Resident Evil is Stuck in Its Own Cycle | Extra Punctuation

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This week on Zero Punctuation, Yahtzee explores the cycle of Resident Evil games.
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[@danieldavis2055]

Ah, yes, Yahtzee - you are quite right about that dreaded cycle... But you've omitted a very important part of it: when the developers are so desperate that they create an idea so divorced from the franchise that the upper management throw it to the side and it DOES become it's own thing. Without the chaos of Resident Evil 4's development we never would have gotten Haunting Ground or Devil May Cry, for instance.

[@li-limandragon9287]

Yahtzee should take a look at Haunting Ground if he loves psychological horror so much. Wasting a extra video on sucking off RE4 and RE7 is pointless to me.

[@Spleemce]

Thanks for reminding me about haunting ground

[@Haaalp]

Wait, wasn't Haunting Ground born from the Clock Tower series?

[@danieldavis2055]

@@Haaalp - A little bit of both actually! While Capcom DID want to make a Clock Tower 4, 3 had sold poorly. If Capcom wanted to make a further entry into the series it needed to have a really great premise. That's where we have RE4's development enter in. The scenario writer had envisioned one concept of RE4 being half Leon in a castle, and half a tale of a trapped girl and her dog. When that idea got scrapped, the scenario writer took the girl -and-dog concept to Capcom as the basis for Clock Tower 4... which in the end was strong enough to stand on it's own without the Clock Tower name. And this is what became Haunting Ground, or Demento in Japan. I would recommend watching Sphere Hunter's videos about RE4 and Haunting Ground, if you have the interest. They're absolutely excellent and full of a lot of fascinating information.

[@Haaalp]

@@danieldavis2055 Neato burrito, dawg!

[@Commy01]

Resident Evil: Outbreak has one of my favorite gaming memories. A friend and I were playing, badly, and he said; "fuck me, I suck." One of the characters in the game immediately said, "no shit". The timing was absolutely perfect.

[@humanice2]

Loved that game, far ahead of it's time.. and it's not a boring online zombie shooter, but an online survival horror item management game, with puzzles and bosses. Capcom need to go back to basics.

[@Vherstinae]

Reminds me of when I was back in college playing Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2. We meet Cloak and Dagger and one of my friends goes "You know they're fucking!" at the exact moment I hit a dialogue option. Cloak's first statement? "This is true."

[@MooMoo69556]

Alex I’ll take things that didn’t happen, for $300

[@charlieseen]

One time I was playing Saints Row 4 and trying to get away from a combat scene, but my wanted level wasn't going down bc my homie was shooting behind our bike. I threatened to take his beer and he stopped. Love gaming coincidences like that 😂

[@TheSyliman]

Say what you will about Chris Redfield, but his eternal struggle to continue his bloodline is one of the funniest memes to ever emerge from the RE franchise.

[@li-limandragon9287]

One day he’ll get that Claire Leon baby that will mount the world... and give Rosemary a sibling too.

[@twodents]

It managed to bleed into the Fire Emblem fandom last year.

[@li-limandragon9287]

@@twodentsI bet FE purists were salty about that.

[@twodents]

@@li-limandragon9287 Nah, it spun out from a single support conversation from the last Warriors game and it lasted for like a week.

[@lewisjones8902]

Literally not even funny. Cringe.

[@randomsandwichian]

There's an apt saying, well at least in Chinese, "wealth only lasts 3 generations". This third cycle sure feels like one.

[@LetoShade]

It's also known as the Strauss-Howe generational theory. I'm sure it has other names too but I don't know those.

[@randomsandwichian]

@@LetoShade Oh, that's the first I've heard of it, thanks for the info

[@li-limandragon9287]

@@randomsandwichianI dunno the cycle has imply there’s been loads of bad games, objectively as far recent RE games go only RE3make has been disappointing.

[@chrisavenell3172]

I couldn't expect resident evil 2 remake Leon somersaulting out a window but I also couldn't have seen original resident evil 2's leon jumping out a window an quipping with Spanish midget napoleon

[@deatheven13]

4make is going to be like the first REmake but worse. The first one made the game beautiful and added some interesting bits but destroyed the campy characterization and turned everyone into a plank of wood. I don't want to see a 4 without shit like "Your right hand comes off?" That's going to be fucking dreadful.

[@PeixeKing]

@@deatheven13 even funnier is that it's written "YOU'RE right hand comes off?" in the actual subtitles, what just adds to the campy charm.

[@whitekong316]

@@deatheven13 first REmake is fire. 😂🤣

[@prl4122]

@@deatheven13 I agree with you but I will say that the difference between og re1 and re4 is that og re1 was not intended to be as campy as it ended up while re4 for the most part was intentionally goofy.

[@hollowheaded9319]

@@deatheven13 The REmake still had camp in it, it was just subdued to make way for the atmosphere and makes the game more unsettling as a result.

[@zyriantel9601]

“You’d be surprised how often execution is the best way forward” Spoken like a true evil mastermind

[@deepfriedsalt567]

I wouldn't say evil mastermind, not only because of yahtzee's evil genius 2 review where clearly outlined why he's not an evil mastermind, but because the sentiment is more accurately described as pragmatism and cynicism fusing to form callous efficiency.

[@Scicianman]

Shitty Walmart managers, Self righteous Karen customers, Useless bloated politicians. No I think I can see where he’s coming from.

[@vinnythewebsurfer]

Hey if Bugs bunny knew what was up, it can’t be that incorrect.

[@zyriantel9601]

@@deepfriedsalt567 "Cynical, callously efficient and pragmatic mastermind" just didn't roll off the tongue as well, you see.

[@KainGerc]

Are you expecting yahtzee to turn into a giant blob monster anytime soon?!

[@level3xfactor]

What really gets me is that RE4 is getting is getting remake treatment because the name is money in the bank, but the game that REALLY needs it is Code Veronica.

[@ProxyDoug]

You hit the nail on the head. I actually replayed RE4 last year, and it hasn't aged at all. Sure the control scheme is different and more limited than what we're used to today, but it's still some of the most fun I had with games that year.

[@agDRAGONMAN001]

Outbreak file 1 and 2 deserve remakes. They were great multiplayer games and one of the only good resident evil multiplayer games.

[@Y2JLionHeart]

@@agDRAGONMAN001 Agreed. They were before their time.

[@li-limandragon9287]

@@wilhelmjuan-carr2315’d leave Claire, Chris and the Ashford and the setting. Completely overhaul Steve. Just make a Redfield Bonanza.

[@mattf967]

I've been banging this drum for years, an IP can't go on forever with a single story, either transition the IP to be focussed on a World not a Story or let it die. Something like Star Wars (Legends) or Elder Scrolls can keep chugging away for years because they make disconnected stories focussed on exploring a world. Each new entry is both familiar to scratch the fan itch but be unique enough not to get bogged down in all the entries that came before it. The Clone Wars can focus on its story all about the Clone Wars, Kotor can focus its story and both function as both independantly interesting narratives and a contribution to the world as a whole. Morrowind can run through the Dagoth Ur narrative, Oblivion can talk about the Oblivion Crisis and Skyrim can weave both of this in via background books while not getting bogged down in telling its own story about Dragons. Something like Star Wars (Disney) or Halo is now floundering because it's still telling the same story it told all those years ago either with characters that effectively mantled the narrative context of existing characters (Luke, Anakin and Rey, Cortana and The Weapon) or it's the same fucking character the entire way through (Darth Sidious and Master Chief). They all get bogged down in what came before, trying to somehow draw a straight line through all 9 star wars films or from the Halo Prequel Novels all the way through to Infinite. If you don't have the ability to turn your IP into a World IP like the first example and can only have it function as a Story IP, then tell your story and stop. Let it die. It's why, weirdly enough, I respect Mass Effect Andromeda more than Halo Infinite despite the latter being the objectively better game because at least Bioware knew the Shepard/Reaper Storyline was over and tried something new while old Johnny Spartan is getting dragged out for his sixth kick in the gonads by the aliens despite him technically 'beating them for good' in the last three fucking games.

