Resident Evil 4 comes to current gen consoles in about a week, but videos have been released early showcasing how this edition will run.
It’s been known for a while now that Resident Evil would be making the jump to PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. The leap is still impressive– what started out as a GameCube exclusive has since come to PlayStation 2, Wii, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Windows, Android, iOS, and Zeebo. (Full disclosure: I didn’t know the Zeebo existed until researching this article.)
Now, we have footage of Resident Evil 4 on current gen: First, of the ubiquitous “village sequence”, and second, of some good old Ashley escorting.
The animations in both videos are silky-smooth and seem close to (though not at) Resident Evil’s new standard of 1080p 60fps, and the textures are crisp. The primary sign that this is a game several generations old is how polygonal/grainy some models are, though that appears to have been alleviated in some places. The fire and water effects aren’t anything to write home about, but this looks like a current gen game. Sound design? Threats are clearly marked and just as crisp– though maybe the stereo split’s quick to throw something in only one ear.
This version of the game comes with all the accoutrements that followed the original release: Ada Wong’s side campaign “Separate Ways”, the ever-popular Mercenaries mode (kill as many enemies in combos as you can before time is up to rack up points), New Game Plus (a more difficult version of the game with different end-game unlockables), and additional weapons and costumes for both protagonist Leon and escort-buddy Ashley.
Resident Evil 4 will be available for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on August 30th.