Review: Resident Evil 4 - Gamecube, PC, PS2, Wii (PC Version Review) - 8.5

Resident Evil 4 on the Nintendo GameCube ranks as one of the best action adventure games ever released. After several years and ports, the game has finally come to the PC.

A brief summary for those who haven\'t played it yet: your character is named Leon S. Kennedy, a secret agent in charge of recovering the president\'s kidnapped daughter. You find yourself in a Spanish village, where the inhabitants have gone a bit... crazy. The story is surprisingly good, not embracing the cheesy tricks of horror movies. It also includes a side story called Separate Ways, where you take control of spy Ada Wong and explore some of the same storyline from her perspective.

Character models and environments are beautifully designed. However, there are some things missing in this version. Without the grainy fog, everything looks clearer but less foreboding. It\'s also easier to see the low-quality textures present in the game. The cutscenes are the greatest dissapointment: whereas the GameCube version of the game rendered the cinematics in real time, this one uses the ugly prerendered scenes that the PS2 version showcased.

The sound survived the porting process mostly intact, making it one of the best parts of the game. Half of RE4\'s intense atmosphere comes from its sounds, from the creepy music to the satisfying shotgun blasts.

Unfortunately, Capcom really screwed up on the control side. The game doesn\'t support a MOUSE! While there are several hacks out there that let you use one, this is one game that\'s better experienced with a control pad. Just make sure that you memorize which button is which for the context-sensitive actions found in the game and even in cutscenes.

As a game, Resident Evil 4 is carefully paced and often breathtaking. If you let it, it can often keep you on the edge of your seat with the multitude of disturbing enemies and adrenaline-pumping boss fights. The camera gives you a third-person view. Once you\'ve drawn your weapon, you can\'t move, but you can aim. The action is very tense and enemies are powerful.

At its core, Resident Evil 4 is a great game. Unfortunately, the PC version isn\'t the best, what with its control and graphics issues. So, if you have no other system that supports Resident Evil 4 and happen to own a gamepad, pick it up.

Presentation: 8.5 - Great story, cutscenes, and voice acting. Somewhat sloppy transition from the consoles.
Graphics: 8 - Missing some graphical features from other versions, this is still an impressive-looking budget game.
Sound: 8.5 - RE 4\'s pride is in its creepy music and amazing sound effects.
Gameplay: 8 - Some tense, third-person combat mixed with context-based sequences. Unfortunately, no mouse support.
Value: 8 - Great, 30 or so hour campaign for less than 20 bucks.

Final Score: 8.2 - A great game is hidden behind this sloppy port. Get it if you have no other way to play it.

Marcin Skok
Editor-in-Chief
"The Gaming Corner"