[@brycebitetti1402]

It's kind of the biggest secret as to why Nintendo's IPs are by far the most enduring and consistent in AAA gaming. They never cared about continuity or story, so their franchises became world focused by default. It allows them to do pretty much anything with their franchises, keeping thing fresh without it becoming jarring.

[@dexterhopkins5267]

I was here before this became the most liked comment 👍

[@nintendoentersoft]

@@brycebitetti1402 Yeah and the only major Nintendo IP with a heavy focus on story continuity (Metroid) took nearly 4 decades to finally wrap up every detail in the part of Samus' life dealing with the metroids so even if continuity burn out happened it's a pretty slow burn. Zelda headed the issue off for a while by splitting the timeline into three branches before BOTW converged the timeline. Otherwise continuity in Nintendo series are largely ignored or played for laughs (Mario RPGs)

[@matthewmuir8884]

@@nintendoentersoft I wouldn't say that the split timelines were how The Legend of Zelda avoided the problem; I'd say that they avoided it by having each new game be about a different Link, Zelda and Hyrule, with the only cases of games involving the same Link as a prior game being sequels usually set outside of Hyrule (Majora's Mask, Link's Awakening, the Oracle games and Phantom Hourglass). The time the series came the closest to becoming stale was probably Twilight Princess: the game that tried so hard to be like Ocarina of Time that it underutilized the things that made it unique (Wolf Link, the twilight realm, etc.), but even that was still a good game.

[@BumbleCrumble1072]

"Let the past die. Kill it if you have to." - Ben Swolo

[@melancholyman369]

I like the analogy of Chris being a sort of "Herald of the End", man just punches his way into your good vibes to give the bad news.

[@Jakespeed207]

Its like you're sealed in a cave of good vibes, having a good time... And the entrance is blocked by a big boulder.

[@li-limandragon9287]

@@Jakespeed207 It’s also the fact Chris is the least interesting of the protagonists, Jill and Claire are great and their absence is another reason why RE6 blows.

[@_roko_]

Sometimes life is just Chirs Redfield... and I'm a Boulder

[@xOrangelinkx]

RE1's remake was a commercial failure not because it was any way bad, but because for some ungodly reason it was a gamecube exclusive. The game was and is incredible and I feel it was disserviced by dismissing it as a cash grab that's the result of some "cycle"

[@li-limandragon9287]

Exactly, the GameCube just butchered its chances, it’s a miracle RE4 got as massively acclaimed as was given it was released on the GameCube first.

[@PeixeKing]

Yes. REmake is one of the best, if not THE best, game in what's considered now the "classic survival horror" subgenre, to me, at least, up there with Silent Hill 2 (but for different reasons). Unfortunately, it was part of some exclusivity deal between Capcom and Nintendo (and that was an ungodly reason, indeed), so it was only released for a console that was marketed mostly for kids, and was the worst selling of the generation (for some other ungodly reason, the first Xbox managed to sell better than the Gamecube). The deal was dropped after Capcom realised that it was more lucrative to release games also for the PS2, but the damage was already done to REmake. I'm glad the game found new life with the HD remaster, but it could've been much more.

[@nix2939]

REmake is the probably the best Resident Evil game. Up there with Resident Evil 4 and 7, imo.

[@fictionarch]

The fact the og RE remake still holds up visually is impressive.

[@TheCyclicGamer]

@@li-limandragon9287 That's probably because RE4 only released on the gamecube for a short period of time before being ported to other consoles right away, whereas RE1R took so long to be ported to anything else other than the Gamecube.

[@Wolfs0n]

Just think, Devil May Cry was going to be Resident Evil 4 brfore evolving into its own entity. Imagine how much of a mess things would be then if they went through with that idea, introducing a supernatural element into the sci-fi, horror, virus, outbreak, monster story. It's probably the reason why RE4 went the direction it did, when DMC was set to be the next installment of Resident Evil they were already dead set on going balls to the wall camp extravaganza. Till they decided it was too much but ran with the idea of B-movie self awareness.

[@Heedfulconch3]

To be fair, DMC would have been less Supernatural and more Biopunk back then, the switch in themes would have only really come into play around the time the franchise split off But, truth be told, I do think it'd be interesting to play a Resident Evil game as a person enhanced by one of the bioweapons and doing things in the style of that. Something to ponder at least

[@ZackRToler]

I believe the more supernatural elements are added on later when they decided it would no longer be a RE title. If you look at a lot of the concept art for Devil May Cry for some of the monsters, they easily could of been mutated creatures from a virus from Resident Evil. Like the giant flies, nightmare, and the hyena laughing human thingies with extra arms, and the lizard dudes along with the bird boss.

[@termitreter6545]

LOL, that was actually the plan? I can almost see it, but man that wouldve been a horrible RE game (if a great spectacle fighter). Reminds me how yahtzee notes that RE4/7 coulda been games in a different franchise.

[@iandakariann]

@@ZackRToler that sort of proves the point. By unshackling it to RE it was allowed to develop it's own madcap theme and story but to it's benefit. Re4 could've done similar. Leon would be just a bodyguard trying to compete his job of protecting a charge he's just lost and ending up in a crazy conspiracy involving the revival of long dead dictators. Re7 could've been...well, re7 without the last part involving Chris. Instead the family gets caught up in some odd experiment the girlfriend subjected them to and now you are caught between siding with her or the family that were just victims. Both interesting storeies in themselves that could be branched forward later if you don't need to hamfist RE into it.

[@psychodrummer1567]

DMC and, if i remember correctly Onimusha? was also a spin-off of RE games.

[@vinnythewebsurfer]

Technically with the latest remakes involved, the cycle started with RE3 remakes being a dodgy game scapegoated as the “B teams” mistake while RE8 either gets all the credit or all the scorn (hey it’s like RE5 all over again) I’m terrified in the eventual 9th game truly is like RE6

[@GalvatronRodimus]

I, for one, cannot wait to see how Resident Evil IX fucks everything up...but more importantly, how are they gonna work "IX" into the logo???

[@li-limandragon9287]

RE3make isn’t bad, its just shallow since they ripped its guts out for multiplayer.

[@gyga100]

@@GalvatronRodimus apocalIXpse ??????

[@MultiBLACKY100]

@@GalvatronRodimus Resident Evil Ix-tinction

[@hamstersandwich9917]

@@GalvatronRodimus Re: Phoen-IX?

[@pixeltrash5098]

RE-make for the gamecube deserves a bit more credit. I think part of it's failure to make a big splash on release was the system it was tied to at the time. When it finally came to steam it was on of capcom's best sellers that year.

[@andrewhudson7108]

Yeah I was surprised at his critique. But maybe that’s because I consider HD to be one of the best RE games (and I didn’t get around to it until years later).

[@gx9109]

The REmake of RE 1 is the best of the series to date, definitely not a game that’s deserving of being dismissed out of hand, as was done here.

[@li-limandragon9287]

Yahtzee just can’t see past RE4 and RE7, I get it we have have different taste, but stating your personal opinion as universal fact is just lame.

[@PeixeKing]

I like Yahtzee's videos, RE4 is my favourite in the series, and I consider the newer games better than the original trilogy and Code: Veronica (well, except for 5, 6, and the spin-offs), but I still think Yahtzee is too dismissive of classic RE. REmake, to me, is just as good as overall game as 4, but in a different way, and it's tied with Silent Hill 2 as the best classic survival horror game I've played (but for very different reasons).

[@Bryndleson]

Anything with a fixed camera that expects me to fight enemies is garbage.

[@SebbyPlaysMusic]

I've played the RE1 remake more times than I can keep track of. I feel like the somewhat campy nature actually makes it more alarming when you're cornered. There's more of a strategy akin to moving pieces around a board (because of inventory management). I would say that game offers most of the "shit, I have to go back through that!?" experience. I don't know if it's the best, but I do think RE1R was AS effective of a remake as RE2R. RE2R obviously offered a whole different experience, but it also cut out a good amount, whereas RE1R is all additions that greatly help the atmosphere and make gameplay flow smoother. And honestly, RE1R might be visually creepier. 2 has better graphical quality, but it's more off-putting gore whereas 1 thoroughly has this "who's stalking me? why is everything rotting?" vibe.

