Capcom made it very clear that they are the company to watch this millennium. They even scorned the rest of the industry for not taking chances and simply relying on sequels to keep the money rolling in. It’s extremely ironic then, that the entire show was built out of Capcom sequels and spin-offs, including Megaman games that don’t even have freaking Megaman in them. So while they certainly talked the talk, they don’t quite have the walking part down yet.
Case in point: the recently announced Resident Evil 4: Wii Edition. Ooooo, are you excited yet? After the ridiculous commercial was shown for this game, Destructoid had a chance to get all touchy feely with the Wii version of one of the highest rated games ever. Hit the jump for screens, impressions, and information about all the new content being
added.
Wait, did I say “all” the content being added? What I really meant was “none” of the content, because there isn’t any. That’s right; straight out of several Capcom representatives mouths (I had to ask multiple times just to make sure they had totally stopped trying), this game doesn’t have a single costume, weapon, area, or mode added in addition to what was already in the PS2 version. Not a goddamn thing.
One rep simply said that the game had been “Wii-ified.” So what is RE4 like with the Wiimote? I’m going to try not to exaggerate with this analogy… It’s like driving through a mine field while some little brat covers your eyes and pees on the back of your head. Capcom is quick to defend the new control scheme by saying that you will eventually get use to it, there’s really no point. The Wiimote does very little to add to the experience of RE4, but it does plenty to take away.
Most importantly, the Wiimote aiming creates a number of disadvantages that weren’t present in the good ol’ days of the Gamecube and PS2 era. For example, you can now aim directly in front of your character, but since aiming with the Wiimote does not turn your character automatically, you will often find your own avatar blocking your sight, which defeats the entire purpose of the new over-the-shoulder camera angle that RE4 is known for in the first place. If this game had come out on the Wii only, Gears of War would play a lot differently…
Additionally, your aiming is actually less accurate with the Wiimote. Unless you studied the art of concentration with Buddhist monks, you’re probably like Summa’s caffeinated arse and make the targeting cursor look like a glo-stick at a rave. To make matters worse, the laser sight has been removed all together, which creates even more difficulty when trying to line up those long distance precision shots, and has been replaced by a giant aiming cursor that interferes with the gaming experience.
Graphically, this game proves that the Wii isn’t so much as two Gamecubes taped together, but actually one Gamecube with a carrot squished inside it. It looks virtually the same as the GC version, albeit now with widescreen and 480p support, but if you have upgraded your TV for one of the REAL systems, this is going to look just as bad as every other Wii game out there.
To top it all off, RE4 was a rather long and enjoyable experience, but most gamers will get tired of aiming the Wiimote after just a short while making it impossible to submerse yourself into the game. With literally nothing new to offer anyone who’s played the game previously, there is no reason to pick this version up. There are, however, quite a few reasons not to.
