I'm still convinced Resident Evil 4 remake is better than the OG

I love the original Resident Evil 4, big time. It’s rightfully considered to be one of the best video games of all-time. But in 2023, something better came along.

In 2005 - for better or worse - Resident Evil 4 changed the direction of the Capcom series, focusing a little less on horror with a new tone centred on over-the-top, suplexing action.

Resident Evil 4 had it all. Fantastic action sequences, wonderfully camp acting, horrific creatures, a disturbing setting, conspiracy, and the charismatic Leon S. Kennedy returning, who we hadn't seen in a mainline game since Resident Evil 2 in 1998. Sure, I would have preferred a little more horror in Resident Evil 4 but it was still a near-perfect game and one that I replay today.

Check out the Resident Evil 4 trailer below!

This week, Capcom celebrated the second anniversary of the Resident Evil 4 remake. While maintaining much of what made the original so successful, this glorious remake improved on its source material in practically every way.

When I list some of those improvements, this statement sounds obvious, but two years on, I’m convinced that the 2023 Resident Evil 4 remake is better than the 2005 original. I don’t just mean in terms of visuals and gameplay. 20 years later, we should expect no less from a current-gen AAA game.

Improvements can be seen everywhere, such as with a better-developed story and character backgrounds Leon’s former mentor, Jack Krauser, has their history better explored. The infamous ‘Operation Javier mission’, previously told in the obscure Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles, is a tale practically absent in the original Resident Evil 4.

Capcom

The Resident Evil 4 remake also has new areas that encourage more exploration and enemies as well as new puzzles, which made the game not only feel fresh for new fans but veterans too.

As much as I love Paul Mercier’s performance as Leon in 2005, I feel Nick Apostolides (who also played Leon in the 2019 Resident Evil 2 remake) took the performance to the next level as the former RPD cop. The same can be said for Genevieve Buechner as the new, more confident, Ashley Graham.

In short, the Resident Evil 4 remake is vastly superior to the original in the same way the 2002 Resident Evil remake improved on the very first game in every way. I love the original Resident Evil 4, and it’s a game that I will forever hold dearly in my heart. But it’s time for me to openly admit that the remake is simply better.