[@happymoomoocow]

He’s right though, it was a failure lol regardless of how much you personally like it, it was, I like it too but it definitely didn’t light the world on fire like RE4

[@lidla2008]

I love that you point out the fact that everyone is so damned scared of new IPs. You're absolutely right that 4 and 7 would've been excellent sans the Resident Evil name, but you did also mention Prey, in there. Prey didn't do terribly well, despite being a fucking INCREDIBLE game, almost top to bottom. Graphics, incredible. Environment, incredible. Story, good. Mechanics, competent to excellent. But it underperformed. I wonder how it WOULD have performed, had it been under the Bioshock IP. Literally just Bioshock in the future, where someone managed to dig up Rapture and continue Adam research. Neuromods could've been plasmids. The station is your new Rapture. Hell, half the fun of Prey was realizing that you could go EVERYWERE on the station, inside and out. It was excellent. The game played out exactly the same. Honestly, if Prey had instead been Bioshock: Horizon, I think it would've gone fucking gangbusters.

[@pravkdey]

I've heard they only named it prey so the company (x don't if it was publishers or developers) could hold onto the name Prey as IP. I wonder if the fact that it shared a name with another game had any effect on sales

[@ZackRToler]

I'm sad he didn't mention how Devil May Cry was originally going to be Resident Evil 4. But it was so heavy in action they decided to make it a new title and ran with the idea of how over the top action it can be. Concept art shows Dante, who was originally was called Tony Redgrave, is holding guns that you'd see in resident evil. Like holding a pistol like RE character and some submachine gun that doesn't exist in the final game.

[@vexedrat1874]

In all fairness out of the og trilogy Birkin in 2 was the only "Wall of snot" final boss. You first had the Tyrant that kept it's overall human shape and Nemesis was less a wall of snot and more tentacle parasite overtaking it's host body.

[@li-limandragon9287]

RE2’s Tyrant is also just a regular burly boss you have to dodge.

[@KRDiStort]

I've been telling my friends for ages that the original RE4 is basically perfect and that a remake would only diminish its legacy, but they think I don't know what I'm talking about. I'm sure RE4make will be perfectly serviceable, but nothing's gonna beat that first moment Leon looked around and wondered if everyone had left for bingo.

[@TheHellMaggot]

Lmao at Leon actually really wondering that instead of being ironic

[@Squintel7]

It's hilarious dialogue like that that made re4 so amazing. The remake will butcher that completely and of it tries to copy the orignal re4 it will simply fall flat because a guy like paul mercier is no longer voicing so the Delivery will be terrible.

[@orangeslash1667]

@@Squintel7 At least their getting rid of the Quicktime events.

[@Neatherback]

Personally I couldn't care less for a remake of RE4, so long as they don't remove the old one from stores, Remake RE4 can suck as much as it wants away from me. No point in getting hyped up for game trailers.

[@SebbyPlaysMusic]

I feel that, but I'm also thinking "damn, these dudes could've done Code Veronica and I would've gotten something I actually wanted instead."

[@realmrpger4432]

RE4 is a very weird game because it made so many advancements to third person shooters, but at the cost of the survival horror elements of the franchise. It's honestly no wonder that 5 and 6 turned out the way they did. They removed the plodding, the puzzles, the adventuring of the old games with RE4 and everyone patted them on the back for it. I think a lot of people forget that you kill more people in one room of RE4 than in the entire game of RE1.

[@jesuszamora6949]

Agreed. RE4 was a wonderful game, but not a wonderful RE. There wasn't as much horror in there; it was VERY much an action game.

[@orangeslash1667]

@@jesuszamora6949 RE 4 was going to be a horror game, but because production was going so horribly that it become an action game.

[@Keanotix]

The thing I took from the RE2 and 3 remakes was that it RE4'd them (new camera perspective, new shooting mechanics, higher end graphics etc.). I mean initially I believe they were simply going to be updated like REmake was on the GC, but after Zero kinda bombed they scrapped that plan. Cut to recent years they made 2 and 3 more like RE4 but dialled back the action a little and put a little bit more tense horror in them. So it makes no sense to me to RE4 RE4, that is give RE4 the RE4 treatment. It just seems redundant at this point. Would it not make more sense, really, to REmake Code veronica or, god help us, survivor? Hell, I'd take a modern console version of Gaiden. Better yet, use the RE Engine to remake a similar game like Dino Crisis.

[@li-limandragon9287]

I really want a Code Veronica remake with same level of cutscene acting quality as RE2make. Claire is my favourite RE gal, she needs more love, Ada gets so much shilling simply for being in RE4.

[@Podzhagitel]

i would do terrible, terrible things for a dino crisis reboot

[@ethai1]

Exactly what I was thinking

[@GmodPlusWoW]

Dino Crisis would surely shine if given the RE4 treatment. But until then, at least we have Compound Fracture in the works. Compound Fracture basically being the weird love-child of Dino Crisis and Alien Resurrection.

[@SebbyPlaysMusic]

Well I feel like what they're actually trying to do is give RE4 the RE7 treatment - or maybe more accurately the RE8 treatment since that one already synthesized these elements.

[@MrThirtyH]

Now, RE2 Remake was FUN. Definitely would rather play it over and over again over the original. But the fact that it couldn't even keep it's OWN story straight, without being burdened by any of the rest of the franchise, is always an open wound for me. To me, the most unique element was the A and B campaigns, and the "2nd Run" mode is a piss-poor substitution that can't exactly come across as "This is what Leon was doing while you were playing as Claire" when you have to fight the same bosses in the same locations and watch the same characters die multiple times in different locations. Also hard disagree on REmake being just "not particularly disliked." Everyone I've ever seen talk about it calls it basically the best iteration of the classic RE framework.

[@li-limandragon9287]

The different scenarios confusion didn’t bother me because I just like how Leon and Claire differently react to same problem. Like how when Leon fights G3, it’s because Annette lowered the platform while Claire jumps down herself to fight it.

[@Asterwisk]

I will point out the REmake is beloved but it did not sell particularly well. Like. At all. It was only with hindsight and re-releases that people came to really appreciate it.

[@treyadams9719]

@@Asterwisk yeah but that doesn't mean it wasn't liked. They just didn't market it. We only found it because we were at a gamestop and the employee was putting it away after he took it home. But that's still the game I tell stories about to others when I talk about horror games.

[@PeixeKing]

@@Asterwisk REmake is great, but unfortunately, it was released at a time when the market was flooded with games following the RE formula, be it's sequels or it's copycats, and people were getting tired of it. It was also exclusive to a console that sold less than it's competitors and it was marketed mostly to a younger audience.

[@rcurl44]

"Neither game was particularly disliked but they didn't set the world on fire either." What? REmake is regarded as one of the best remakes ever and also one of the best RE games period.

[@vexedrat1874]

It did what REmake 2 and 3 did not. Added onto the foundation and improved areas that sorely needed it.

[@prl4122]

That’s true now but when it came out the sales did not reflect how amazing of a game it was and it definitely wasn’t being talked about like how re4 was. I think it’s safe to say that it didn’t set the world on fire

[@beatthebyte7058]

As others said, REmake didn't sell a lot and it didn't give the GC the boost in sales Nintendo hoped for. And most people liking the game played the rerelased, remastered version of it on PC/PS3-4/XBox etc Besides, I'd even say that the remastered version is way better than the GC one, if only because they allowed players to not use the tank controls of the original games unless they want to or need to

[@rcurl44]

@@prl4122 Yeah but neither did RE4 when it first released on the GC. RE4 didn't sell GCs at all. It wasn't till it was whored out to every other platform that it sold better. But people forget that RE6 and 5 outsold 4 so that's not really an argument. REmake was still critically acclaimed by both critics and fans.

