Capcom has been on a roll lately in terms of remaking iconic Resident Evil games, even though in many ways they’re not like their original games. Both Resident Evil 2 and Resident Evil 3: Nemesis had fixed camera angles, where players would only had one or a few forced perspectives in any room or environment. Resident Evil 4 was the first mainline title in the series to break that tradition, but retained some of that player vulnerability and intensity with fixed aiming or “tank” controls.
One particular criticism that the Resident Evil 2/3 Remake games received early on was the lack of retro camera angles. Many veteran fans of the Resident Evil franchise were turned off by the over-the-shoulder view coming to the remade games, and that the original camera angles would not return. Those odd-angle camera shots were an iconic feature that made the games as intense and scary as they were, even though the remakes circumvented those issues in different ways. A Resident Evil 4 Remake should still retain its vulnerability in aiming, even if it’s a slightly evolved version of tank controls, and at the least, have some degree of option or controllability.
The “Tank” Controls of Resident Evil 4
Realistically, a highly trained operative would be able to move and shoot a firearm with little effect on their accuracy. But in the world of Resident Evil, there’d be no stakes in an encounter with a zombie if players could run-and-gun without pause. This was likely the reason why in the original Resident Evil 4, the aiming system became the static “tank” controls that fans know today. It’s the same reason why the original Resident Evil 2 had fixed camera angles as well. While Resident Evil 4 was a huge innovation in terms of crafting third-person action/shooter games, the aiming system is consistently referred to as the only archaic portion of it.
Hundreds of third-person shooter games since Resident Evil 4 have borrowed the close over-the-shoulder perspective, but have incorporated more fluid movement and aiming abilities. But it’s important to note that Resident Evil 4 was a horror game first and foremost, regardless of whether or not the game included many action elements that would plague subsequent releases into fundamentally different games. It’s very possible that not being able to move and aim in Resident Evil 4 was due to technical limitations, but more importantly, locking Leon in place when aiming was likely an effort to increase player vulnerability in order to making aiming more deliberate and risky.
Ending Tank Controls Eliminates Risk
In some fashion, the restraint on Leon’s aim should return in Resident Evil 4 Remake. It doesn’t have to necessarily prevent Leon from moving while aiming, but his speed should be significantly hindered if so. Adding to Leon’s mobility will fundamentally make the game easier by reducing the intensity and margin of error for players. This same criticism was weighed against Resident Evil 3 Remake, where dodging and extra ammo effectively invalidates any semblance of danger. While the original game did have many elements of action games, like firing on weak spots to set up for unique melee finishers, these were counter-balanced by severely limiting Leon’s ability to fire guns while moving. Improving Leon’s mobility will make players untouchable, which would ruin any sense of vulnerability.
Stripping that vulnerability away will require fundamental change to enemy behavior. Not only that, but as a result the game will become much faster paced because enemies will need to compensate for Leon’s heightened movement. If Leon is allowed to move and aim his weapon at the same time in Resident Evil 4 Remake, his aiming walk speed will need to be slow. Either match the same speed or preferably make it slower than Resident Evil 2 Remake’s aiming walk speed. Leon should not be able to back up and aim at a faster pace than zombies can catch up to him, as it effectively ruins any form of risk when taking aim at an enemy.
Unless some serious developmental changes are made to the game world and enemy AI behavior, Resident Evil 4 Remake would be way too easy for players. Eliminating tank controls would require extensive changes to enemy speed, hit boxes, etc. which in turn would fundamentally change the game itself. Leon effectively becomes an untouchable badass in Resident Evil 4’s design as its known currently if he’s allowed to freely move faster and aim his weapons. No stakes in horror game means no intensity, which in turn means no fun.
Resident Evil 4 Remake is rumored to be in development.
