Question about RE4 and 5

[Nabil Mishima]

Why is it Leon and Chris handle like 'tanks'? I mean in games when you use the analog stick the character runs I.E Metal Gear

But in RE nope. Also in some games you can run and shoot, why in RE you can't? Yet Leon did this in RE Degeneration. If I'm in a place where I'm shooting Zombies/Ganados/Majinis/possessed humans or whatever I wouldn't stop and shoot each time! I'd be dead! Same goes for reloading too.

Sorry if this has been discussed before. Just something that's been on my mind a lot.

[thezombiemessia]

It's all about causing a sense of fear and panic.

Originally it was because that was the only way the games could be made, and it's just a leftover of the originals.

You have to think tactfully about whether to run, or fight. Where to stand when choosing to fight, etc, etc.

They probably could update the controls and retain the horror aspect of the series, but they just don't want to...

[Nabil Mishima]

I see, I thought that seeing RE6 will be a reboot, maybe the controls might change I don't know.

I suppose they are trying to make you feel 'human' and what I mean by that is, no person can do amazing things......

[thezombiemessia]

Agreed.

I figure the control scheme will see some changes for RE6, whenever it comes along.

I wouldn't mind seeing a slightly different control scheme, perhaps similar to that of Dead Space.


But yes, you're pretty much right. The tank controls are still used to make you still feel vulnerable.

[Alexia_Ashford]

If you could run and gun, it wouldn't really feel much like horror. It'd feel more like Gears of Resident Evil. It makes sense as well. When you're shooting, you need to aim.

[Dante2014]

I think the games flow better with the "tank-tracks" control scheme, the mechanic of run-stop-shoot is something you can imagine doing in real life, so its not a case of jumping around and strafing like a Quake 2 reject after a Red Bull, but tactical positioning around a target.

As for Resident Evil 6, I'm sure hoping they come up with a new mechanic entirely, because I think they have done all they can with it right now, RE5 mastered it on PS3 and Xbox360, Whilst Dead Rising:CTYD had the same, yet heavily modified mechanic for Wii, and I sure hope it isn't re-used for every game with an added "Quirk" to make it different from the rest, I mean, look at it from this angle:

Does everyone recall the massive amount of FPS's from 2005 to about 2007? where the shops/stores where practically wallpapered with them? and yet, so many of them flopped so badly to the point where we only remember a few of them, because they where all utilising the FPS mechanic, but tried to make the game "Unique" by adding a certain quirk to gameplay that was relied too heavily upon and ultimately failed the game due to being quite gimmicky. The Darkness had superpowers, Bioshock had Plasmids, Prey had gravity altering, Battlefield 2 had "zapping", Halo 3 had gadgets, and yet, out of all of those, Bioshock was the most memorable due to its atmosphere and Halo 3 due to previous title acclaim, however, looking at the popular titles of recent years - Call of Duty 4, Portal and Left 4 Dead where all basic in gameplay, but utilised a feature outside of the players toybox, L4D had massive amounts of enemies, Call Of Duty 4 had realisitic gun penetration and Portal utilised the FPS mechanic itself as a whole game contrary to being just a quirk.

Now, Resident Evil 4 was great because this mechanic was brand new, Resident Evil 5 refined it, but now what could they possibly do to make it better? Introduce a new mechanic rather than adding a quirk and calling it a new game, if it never changes then its effectively the same game with different enemies and plot, if they add a quirk to the gameplay, that would be far too basic, whereas a total ovehaul wipes the slate clean, it gives them chance to work with something new and could rise the bar on the genre as a whole.

My two cents, grr.

[thezombiemessia]

A clean slate would be perfect for the series to be honest.

Even now, the series is starting to get stale again. Umbrella Chronicles was a nice shift in format, and I'm sure DC will feel fresh also...but there's only so many on-rail shooters that they can do before it gets old.

Portable might offer us something new...but knowing what we generally get promised, and what eventually comes about, "something we've never seen before" could mean anything.

A complete overhaul of the series would be great. Give us new controls, and new characters (though keep the old storyline & characters as Background Info), and new villains...and the series could start a fresh.