[@TheKrossRoads]

@@rcurl44 It wasn't like RE4 took years to migrate from the GC to other consoles though; GC just got it months before the PS2, where everyone and their mother then played it. If it had been GC exclusive, like REmake, RE4 would have been in the same position of "not setting the world on fire". However, because Capcom realized that releasing a GC exclusive game was like buying a prized racehorse and breaking two of its knees, they smartly ported it to everything under the sun. This led to it being the rebirth of the franchise that REmake could never be, stuck on the deserted island of the gamecube as it was. History has vindicated REmake, mostly because more than a decade after release it finally got ported to a bunch of other platforms. But speaking of the context of the time it was released, REmake was barely a blip on the radar. We should all be thankful Capcom violated some contracts so that RE4 didn't suffer the same fate on that gamecube island.

[@dhama5804]

As a child, I saw my friends play RE2 a bit and a few years later RE4. I watched my mates play RE2 but with RE4 I asked if I could play too. I had no idea RE5 or RE6 even existed until now.

[@li-limandragon9287]

RE5 is alright apart from all the problematic African stereotypes, RE6 is just a Michael Bay film tho.

[@monhunterz5430]

3:25 Yahtzee: Resident Evil 1 is nothing BUT rough edges Me: I'm guessing both figuratively AND literally

[@li-limandragon9287]

Nostalgic rough edges tho, he shouldn’t so easily dismissed RE1make tho. It’s great.

[@Sagaan42]

Honestly don't give a shit about the story eating its own tail. I find every resident evil game to be enjoyable in its own regard. Maybe 6 is the one stick in the mud I can't be bothered with. Every one of these games is a little event for me, a few hours of campy fun with my favorite type of gameplay attached.

[@li-limandragon9287]

RE6’s problem is that despite all its characters it utterly wastes its own story. Why can’t we get a story of Leon and Chris hanging out or Leon being Sherry’s mentor? It has the pieces of something great but instead we get some melty villain dude wanting to bone Ada.

[@PeixeKing]

The importance given to RE's writing feels weird to, both from Yahtzee and from classic fans. Although writing and characters were never the main appeal of the RE games, with everything being held together by pretty good gameplay and mechanics (with some exceptions), but Yahtzee gives too much importance to writing on the RE series to the point of dismissing a game like REmake, that has great pacing, gameplay, soundtrack and atmosphere, but with actual writing being pretty weak, because it didn't need to be good for this game. Also, 7 may have the best actual writing in the franchise, but it's nothing exceptional, and gameplay, level design and atmosphere are still the strongest aspects of the game. On the other hand, classic RE fans seem to care a lot about the classic characters, even though they're pretty bland and Capcom not even bothering giving them a consistent personality through the series, and in some cases change their appearences so much that you wouldn't know it's the same character unless announced. At least to me, it's hard to find a reason to care about these characters when between games they just turn into different people that I don't, with the same names. Fans keep saying they want a proper conclusion for those characters, but since they never had a proper beginning, things get messy when they're included in the new games. Also, I want to say how wierd it is to me that Leon and Jill never met in any of the games, but they did in two of the movies.

[@Sagaan42]

@@PeixeKing Yeah, to me it's just that it's a very enjoyable survival horror experience with solid gameplay, pacing, difficulty, etc. I find the story's campness entertaining in its own regard but that's not what I'm playing the game for. Case and point, I recently played Nightmare of Decay, a 4 euros steam game that's basically RE1 first person with almost no story, and I LOVED IT to pieces all the same.

[@li-limandragon9287]

@@PeixeKing The characters aren’t any more bland than the Street Fighter characters, Chris is the only who kinda dull but that’s because without more interesting characters like Jill or his sister Claire to bounce off he adds nothing on his own besides Boulder punching.

[@DarthMcDoomington]

@@li-limandragon9287 The problem is specifically BECAUSE RE6 has so many characters, because rather than going back to horror but with new controls the series went further into parody in RE5. The problem being that Resident Evil's new formula is parodying the old, tired stale formula of RESIDENT FUCKING EVIL and thus only has limited material so it becomes this weird crypto bro style "I know I am but what am I?" smarminess that instead of being funny is just cringe. The devs of RE6 recognized the problem and rather than pick horror because action wasn't working decided to have FOUR STORY CAMPAIGNS. FOUR. STORY. CAMPAIGNS. And even the "horror" story campaign is laden with annoying QTEs. What RE6 needed was to be scaled back to at least being coherent. Just one campaign with one story with one playable character with no connection to previous games, a horror tone and little-to-no humour because the action comedy had gotten stale back in RE5 and any attempt at humour would likely be annoying and unfunny (if you didn't notice the humour in RE5 it's because it already happened, Ricardo serves as the "weird" villain, Excella... seems to be a seductress but doesn't really show up much, Wesker is a cat-eyed Johnny Bravo lookalike who's fashion sense is stuck in the 90s, makes puns during his first fight and his weakness in the second fight is turning off the lights because he's wearing sunglasses). Get rid of the old characters because their stories are done, Wesker is dead, we don't need to know what Sherry's doing we can just assume that she's living a normal life now and works at a supermarket or something, Leon's out stopping weird villains in some other part of the world. Up until the end that's basically what RE7 did. Yeah there was comedy moments, but they weren't constant and they weren't being drowned by constant explosions and QTEs.

[@danielgertler5976]

I'd play captain floppy hair's european vacation.

[@olon1993]

I think Capcom is doing it right. The overhaul at the beginning is where they invest the most time and money, they milk it with a couple sequels and spin offs, and when its dead they put the work in again to innovate. That's how you stay in business when you're a giant company with hundreds of employees that get paid ridiculous wages ;) But I agree that there is definitely a cycle. My money is on RE9 coming out and being a major let down.

[@li-limandragon9287]

I’m just waiting on RE Revelations 3 and for them to bring Jill back. Don’t know what Capcom have got against her.

[@kungfuskull]

@@li-limandragon9287 id buy that 👍

[@TheCyclicGamer]

I personally am not a fan of that method but at the same time I can understand why they're doing it. As Yathzee pointed out in his Silent Hill Extra Punctuation video, gamers are more attached to brands and franchises than the things said brands and franchises offer. There are plenty of games like classic RE and RE4 that get dismissed simply because they don't have the RE name on them, meanwhile if something that isn't recognizable as an RE game but it similar gets the RE name on it, people suddenly complain and moan that it should be called something else. Well, which is it?! Personally, I prefer good games to good brands and franchises, regardless of what they are called.

[@li-limandragon9287]

@@TheCyclicGamer True but I think it’s a case of known IP being safer bet than stuff than games that don’t get as much attention. Countdown Vampires is a “classic” but nobody in their right mind would willingly play that game now unless they’re doing it ironically. I think Parasite Eve is a fantastic classic same as the RE games but did and likely never will get as much attention as the various bloated JRPGs Square puts out. It could get more attention with a remake, but it would have to be better than even FF7 one which is like asking for a miracle.

[@darkartsdabbler2407]

Chris Redfield is at his best when he’s punching a zombie through a window into another zombie

[@marcun666]

I still can't unsee RE 6 logo depicting a man blowing a giraffe.

[@douglasbabb1725]

"You'd be surprised how often execution is the best way forward..." Considering he reviewed a game in limerick, a parody of 'I've got a little list' wouldn't be too surprising.

