Las Plagas is coming for you
Resident Evil 4 Remake arrives in the near future, ushering in the revival of one of the most beloved survival horror experiences of all time. This from-the-ground-up remake will see the renowned tale of Leon Kennedy and his fight against the victims of Las Plagas in a fashion suitable for modern platforms.
Resident Evil 4 Remake release date
Resident Evil 4 Remake finally releases on March 24, 2023. The remake of the 2005 game will debut on PS4, PS5, PC via Steam, and Xbox Series X and S. It appears that the remake of the survival horror classic won’t be coming out on Xbox One.
Users who purchase the remake on PS4 also have the option to upgrade to the PS5 version for free. The game retails for $59.99 on all platforms, both last-generation and current-gen. This also includes the same price across both digital and physical retailers.
In addition, there is a Deluxe Edition for $69.99 that comes with additional goods, such as costumes for Leon and Ashley, original soundtrack music, an expansion for the treasure map, and more.
But you still can receive extra goodie if you pre-purchase the standard version of Resident Evil 4 Remake. It comes with a gold attaché case and handgun ammo charm for free, no matter which edition you get.
Leon’s masterful tale reimagined
Resident Evil 4 Remake follows in the footsteps of Resident Evil 2 Remake and 3, taking the base game’s story and reimagining it. It remains to be seen how different Leon’s trip to save the United States President’s daughter, Ashley, will be, but some elements will likely change.
There is always room for some surprises and full-on content changes, a la what occurred in the last two remakes. There could even be new areas, story beats, and enemies for players to take on. Even the State of Play’s trailer hinted at changes with regards to moments like Leon’s confrontation with Krauser and more.
A familiar but distinctly different feel
The largest change in Resident Evil 4 Remake will likely be the gameplay. While the original still contained the signature tank-style controls, this remake will give players full control of Leon.
Still taking place in third-person, players will be able to move Leon, aim, and shoot all at the same time. From the gameplay trailers we’ve seen, the gameplay seems to be reminiscent of the last two Resident Evil remakes from Capcom.
In this way, controlling Leon should be a lot smoother and allow for better flexibility in combat. It is also likely that weapons will feel better, no matter if you are shooting with a pistol or the rocket launcher.
Visuals worthy of the current gen
Another key factor of the upcoming remake are its graphics. Though the original game still holds up decently well today in terms of visuals, especially with past HD versions, this remake recreates classic environments and scenes entirely in the RE Engine.
As already seen in the footage of the game, the graphics are on par with the past couple of remakes. With the emphasis on the current-gen platforms, too, there is even the chance that famous locations like the village center in Valdelobos will look better than Resident Evil 3 Remake.
Particles, visual effects, and even the new character models for protagonists Leon and Ashley lend to the idea that this game is going to be much more visually impressive on high-end PCs and current consoles.
Unfortunately, no details are known yet about the various graphical and performance modes for Resident Evil 4 Remake. For reference, the last two remakes featured three performance modes on current-gen hardware.
Players could select to play the game with 60 frames-per-second with gorgeous ray-tracing on or off. In addition, there was a 120Hz version that players could toggle on for even smoother gameplay at the cost of ray-tracing. All of these include 4K and/or 1440p resolutions.
Considering that these options were the same across both remake games on the RE Engine, it is possible that RE4 Remake could offer players the same modes.
The Mercenaries additional game mode, explained
For those who are concerned about beating RE4 Remake’s main storyline and running out of content to enjoy, there is, thankfully, an additional mode coming. This extra mode is an old classic, The Mercenaries.
The Mercenaries returns after being in the original fourth installment. Previously, it was a minigame that players could unlock after beating the main story. Details are scarce about how The Mercenaries will work in this remake but it is coming in a free patch post-launch.
In the original Mercenaries mode, players fought against four stages of enemies. Stages begin with only two minutes on the clock for players to defeat enemies and open chests to earn points. But certain actions could increase the amount of time.
Scoring enough points in a stage would grant a specific rating to the player. If the player reached high enough grades, they could unlock more playable characters in the experience. Only time will tell if this mode acts the same in the remake, but no release date has been given for it yet.
Demo release date
Before Resident Evil 4 Remake’s release, a special demo will drop. Similar to past remakes, this demo will give players a glimpse of gameplay, visuals, and the story in this game. Other than that, details are unknown on how this demo will work exactly.
All we know is that it arrives sometime in March 2023, before the game’s full launch. It’s uncertain if the demo will give players the chance to try the game from the beginning or partway through the story. It’s also unknown if any save data from the demo will crossover to the full game’s release.
Is there VR compatibility?
『バイオハザード RE:4』のVRモードはPlayStation5/PlayStationVR2向けの無料DLCとして配信される予定です。 https://t.co/Qqci7d49Ao
— バイオハザード(カプコン)公式 (@BIO_OFFICIAL) February 22, 2023
In addition to the main Resident Evil 4 Remake release, Capcom is continuing the trend of offering virtual reality horror experiences. A VR mode has been announced as a post-launch DLC mode for PlayStation VR2.
No release date has been announced yet. Thankfully, this VR mode will be free to owners of the main game. As for what the VR mode contains, it’s unclear. It could include the entirety of the main story in VR, similar to the original game’s Quest 2 version, or only apply to certain parts of the game like The Mercenaries.
