Remakes are a controversial subject in pop culture. Many cry out that a remake of a popular series is a creatively bankrupt and cheap way to prolong the life of a series. This is true to a certain extent. Remaking an old movie or game doesn’t require the creative team to come up with something wholly new — just redo and potentially remix what has been done before. The harsh truth is that audiences eat up remakes. Disney’s 2019 remake of “The Lion King” grossed a worldwide $1.6 billion. Many outlets reviewing the movie didn’t even praise it that much, saying it felt unoriginal and unnecessary, yet this film made Disney an obscene amount of money.

Remakes are interesting since they can give the audience who loved the original work something familiar and new at the same time. It’s enticing to see one’s favorite story retold in a way that changes and keeps parts from the original. Video games in particular are a form of media that has seen many remakes over the years, ever since the early 2000s when gaming technology started to advance at a fast pace. One of the most influential video game series has to be the horror-focused game, Resident Evil, first released in 1996.

Resident Evil 4 (RE4) was originally released in 2005, and it is easily one of the most successful and influential games ever created. This game inspired the structure of many modern games, whether it be gameplay or level design. Any successful, high-budget video game nowadays has some of this game’s DNA in it, from Fortnite to The Last of Us. RE4 flipped the gaming industry on its belly with its new over-the-shoulder camera perspective and the combination of cheesy action with grizzly horror and a bombastic, fast-paced story.

When it comes to the remake of this classic game, the development team had expectations placed on them that were higher than the moon. Many believed RE4 didn’t need a remake, especially because the game has aged well despite being 18 years old. All of this being said, Capcom still marched forward and released the remake in March of this year. The remake was received incredibly positively. This game is a picture-perfect remake due to the fact that it built upon the weaker parts of the original, like the story, and also built upon already great parts, like the characters and gameplay.

The gameplay of the remake was very similar to the original’s, but with a modern twist. Accessibility options were added, such as changing the colors of certain aiming reticles. This makes the game much more friendly to colorblind players. The core gameplay was essentially a modern version of the original game. Developers really used the base game as a template for the remake, which was much appreciated since the original played like a dream.

The game’s story, lore and characters saw the most change. The story of the original was a cheesy, action-filled thrill ride. It was a satirical horror game with great action and funny one-liners. Was it as scary as previous games in the series? No. Was it one of the most fun video games at the time, and does it still hold that title? Yes. The story and vibe of the remake are different from the original.

The remake has a much darker, more macabre vibe to it. There are still some cheesy and funny one-liners, but many of them have been removed. The story here is to be taken seriously. The characters in this game feel tortured, as opposed to the original, where they were spouting funny dialogue. One could argue this makes sense, considering how the plot revolves around the main characters fighting for their lives in a zombie-infested country. One could also argue that this takes away from the charm of the original.

I would say that while I personally miss the funny one-liners of the original, I think the remake’s vision for a different interpretation of this world is appropriate. There are also new levels and areas added to this remake, which further give the player more context, like the parasite that causes the zombie virus. In the original, the player had only text-based logs to read off of. In the remake, there are new areas that the player personally explores, and they can see firsthand where this undead nightmare started. I don’t think we should think of one as better than the other — we should view them both as valid but different interpretations. And that’s the best way to view a good remake — it should give the audience a greater appreciation for the original while also creating something familiar yet new that feels like its own work of art in its own right. Capcom redefined what a great video game remake should be with their reimagined roller coaster of RE4.

Nicolas Scagnelli is a junior majoring in English.