Ultimately, Resident Evil 4 was both an innovative and harmful entry in the survival horror genre.
The cynical mind is a patient one.
A well-honed cynic knows that with enough time, good things will eventually come to an end.
Its why on even the brightest days theyll say, Dont get too excited.
Its going to rain.
At the time, everyone else laughed.Resident Evil 4wasnt just a great game, it was a genuine revolution.
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It seems like such an irrelevant alteration, but it meant the world.
For years, horror game developers had struggled to insert enjoyable action into their games without compromising fear.
Its why early survival horror titles made their combat so cumbersome.
The idea was that if you cant defend yourself easily, youll succumb to fear more quickly.
This new viewpoint and the combat system designed to accompany it changed all that.
How would Capcom dictate the scares now that they werent framing every shot?
They turned to the action genre for influences.
Previous games in the series would have had this key scene play out via a cutscene.
Even the traditional cutscenes the game did utilize benefited from the use of quick time events.
At the time, this all seemed like gamings great compromise.
No longer did a games film-like moments need to be merely watched.
Make no mistake thatResident Evil 4was a true innovator in that respect.
At the same time,Resident Evil 4stopped the evolution of AAA pure horror games in its tracks.
They emphasized a more subtle brand of horror.
Their stories were often hinted at via implications best not dwelled upon.
Playing these games required you to submit yourself to them.
Even their combat systems were presented as a purely defensive measure.
You could argue thats why these games sometimes suffered from dull gameplay.
They certainly didnt offer the same brand of thrilling action thatResident Evil 4provided.
In the days that followed the release ofResident Evil 4, a line in the sand was drawn.
Many major developers stood on one side pursuing the profits ofResident Evil 4s lucrative new design.
Its a divide that is just now beginning to fade away.
The consequences ofResident Evil 4s innovative game design ultimately seemed to proved the cynics right.
Thats one way to look at it, but it wont make you very fun at parties.
It all worked out over time.
The clouds have parted and the light of a new day beckons.
Or, as the cynic would say, What ever happened to action horror games?
Matthew Byrd is a staff writer.
This article was first published on Oct. 28, 2016.