[@lildarkheart8708]

So, basically everyone in the community has been in agreement about one thing. 4 cannot stand to lose much without ruining the game. It is beautifully wrapped up in an action camp story the way it is and the way I see them taking it is to a different extreme. Here's what I think is gonna suck about it. Through both 3make and Village's mixed reviews and my own playthroughs I can say with certainty that the modern Capcom team is not big enough to take on such an ambitious project because of how many enemies were in the base game. With enemies taking on movesets depending on what was in their hand at the time I think the original is going to outshine them in this, I can feel it. Lycans were so mundane and the variations of enemies in the castle were limited to the castle unless they could fly. The factory tried to show you the wheel and say they reinvented it while showing you the same goddamned wheel. It felt like variation was lacking in village and while Resident Evil 3make is a bit better, not by much, but to be fair they had almost every enemy that was in the original. If they leave out even a single boss, or variation of enemy the game will feel stale. Buckle up homies you're at the halfwaypoint of my Ted talk. Say what you want about Ashley but I never heard her scream cause I either shot what was hassling her or accidentally shot her. The system was fine but people say it was the worst thing about the game, and in a game where you can one shot literally any boss that is a helluva compliment. I cannot however say that changing the system to benefit Ashley as less than a rescuee is a good idea. She didn't bring anything with her, she has no experience in the field, if you expect her to be more useful you'll have to add to the story of why she's more useful and the game was fine without it. I don't want a flashback of her in college learning karate or how to tie a specific knot. I unfortunately can see them taking such a direction. If krauser is not in the game I riot. I heard a rumour and it better not be true. Even if the sacrifice IS to give Luis more story it's not worth it, and also Luis does not need more story. Salazar BETTER BE A GODDAMN MIDGET WITH A TEMPER PROBLEM

[@Squintel7]

Certaintly. Re2 remake for example had 4 years of development and yet couldn't even get the a and b scenarios right for the game which was only 7 hours long. capcom is trying to REMAKE re4 in the same timespan as re2 remake when re4 is LITERALLY TWICE the size of re2 remake! Not only that but re4 remake was in development trouble due to being tossed around the company like a pinata between the B-team (that's right capcom actually intended the re4 remake to be made by the B-team, if you had little faith already this fact alone should shatter it completely) and than back to the dev 1. Which means almost 2 years of its initial development are entirely lost, thus leaving a maximum 2 YEARS of full time development on the game! HALF the dev time from the re2 remake which they couldn't even finish in 4 years before launch! They are rushing these game very badly. Expect not only worse and completely forgettable dialogue, the charm of the orignal will be completely misunderstood by the boomers at capcom and probably interpreted incorrectly and thus ruined. But it may also have terrible pacing issues, cut content, missing enemies etc. This remake has trouble written all over it and it is for that reason that I'm not buying it until I see what the masses think... Sorry for the tangent but that's my thoughts. Oh also don't be surprised if the game is like 7 hours long yikes! Lol. They should delay till 2024 imo

[@Squintel7]

Also it's of utmost importance that you remain critical. Capcom does read these comments and if they see enough protest we just might stop a disaster from happening. Maybe capcom will see that we won't settle for a half baked cash grab like re3 remake again and silently delay it. You'll never know.

[@nawf4372]

I find the Resident Evil series to be the embodiment of the mindset all Japanese game developers seem to have. Japanese games have a bad habit of either not changing at all between games series, just basically the same but some more, or completely changing everything from the entry before whether that stuff in the last entry worked or not. The only difference is that Capcom waits for people to get sick of the same over and over again before completely changing everything for better or worse. Final Fantasy hasn't had a game that was similar to the last game since 10, and even then they completely threw out the old aesthetic, at least 7 and 8 felt like what the old games world's would be like if they moved past steampunk middle ages. The only games that had the same game play as the last were spinoffs to the numbered games, and even that wasn't consistent.

[@Darius_Cyrus]

Apt for the culture whose history involves no change for change and then cataclysmic and sudden change.

[@TheCyclicGamer]

Yea, and what's weird is how hyped people are for FF16 despite it looking like the most Un-FF title in the whole series, I'm not even one to gatekeep, that's just how out of place XVI looks to me, I mean have you seen the healthbars? They look like they're from a fighting game like Street Fighter or Soul Caliber.

[@nawf4372]

@@TheCyclicGamer I'm actually more invested in that than the last couple of non-MMO entries in the series. Because it actually looks like it's based around gameplay that is fun to play. It looks like Devil May Cry instead of Final Fantasy, but at least it looks like something people play. 10 was the last one where you actually played the game most of the time, instead of holding down one button most of the time and occasionally selecting something when things get hard.

[@TheCyclicGamer]

@@nawf4372 More power to you then, I personally am not after hearing the details of how the game will play from the director's interview, especially with how "Movie-like" it will be and the fact that Hard mode is new game+ only. Those things immediately turn me off from a game. I'll probably rent it and still give it a chance, but at this point? Not expecting much from it. Stranger of Paradise is the only FF game this generation I feel is worth my time, the looting which I despise is just dirt on an otherwise diamond of a game.

[@orangeslash1667]

@@nawf4372 What made the RE series so great was Shinji Mikami, but he left Capcom years. So Capcom has a hard time evolving the series without him.

[@CouncilofGeeks]

Practically cheered for the “total protonic reversal” line. If you know, you know.

[@highvoltage7797]

Ahh weird to see you here Council of geeks lol

[@ILoveEvadingTax]

come on Yatz don't bullshit people, the REmake was absolutely adored when it came out, it was one of the Gamecube's best titles!

[@li-limandragon9287]

@@isaywhateveriwantandyougot7421 All I’m seeing is a guy spamming his own BS

[@justinrodriguez5957]

Yeah that is my immediate concern with the annoucement of the 4 remake. The moment they showed that snip of gameplay my response was simply "Why is it so dark? Are we redoing the whole atmosphere?" It really is one of those games that didn't need a remake especially because they've re-released the dang thing over and over. You could pick it up for modern consoles today if you wanted to play it.

[@li-limandragon9287]

Capcom are still sore over Code Veronica poor sales thanks the Dreamcast so are treating RE4 like a life raft.

[@akshatkumar7938]

OG Resident Evil 2 and REmake were and are still regarded as great games so it feels you really had to push to serve your narrative of "one good game per cycle".

[@li-limandragon9287]

@@isaywhateveriwantandyougot7421 He briefly mentioned OG RE2 dismissively compared to RE1, just rounding it off another title.

[@wdcain1]

2:19 _"Can you honestly picture the Leon S. Kennedy from the re2make summersaulting out of a second-story plate glass window?"_ Why yes, Yahtzee. I can imagine it because he does.

[@li-limandragon9287]

I can imagine REmake killing a massive mutant crocodile and saying a one-liner.

[@TheCyclicGamer]

You kind of miss his point. It was "Because it quicker than taking the stairs." Leon in RE4R summersaults out of that window because he was cornered by three Ganados, not because he was impatient to getting outside.

[@luismiguel-dt1ge]

RE4 gameplay doesnt need changing, yeah you cant shoot and move at the same time but they build the whole gameplay around that, people keep saying its clunky but it fucking isnt, clunky its when you cant improve further and have to leave it as it is, this game is purposefully design this way, its like saying god hand's gameplay its outdated because it has tank controller. Even today RE4 plays better than alot of games realeased

[@TheZoobZoobs]

A few counterpoints mate, while Capcom really pushed it too hard, the coop in RE5 is actually what makes it fun, playing it solo is never the same once you've tried it with a partner. In relation to that, Outbreak's issue wasn't that it was multiplayer; it was that it was multiplayer in a time where online coop wasn't a thing yet. RE1 remake additionally, isn't so much a remake as it is Mikami doing what the limitations of PS1 prevented him from doing, so rather than a remake or reimagining it is a completed vision. Lastly, this is a personal bias but RE3 remake doesn't deserve being mentioned in the same sentence as RE2 and RE1 remakes.

[@li-limandragon9287]

I don’t mind RE3make even if Jill looks too much like Milia Jovovich for comfort. What I do dislike is how much of its content was stripped out to make room for a multiplayer nobody asked for.

[@KhaosAdmiral]

Oh for sure, plus there were some games like Resident Evil: Revelations that I actually thought that even after RE:6, its not impossible for Capcom to bounce back by in the case of the first Revelations, make an Old-School RE game premise with modern controls.

[@TheZoobZoobs]

@@li-limandragon9287 exactly man, it was criminal how much of the game's original content was removed

[@stanzelot]

I was really surprised when Capcom announced a REmake of RE4 rather than a REmake of Code Veronica X. Code Veronica X is after all the true successor of RE2.

[@li-limandragon9287]

CV is severely underrated and its flaws are exactly why it needs a remake. The fans who are like “cV iS tErRIBLe and rE4 iS bETTER” are missing the entire point of why something should get remade in the first place. I think Capcom skipped CV (for now) simply because RE4 made them more money while Code Veronica being first released on the Sonic killer that was the Dreamcast didn’t.

