you will receive a powerful weapon with unlimited ammo free of charge. That's not even to mention the special costumes that get unlocked for completing the adventure.

Sound wise, it was superb. The music, when present, was very moody and set the scene perfectly for whatever was to be going on at the moment. The sound effects were also top notch with unique sounds for each gun. The blood splattering noises, monsters speaking to each other and voice acting was all top quality.

As I write this I am very stumped to come up with something that displeased me. It was a great title all around and definitely worth all the money you will pay for it.

Overall Score: 9.3

Gameplay: (9) Lengthy adventure, unlockables, good plot and excellent control. Graphics: (9) Excellent environments, good detail on all the characters faces and fluid and natural movements among everything in the game. Sound: (10) Though not always present, the music was great at keeping the mood and pace, the voice overs were top notch and the sound effects from every weapon were all excellent. Lasting appeal: (9) Much longer than the other Resident Evil games, with it's fair share of secrets and unlockables to boot.

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