(KERO) — Gamers may be having deja vu as of late, but it’s no cause for concern.
Resident Evil 4, commonly agreed upon as one of the greatest games of all time, received the remake treatment, with Resident Evil 4 Remake releasing on Fri, March 24.
Similar to its 2005 counterpart, Resident Evil 4 Remake has immediately cemented a spot in gaming history, both in critical reception and in sales. Capcom announced that within 48 hours of release, Resident Evil 4 Remake sold over three million units worldwide and within two weeks, the game sold 4 million copies.
The original Resident Evil 4 has sold around 12 million copies since its release in 2005, placing it as the second highest-selling Resident Evil game as of 2022. It is likely that the original game will drop down to third place, however, as its remake has already sold at least a third of its lifetime sales.
According to Capcom, the addition of Resident Evil 4 Remake brings the Resident Evil series’ total sales to more than 135 million. Other key contributors to that total include Resident Evil 2 Remake, Resident Evil 7, and the original Resident Evil 4. Resident Evil is Capcom’s best-selling series, with Monster Hunter following at 90 million units sold.
While it is estimated that the remake will outsell the original, will it be able to keep up critically?
As mentioned earlier in the article, the original Resident Evil 4 is often considered to be one of the greatest games of all time. The original GameCube release version of the game sits at a 96 on Metacritic, an average score between 82 official critic reviews. The game also won “Game of the Year” from several gaming publications, as well as the official Game of the Year award from The Game Awards (then named “The Spike TV Video Game Awards”).
Resident Evil 4 was critically praised for its usage of quick time events (QTEs) and an over-the-shoulder third-person camera, both rarities in gaming at the time that quickly became industry standards within the next decade. Game Informer even called Resident Evil 4 “the most important third-person shooter ever” due to the influence and impact the game had.
As of April 6, Resident Evil 4 Remake sits at a close 93 on Metacritic, averaged out of 116 official critic reviews. While no official nominations have been made, it can be assumed that the game will be a contender for Game of the Year due to the critical praise it has received and the number of copies sold.