As for the "run & Gun" mechanic making the series less Horror and more Gears of War...I'd like to introduce you to Dead Space. A game that gave you the ability to move-&-Shoot, but still retained the Horror element.

I'm not saying it'd be easy for Capcom to do, and I'm certainly not saying that the revious lot of games would have benefitted from move-and-shoot mechanics, all I'm saying is that a reboot really could benefit from this sort of mechanic.

Also, Outbreak 2 gave players the ability to move-and-aim.

[EliteFreq]

If you could run and gun, it wouldn't really feel much like horror.
Not necessarily true. Games like FEAR, Bioshock and Condemned manage to 'feel like horror'. Alan Wake is coming up. There's Call of Cthulhu for the original Xbox. It could easily turn that way, rather than into a run and gun. And like TZM said, Dead Space.

[Dante2014]

Not necessarily true. Games like FEAR, Bioshock and Condemned manage to 'feel like horror'. Alan Wake is coming up. There's Call of Cthulhu for the original Xbox. It could easily turn that way, rather than into a run and gun. And like TZM said, Dead Space.
I suppose its different perspectives of horror.

Games like Silent Hill, Project Zero, Haunting Ground etc emphasise helplessness, thus making them scarier due to the character being a non-combatant.

Whereas games like Dino Crisis 2 and Left 4 Dead are more along the principles of "panic-horror", fear by induced panic from enemies en masse despite capable player characters mowing down hundreds of enemies, their relentless nature makes them a threat.

I'd say that RE5 would be closer to the latter rather than the former, since it preys on the aspect of hundreds of enemies and tighter resources (at least at the start), with the inability to run being an intentional flaw to slow things down and increase tension, however, the Silent Hill games, Resident Evil Outbreak File 2 and Dead Space all had the ability to shoot whilst moving, this didn't necessarily turn them in to hardcore shooters, it just gave the opportunity to dodge and speed things up instead of standing like a lemon and becoming zombie chow.

[thezombiemessia]

As EliteFreq points out, Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth for the Xbox...that game is one of the scariest games I have ever played...and it was an FPS.

And this is coming from me...the person on this forum that makes a point of playing as many Survival Horror titles as possible.

[Kieron Baird]

I liked the style and game play of Resident Evil 5, I don't think I would change this game personally. With everyone that has said about it adding fear/panic and makes you think tactics, I agree.

[EliteFreq]

I liked the style and game play of Resident Evil 5, I don't think I would change this game personally. With everyone that has said about it adding fear/panic and makes you think tactics, I agree.
I wouldn't change it either. The controls feel rather classic Resi, but at the same time feel modern and fluid. It drew in some of my friends who'd never play an RE game ever otherwise, the multiplayer played a big part in this too, but if the controls were the same as the original and it was full of puzzles, I see them tiring easily.

[Kieron Baird]

I wouldn't change it either. The controls feel rather classic Resi, but at the same time feel modern and fluid. It drew in some of my friends who'd never play an RE game ever otherwise, the multiplayer played a big part in this too, but if the controls were the same as the original and it was full of puzzles, I see them tiring easily.

Mhmm, it seems like most people are happy with the new style of Resident Evil game play :nod:.

[thezombiemessia]

The gameplay isn't new though...apart from a change in camera angle, and the ability to now aim freely, nothing has changed.

And even then, the ability to aim freely was introduced in Resident Evil Zero.

[EliteFreq]

The gameplay isn't new though...apart from a change in camera angle, and the ability to now aim freely, nothing has changed.

And even then, the ability to aim freely was introduced in Resident Evil Zero.
With a new camera angle comes a new perspective. The environments are made to fit in so the experience during gameplay has to change.

A friend of mine, today, critisised RE Archives, not because it was a port of the GC game, but because it was a remake of the original. Yet he'd gladly play RE4 or 5.

[thezombiemessia]

I guess the overall gameplay does change, as in how to deal with enemies, what the enemies are like, etc.

But I wouldn't say that is because of the change in perspective. The gameplay could have very easily remained the same as the originals, with the same enmies, same clostrophobic environments, etc.