[@gautampressman]

Yahtzee's play through of Resident Evil 4 with Gabe is one of his most fun videos

[@290coolkid]

the re1 remake is one of the best horror games of all time and yahtzee will never play it because he’s too stuck up to deal with the fixed camera angles

[@UnreasonableOpinions]

Resident Evil 7 toning down the nonsense and the scale worked well because in comparison to 6 the nonsense and the scale were defective components of a broken game, far too big to control. Absolutely nothing was lost by toning them down, and even if there had been it was such a complete package that it would have been worth it. The nonsense and the scale in RE4 were exactly right and fit perfectly into that game, and were part of why it was such a complete package - you can't take them out without losing a fair bit.

[@seanwang6143]

With how long the RE games have been around, it's surprising and honestly earnest that Capcom hasn't fully rebooted the franchise with new characters and lore. Ironically, they decided to reboot DMC after only 4 games (before backtracking)

[@ovahlord1451]

tbh i originally thought RE 7 was gonna be a reboot

[@Potidaon]

That's cuz RE keeps selling really well. They decided to reboot DMC because they weren't happy with how 4 sold (they wanted it to sell like God of War).

[@yurifairy2969]

That's essentially what RE7 and 8 was. They have callbacks to the old games but nothing from those games is relevant to the story except Chris I guess.

[@li-limandragon9287]

@@yurifairy2969 Keeping Chris while ignoring all the more interesting RE characters is a brain dead move. Chris is the most boring of the cast, his own sister has got more going on.

[@JuanxDlol]

You just did every horror game in a nutshell.

[@jdbruiser]

"Like an Ovarian cyst in a handful of popcorn"

[@youngthinker1]

After learning more about Resident Evil's development team, well, I can say things were a bit messy. RE birthed Dino Crisis which birthed Devil May Cry which birthed the spectacle fighter, so the men which made up the team went towards projects which perked their specific interests. With how constant developer and writer shake ups are, I imagine the team from Village split up and those who had the ability to tell the higher ups to screw off, left. Well, Capcom still refuses to make a new game which is fun, because they are still hurting about their old IP's stinking up the place.

[@mercenarygundam1487]

Still waiting for a new Mega Man game.

[@li-limandragon9287]

@youngthinker I agree that RE is oversaturated compared to other Capcom games but that isn’t the fault of the IP itself. Just Capcom not being brave enough to experiment as much as they did in the 90s. Darkstalkers is a prime example of them being creative and inventive but they wasn’t as successful as their better known brands because people back then just weren’t interested compared to Street Fighter.

[@josephrigley8974]

Resident evil outbreak 1 and 2 were really good it was just too early to work as a game because it was intended to be online co-op despite the fact it was put out before online co-op on consoles was really a thing.

[@mor3gan285]

People complain that resident evil games are all too similar and repetitive, but then yell and throw a fit at 5 and 6 for trying to be different

[@Lolfire]

Lets just lock Shinji Mikami, Suda51 and Hideo Kojima in a room until they bang out Resident Hills : Solid Killers and be done with it. Well, after Kojima is finished assassinating prime ministers.

[@BloodDrunkBunny]

They said that they’re going to change things and honestly that has me super worried. This RE is an all star stand out from the rest

[@Salacious_T]

Sometimes you punch the boulder, and sometimes the boulder punches you.

[@sleeplesshollow4216]

I love how Chris appearing at the end of Village was the start of the downward cycle simply through his appearance lol

[@li-limandragon9287]

There’s no cycle, Yahtzee just hates the story and characters of these games and genuinely only likes RE4 and RE7.

[@windlebee9440]

Outbreak 1 and 2 were great, multi or single player, and I'll die on this hill.

[@scotth4598]

I don’t buy into the ‘RE Cycle’ theory. I mean sure, it’s a fine opinion to have, but saying the RE 1 remake didn’t set the world on fire, seems more based on personal taste rather than reality. Seems like that game alone has been ported to most everything, and is highly regarded amongst RE fans. 2, 3 and umbrella chronicles are also well regarded and the remake of 2 is crazy popular. Remake 3 is pretty good it’s just not as great as people wanted it to be and honestly village is a pretty enjoyable game for the most part. And if the cycle is a thing, at least it produces the occasional great game still. On a personal note out of 1, 2, 3 and 4 4 is my personal least favourite. It’s still a great game and obviously revolutionary, but it’s also clearly the first of its kind and as such needed some refinement. I’m happy with them remaking it as long as they don’t delete the original from stores. Like what they did with GTA And personally I don’t understand why a tonal departure was fine for resident evil 4, but not ok with other games in the series. Like yeah you’re right I can’t imagine remake Leon jumping out of windows and doing crazy shit, but I couldn’t imagine the Leon from the original 2 doing that either. I think I’ve made a point here somewhere. Basically they can keep making RE games if they want as long as some of them are still good. At the end of the day if they did kill the franchise years ago we wouldn’t have got 7

[@li-limandragon9287]

My least favourite thing about 4 is Ada, you have awesome female characters like Jill and Claire but thanks to the success of 4, every simp shills their Chinese off-brand Carmen Sandiego as the best girl.

[@chancemitchell4147]

Definitely cautiously optimistic about this. Mainly because Resident Evil 4 is so damn modern…there is nothing really that needs to be done to improve it. RE1 and 2 and even 3Make benefited from the large graphical overhaul. Not to mention, it brought it up modern consoles. You can play RE4 on LITERALLY everything. So I mean…idk. I’m looking forward to it but it’s not…really necessary

[@jesuszamora6949]

RE4 would have probably been better served after a Code Veronica remake and RE9. They're rushing because everyone loved 4 and they want the money.

[@SuperSaiyanLink093]

Killing off a franchise with potential which regularly delivers on it just to avoid the occasional stinker is the Resident Evil 6 of ideas. If that's all you can bring to the table might as well get off the soapbox.

[@li-limandragon9287]

Agreed. We still haven’t got the Redfield bloodline game where you have to personally plunge Leon into Claire, there’s still plenty of potential left in this IP, though I wish Capcom cared more about its other franchise left to gather dust.

[@SomeIdiota]

Regularly delivers on it? The occasional stinker? Are we talking about the same franchise? I'm a huge RE fan and I'd still only recommend 5 out of the 28 games to non-fans. That is 17.86% of all RE games. Such "potential"!

[@li-limandragon9287]

@@SomeIdiota Eh, apart from RE6, RE Gaiden, Umbrella Chronicles and Umbrella Core (both made by Western teams) I think they’re pretty good.

[@15oClock]

If I find the RE4make on Steam, I'll take that as a sign to finally buy RE4.

[@kirbles2035]

It's on sale for 5 dollars right now.

[@SebbyPlaysMusic]

I'm jealous that you can still play RE4 for the first time.

[@theshuman100]

an execution with the guillotine is how you fire someone who refuses to leave

[@professordetective807]

Am I the only one who is VERY happy they're remaking 4. I tried playing it a year or so back after playing REmake2 and could NOT get used to the controls. So RE4 but it plays like REmake2 and is moderately spookier? Sign me up.

[@lumirairazbyte9697]

So what I think about this video is Yahtzee is concerned how they will remake RE 5 and 6 in the future. Those where the most action focused of the RE franchise and some people loved the ridiculousness of it.

[@DrPantsMD]

Honestly, I would love if they remade 5 and 6 and actually made them horror games, like a more severe version of what they seem to be doing with 4. Might actually make them replayable.

[@li-limandragon9287]

I find the boulder punching superhero action in RE5 fun in a dumb way, I mean Evil Dead started out straight horror and became silly adventure camp and everyone forgives it. I think the problem with RE5 and especially RE6 is that they both take themselves very seriously with less tongue in cheek barring a few moments. Even the RE2make and RE3make have moments of levity and goofiness which only makes the characters more likeable. Only people I like in RE6 are Leon and Sherry who should be partners in a Logan and X-23 handing over the torch way, but they teamed Leon up with not-Claire and Sherry with someone from Jersey Shore.

[@clwho4652]

The executives are never going to let RE die, there's too much brand recognition. Maybe what can be done is a full reboot, in which everyone dies at the end taking the Umbrella Corporation with them allowing for new characters and a story that makes sense.

