For many, the Nintendo Switch fulfills the dream of having home console games on the go. This has, for one reason or another, lead to a number of iconic or beloved games being ported to the console. The latest in Capcom’s series of ports is Resident Evil 4. While it’s widely regarded as one of the best titles in the franchise, in addition to being viewed as the title that started the push from survival horror to action. With so much going on, is it something new that warrants a revisit or will it only appeal to newcomers or those who want it on the go?
Switch owners who never had a chance to play Resident Evil 4, the game takes place several years following the events of Resident Evil 2. With Raccoon City blown up and Leon Kennedy surviving the horrific nightmare he experienced, he is now tasked by the President to find and retrieve his daughter in the rural location of Spain. In what Leon thinks to be an easy job, he is faced with another zombie-like crisis and that’s with the Las Plagas parasite that has spread in Spain. Unlike the original Resident Evil gameplay that many are accustomed to, there has been a change of tone in Resident Evil 4 and that’s adding a little bit more of action while still maintaining the survival-horror genre which worked quite well with this title.
Departing from the original trilogy to Resident Evil 4 may feel a bit awkward for fans who have played the first three titles. Instead of focusing on survival-horror gameplay that many have seen in previous titles, Resident Evil 4 is more of an action-oriented game but manages to instill the genre the series was known for. Instead of the awkward camera system used before, Resident Evil 4 now has an over-the-shoulder camera, fixing the unsettling fixed angles that many found annoying in the original trilogy. For gamers who have played a lot of third-person action games, Resident Evil 4 will feel familiar to most.
The Switch version of Resident Evil 4 is many of the ports that Capcom has released. Since its debut on Nintendo Gamecube over a decade ago, the game has received almost ten ports, including the downsized mobile and now the Switch version. It may be impossible that you may have not played Resident Evil 4 but if you really haven’t, then you’ll enjoy what Resident Evil 4 has to offer for the Switch.
Resident Evil 4 for Switch is the remastered version of the original game that was released on Xbox One and PlayStation 4. All of its previously released content such a the Separate Ways epilogue, and Mercenaries, plus the online leaderboards and in-game achievements are found in the Switch version. Despite the console having gyro controls, the ability to use gyro just like the Wii version is omitted for this version. This means, you will have to use the analogue sticks to aim and move your character around in the game.
Visually, Resident Evil 4 looks good in both docked and handheld mode. Between the two, I enjoy the portable mode as it feels more natural and the visuals look a tad better compared to docked. As far as frame rate goes, you will get a close to a consistent 60 frames per second with a slight dip on an occasional basis. In terms of glitches and pop ins, there are rare occurrences but from what I noticed it is pretty much muddy textures for the most part.
Since there are a lot of versions that Resident Evil 4 has received, it all comes down as to which one is the best version to play. Well, I must say that the Switch is the best as not only it has all of the contents that was previously released and the way to play these kind of games is really on-the-go. If there’s one feature that I hope Capcom implemented in this game, that would be the gyro controls that was on the Wii version.
Verdict
To date, Resident Evil 4 remains one of the best titles in the franchise, with the Switch version being even better. Despite not being the best looking version of the game, the ability to play it on the go is a massive plus. Sure, the lack of gyro controls is a shame but it doesn’t detract from an amazing series. That being said, returning fans really have no reason to return to it, as it’s the same game as before.
[Editor’s Note: Resident Evil 4 was reviewed on the Nintendo Switch platform. The game was provided to us by the publisher for review purposes.]