[@Prlwy-T]

The brand is what never made me want to try out any of the newer games knowing all of this jumbled mess of games and movies.

[@Potidaon]

They did that. It was called RE7. If they do a full reboot, you're just gonna get a rehashed version of the original game with the same characters, like almost every reboot ever.

[@orangeslash1667]

@@Prlwy-T The problem is that when Capcom did make games that stood out Like Okami, Viewtiful Joe, Dino Crisis, Rival Schools, and Power Stone, they never sell well enough to make more.

[@Prlwy-T]

@@orangeslash1667 That hurt a little, I still revisit Okami from time to time. One maintains hope for new standalone titles.

[@noirscape_]

Honestly that remake for RE4 trailer was so... boring and unimpressive. They literally managed to suck all humor out of the game, I'm genuinely disappointed.

[@mrskinszszs]

My standpoint is a bit different - I'm more interested in the more horror-themed tone of this remake precisely because you can't really *do* RE4 over again. Trying to recapture lightning in a bottle isn't going to work, and if they were going to do a remake they might as well try their hand at something different. It may succeed, it may not, but I prefer they do something different over trying to re-do the impossible.

[@noirscape_]

@@mrskinszszs I don't think a more horror themed tone is really... beneficial to RE in general, they're usually not very good at it. RE is just at its best when it's campy schlocky horror. That's why RE4 is such a beloved classic; Leon is a cheesy oneliner spewing protagonist, the premise of the game is literally "Are You A Bad Enough Dude To Save The President's Daughter". The merchant is... Just the best. Putting a more serious tone on all that isn't interesting, it's just dumb.

[@mrskinszszs]

@@noirscape_ the OG REMake is horror themed, as well as the RE2make and even 7. Those are all good games, so i don't get what you're saying at all. I don't think they're removing the merchant from the game. Hell, they put a variant of him in Village. And I disagree that it's dumb bc we don't know the final product yet beyond like 2 minutes of footage lol. If it's a dud I'll be the first to say it, but I'm going to wait and see. What I can say is trying to redo what's already been done is pointless.

[@Neoyoshi-FFXIV]

I really agree 100% with this; Resident Evil 4 on Gamecube can't be replicated, it's a treasure of it's time. RE4 remake will not even get close to being better the the og RE4.

[@kapiteinlulhaas7612]

Resident evil 4 in current gen graphics sounds absolutely amazing to me. Gamers seem to get their panties in a twist real easy these days. Re4 may not be the 'best' resident evil game, but it is absolutely the most fun resident game.

[@SebbyPlaysMusic]

I agree, but we all know it's not gonna be the same kind of game based on the trailer.

[@kapiteinlulhaas7612]

@@SebbyPlaysMusic what in the trailer makes you think there are huge changes made?

[@babygorilla4233]

Yhazee uploading 2 days in a row nice. He's getting into the swing of things with extra punctuation, feels like there less rare now.

[@SciontheDark]

This reminds me that the classic Resident Evil games are only campy because they were japanese games made by entirely Japanese teams and any amount of campy-ness comes from the disconnect between Japanese script writers and voice directors attempting to tell English speakers how to deliver lines in a language they themselves aren't fluent in. The camp is gone because of improved translations.

[@AngelsLance]

I had always said RE4 was a great game but a terrible Resident Evil. But in all honesty Code Veronica deserves the remake treatment more than RE4 does.

[@Deshrake]

Resident Evil 2 and 3 got a remake in the modern influence of Resident Evil 4. So, now they're going to remake Resident 4 in the spirit of... Resident Evil 4?

[@H3Vtux]

There's a trope of the angry old grandparents who are too harsh on you and ruin everything you're excited about, crumbling your hopes and dreams before your eyes until you're a cynical mess. I've never been able to relate because my grandparents were very nice, but thankfully I have yahtzee to fill that role.

[@MillenniumDays]

For a moment I thought Callisto Protocol was the solution because it became it's own thing after the awful tie in multiplayer formula rabbit hole of DS3! Then again, it's missing the unique gameplay part so far. Still hyped for it though.

[@davidribeiro]

The first time I opened the video the first 45 seconds made me believe this was not a Yahtzee video so I closed it. Good thing the penny dropped and I checked it again.

[@cathallynch1]

There is a silver lining it that we do get good games eventually, but you're right in that we could just skip past the crap if Capcom stopped chasing its own tail.

[@li-limandragon9287]

The REmakes are good games tho, RE1 in particular is criminally underrated with its beautiful atmosphere and pre-rendered backgrounds. I say less big complicated plots and more small story, character focus.

[@james.d.fowler]

Gonna have disagree on ONE point, which is about whether slapping the RE name on RE4 and RE7 had any impact on the success of those games. Brand recognition works. It's cynical, but if there's anything you can bank on, it's people's innate desire for stability and comfort. RE games may not be good, but after the good game of each cycle makes its mark, the subsequent bad ones still end up being the devil that you know, as opposed to the other potential garbage that might get offered in its place. The fact that sometimes a nice surprise comes along in the series means that you end up with guaranteed returns. We gotta raise the standards of consumers and developers as a whole in order to get better than what's usually on offer. That having been said, thank you for another fantastic video and everything you do to try inculcate standards and critical thinking for gamers.

[@TheCyclicGamer]

Brand recognition may work, but the question then is do people like a specific product because of the things in it or because of the brand? Even if the brand itself is no longer offering what it originally use to? It's like going to your favorite burger shop asking for a burger and you get a taco instead, you might like the taco but you wonder why you didn't get a burger. And because of that it makes me wonder why people are even excited for the upcoming Final Fantasy 16, which looks to be the most un-Final Fantasy game there is.

[@james.d.fowler]

@@TheCyclicGamer We're stupid animals. Brand recognition doesn't work because it's the truth -- it works because that's the shortcut our brains uses. It's an affect bias. That's why they'll keep calling these games "Resident Evil", and why you'll always get at least some tacit acknowledgment of the franchise canon in each game. Our stupid lizard brains let developers take shortcuts to our wallets, sometimes even despite ourselves.

[@TheCyclicGamer]

@@james.d.fowler Exactly what Yahtzee specifically mentioned in his Silent Hill video. Developers assume that people like Game A and therefore the Game A2 and Game A3 and whatever sequels and spin-offs come after.

[@Potidaon]

RE4 and RE7 would've never gotten the budgets that they did if they weren't RE games. Capcom has never had five different concepts for a game in a franchise outside of RE.

[@MrMoshmuma]

Resident evil 1 remake was and is really well regarded

[@SebbyPlaysMusic]

@@isaywhateveriwantandyougot7421 On Gamecube.

[@SebbyPlaysMusic]

@@isaywhateveriwantandyougot7421 As someone who was old enough to consider these things at the time, I did notice that RE2 and RE3 were getting re-released on GC without any update, so I can see what some of the confusion might be. But also, it was actually a really drastic improvement for something that was still fresh in people's minds, so I feel like it was more fans that were drawn to it more than a general audience. I definitely wouldn't blame the people who worked on it or the game itself. Especially with Devil May Cry and other similar titles doing fine. But then what's our point of comparison on sales? I think they just got slightly overzealous.

[@li-limandragon9287]

@@isaywhateveriwantandyougot7421It had big impact we wouldn’t have the other remakes without it.

[@stevenneiman1554]

The key fact that I think explains most of the ills of modern media is that large corporations desperately want to keep people focused on the only things they can't be outcompeted on: budget and pedigree. That's why so many modern games are huge sprawling open worlds with ugly high-fidelity graphics that can't even be called an art style. It's why games which gain nothing from being tied into a broader continuity are made as sequels and prequels and interquels and reboots of franchises which people already know. It's why Disney bought Star Wars even though the only good media they've made in the IP are the ones with no actual connection to anything established from the franchise, and why they pushed those atrocious live action remakes when the animated stuff they produced at the same time was some of the best that they've ever made. Everything comes back to the desperate quest to convince people that the things that only industry giants can do well are important.

[@SlightlyUnSalted]

Sounds like Resident Evil 6 was the Dead Space 3 of the franchise

[@michaelshafir5859]

Maybe I'm just wrong on this, but I found the new resident evils fully enjoyable. I didn't really experience the downward spiral yahtzs is talking about.

[@thecaptain6520]

He's just blinded by nostalgia, but needs to justify it by projecting his distaste for some of the games onto the entire franchise

[@li-limandragon9287]

@@thecaptain6520 Not even some, he only likes two games in the entire franchise and spites the franchise itself. Even RE2make he considered a downgrade to RE4.

[@mattkennedy9308]

He tends to go a bit meta/story based in his criticism sometimes. The games have been objectively getting better from a gameplay point of view (at least the main series)... but there's a lot of rehashing stories or banging on about Umbrella instead of changing it up like 4 and 7 which was the Las Plagas and Mold. It reminds me a bit of X-Files where they kept doing the alien conspiracy storyline through out the series, but most of the really good episodes were the pure standalone ones with nothing to do with the conspiracy.

[@urahara64360]

I love that tales of arise is the example in the ad I'm legitimately thinking about getting it.

[@Crichjo32]

Resident Evil 4 was lightning in a bottle. The fact that game got made and exists as well as it does is something of a miracle. And rather then try and create another miracle, it is far easier just to flog the same miracle until it is as dry as sandpaper.

[@li-limandragon9287]

People put RE4 on a pedestal, but I’ve had just as much fun with other games in the series especially the remakes. RE4 just hit at just right time for everyone that people are willingly to throw the rest of the RE games out with the bath water.

[@newttrain8667]

See the main thing that upsets me about RE4make is that they just completely skipped Code Veronica like c'mon guys does RE4 even need a remake?

[@li-limandragon9287]

Capcom are still sore over the Dreamcast. CV deserves a revamp.

[@335449286]

I'm personally very excited for RE 5 & 6 remake

[@paulhorneschillings1212]

The problem isn't that RE4 needs a remake, the problem is that Sweet Home (RE's predecessor, a survival horror RPG on the NES) needs one. Because odds are you never even heard about Sweet Home until you read this comment.

[@Hostilenemy]

Cough forgot to mention Code Veronica cough

[@li-limandragon9287]

He mentioned it, but it in a dismissing tone which is sad.

[@SirDawkinsthemad]

I don't really get why people get so hung up on Resident Evil's storyline. Why do all these franchises need to have "credible villains?" James Bond doesn't need credible villains, so why can't Resident Evil have its monster factories? Also not every game is canon, so trying to tie all of the plots into one single narrative is kind of pointless. Operation Raccoon City ends with the Umbrella Security Force killing Leon and Claire, doesn't really gel with the rest of the series continuity.

[@demecowen]

I think the problem is while James Bond almost always has a new villain, Umbrella Corp is behind every outbreak is hard to believe. It is not about credible villains. It's just the same villains always coming back with no explanation. It makes an effort from the last seem pointless. Resident Evil would be better off if they fought different monster factories from a cult, one mad scientist, or a government than it always being from Umbrella.

[@hollowheaded9319]

@@demecowen Umbrella isn't behind every outbreak though, Umbrella was gone by RE4.

[@prl4122]

@@hollowheaded9319 yeah but generally speaking the person causing it usually has some strong attachment to umbrella in some way shape or form.

[@SirDawkinsthemad]

But Umbrella isn't behind every outbreak. After Code Veronica it's always a different organization. Wesker and TriCell are responsible for RE5, Simmons and the Family are behind 6, Connections is behind 7, and Mother Miranda is also tied to the Connections in Village.

[@SirDawkinsthemad]

@@prl4122 Except for 4, 6, and 7.

[@regularshowman3208]

I don't think it's quite as dire as is painted here, but I wouldn't be surprised if we did eventually hit fatigue for this new cycle of the franchise in a couple years. Feels to me like Capcom is getting maybe a little *too* comfortable with how popular it's been and is just kind of basking in their own glory. It's a bad sign that of the five games for this cycle three of them are remakes.

[@li-limandragon9287]

Also the “cycle” has to imply they’re all bad games except one but the only weak modern entry has been RE3make while the rest are bangers. I think Yahtzee is just this video as an excuse to vent his feelings about the franchise which he’s always claimed he didn’t like.

[@weedblaster2125]

Ngl you had me really worried there with the intro ad-roll that clearly wasnt Yahtzee

[@MrEquusQuagga]

Molomolo

[@jakass]

Another Prey 2017 mention, that's all I need

[@Destinychanged]

Jim Sterling had a great video about RE4 and why it was so enjoyable: It didn't take itself seriously. It was borderline parody in how the characters presented themselves. It was a scary game by definition, but also had some enjoyment in how it was shown and experienced. I mean who the hell else would say "Where's everyone going? Bingo?" after a near hypertensive emergency of a combat encounter?

[@li-limandragon9287]

Still other games in the series lean into the camp as well. Even RE5. I love RE4 but people need to stop sucking it off 24/7.

[@neganick]

I agree that the franchise is all over the place, but I wouldn't have it any other way. The sheer stupidity of 5 made it a blast for co-op, and I remember it almost as fondly as 4.

[@li-limandragon9287]

Also Metal Gear is equally as stupid and has even more plot holes but nobody is gonna willingly crap on MGS.

[@callahaine100]

Interesting conclusion. Even though I like Resident Evil's lore, I realized I'm more a Shinki Mikami fan than a Resident Evil fan. I especially like RE1 Remake, RE4 and...The Evil WIthin

[@DoctorLombriz]

resident evil outbreak would have benefited tremendously by being released a console generation later, with the likes of xbox live in full swing on the 360 and not having to spend $200 on a hard drive to make the load times faster than 30+ seconds to go through a single door

[@BlueKunai]

I've made the same argument for Kingdom Hearts. If Nomura had any sense of self-restraint he would have ended the current saga with 3 (or preferably even 2) and wiped the slate clean for future titles by doing something else with a new cast and plot. Instead we have an overarching increasingly tangled mess of a story that continues to insist it's just getting started despite peaking years ago.

[@li-limandragon9287]

Kingdom Hearts is way worse than RE in this regard, with RE you have the horror be anywhere so long as it follows the no supernatural rules of the series. Sure old favourites show up but they’re not that complicated as characters go. With KH there’s entire history behind someone like Aqua that I won’t get since I haven’t religiously played the games she’s appeared in.

[@ironwolf5802]

So will Capcom quietly take down the current ports of 4 shortly before the re-RE4? It's already ported to almost everything with a screen so this new one would probably just look like a upgraded port again that cost more.

[@PrinceLuigii]

As someone who use to use Buyee for years when I was big into the original JP Tamagotchis, the shipping to the Americas anymore is horrific. It didn't use to be, but it sure is now

[@enshrowd]

you got any other recommendations for japan specific merch for americans? i was tryna buy some Madoka Magica x Zoff glasses last year but i could never find out how to get em in america

[@PrinceLuigii]

@@enshrowd Sadly, due to how shipping costs are from all over the world, I am not sure if there is a way around the stupidly high costs of shipping, unless you have someone who can get your items in bulk then buy the pieces you want here in the states, I"ve seen come convention halls and full Japanese manga stores do something like that, however, I don't know of any well known ones, I am sorry about that

[@Degalon]

I still say Outbreak was ahead of its time. All Capcom would need to do is an HD re release of that with functioning online and BAM, they've got their own Hitman esque modular episodic content machine they can make bank with.

[@leprechaunluck24]

Alright ill admit it. I like Chris "I punch Boulders" Redfield. When he is a campy action hero that is.

[@ForeverMasterless]

Re4 is still one of the best games ever made and the VR version is tied with half life alyx as the best time I've had playing VR. I hope the remake isn't a soulless boring shit show but it probably will be.

[@geofff.3343]

I get where you're coming from, Yahtzee, but here me out: Resident Evil 4... in the RE Engine... That engine is just too good.

[@geofff.3343]

@@isaywhateveriwantandyougot7421It was kind of tongue in cheek, but by all means elaborate.