Perhaps more than any other company, Capcom has done a fantastic job of supporting the Nintendo Switch 2 with high-quality ports of their games. It's been a nonstop list of fantastic ports for games new and old, and it was just a matter of time until the older Resident Evil games debuted on Nintendo's system. Resident Evil 4 Gold Edition brings Resident Evil 4 Remake to the Switch 2, and it's arguably the most anticipated of these ports. I was eager to get my hands on it, and the result was a good, but not great, port of a fantastic game.

The most interesting thing about Resident Evil 4 Gold Edition on the Switch 2 is how well it runs, and the answer is a mixed bag. While docked, the game is largely fine. It has a few areas where it lagged a bit awkwardly, but it was very comparable to my experience on the PlayStation 4. Handheld is the area where things drag a bit. It runs smoothly enough, but there are notable hitches where the game chugs while trying to keep up. This stands out in the busiest areas of the game, particularly in crowded fights. It isn't enough to cause a significant gameplay issue, but it's a little disappointing when games like Resident Evil 9 and Pragmata ran more smoothly on the system.

Likewise, handheld mode comes with a graphical downgrade, but it's nothing beyond what's typical of other Capcom ports on the Switch 2.The textures are a bit uglier, the character models are less defined, and you can feel the areas where things had to be toned back. It's fairly impressive how good it still looks, even with those downgrades. Perhaps the thing that stands out most is that some tasks can more difficult on the handheld, like using shooting ranges.

As a result, Resident Evil 4 Gold Edition for the Switch 2 brings mixed reactions. It's 90% of the way to being a fantastic experience, but that remaining 10% can be mildly frustrating when compared to other recent Capcom ports that don't have significant drawbacks. It's a good port if you're willing to work past its weaknesses, but I'd be hesitant to recommend the title to Switch 2 players who only play games in handheld mode.

If you've never played Resident Evil 4 Remake, you're in for a treat. Resident Evil 4 was the moment the franchise took its first big step away from being about zombies and created a bizarre mix of horror and action that has yet to be topped. Yes, it's still a horror game, but it's the kind of horror game where the protagonist makes cheesy quips and spin-kicks monsters to death.

It follows Resident Evil 2's Leon Kennedy years. Leon has gone from being a rookie cop to a member of the President's Secret Service. Unfortunately, the President's daughter has been kidnapped by a cult in a far-off country, and Leon's been sent in alone to get her back. A simple rescue mission quickly becomes something more, as he discovers the cult is infected by Las Plagas, a creepy The Thing-like parasite that has the potential to devastate the world. Now Leon has to rescue the President's daughter, escape Las Plagas, and save the world.

In terms of gameplay, Resident Evil 4 Gold Edition is in the odd position of both remaking the original game and also building on Resident Evil 2 Deluxe Edition. It's more action-packed than that game but maintains the same over-the-shoulder style and gameplay. There's less emphasis on puzzles and more emphasis on fighting horrific monsters, but if you've enjoyed any recent Resident Evil game, you know exactly what to expect. Those coming to Remake from Resident Evil: Requiem will find Leon's play style to be very familiar.

A major element of the original game that was retained in the remake is locational damage. Leon's ability to attack enemies is built around focusing on weak points. On regular enemies, this might be a leg or head, while stronger and more dangerous enemies will frequently expose glowing Plagas weak points or other targets. Rather than spraying and praying, you're encouraged to use your limited ammo wisely by hitting those weak points. This does massive damage and opens up enemies to devastating melee attacks that are free and often more powerful than anything short of a magnum shot.

Remake's big change to the formula involves Leon's knife. In the original game, it was a knife. You could draw it at any time to inflict close-range damage or break boxes. In the remake, the knife has changed. It now has a durability meter that's refillable at shops. Durability goes down relatively little when using it to slash enemies, but you can also use your knife defensively. If grabbed by an enemy, you can spend some durability to break free, you can use your knife to prevent enemies from mutating by stabbing them, you can stealth-kill them from behind, or you can parry attacks with it like a Sekiro character. Should you use up too much durability, the knife breaks, and you'll need to repair it at the local merchant. You can also find temporary knives that serve the same purpose but are far more fragile, and once they break, you can't repair them.

As a result, the game feels very familiar and yet distinctly different because all of these additional options make it more exciting and interesting to engage with enemies. The ability to parry changes how you approach fights, since you can get far closer to enemies with less risk. However, if you mistime it, you'll suffer badly. I really liked the change to the knife, as it made me think a lot more about options. Resident Evil Requiem actually has the same mechanics but without a durability meter, and while that was more empowering, it meant that I never thought about using up my weapon's durability the way I did in RE4 Remake.

Resident Evil 4 Remake on the Switch 2 is the Gold Edition of the game, which means it comes with a number of worthwhile extras. All of the DLC equipment and items from the original release of the game is included. This includes a couple of bonus weapons, a variety of costumes, and access to the treasure map, which adds a series of new hidden treasures throughout the map. These treasures range from methods of unlocking some hidden costumes and accessories to nice infusions of cash.

I'm a little torn on these. The DLC weapons are fine. They mostly serve as sideways upgrades and aren't better, just different. You get a slightly different version of the starting pistol that is arguably slightly better and a shotgun that is cool to use but not much more than that. The costumes are neat, and I enjoy the additional variety in changing Leon and Ashley's appearance. The only thing I dislike is the treasure map, which adds a bunch of extra money to the map and throws off the game's balance a bit. It becomes way easier to max out weapons earlier, and I wish there were a way to deactivate it if I don't want the handicaps.

The big selling point is Separate Ways, a second campaign starring everyone's favorite superspy, Ada Wong. Existing concurrently alongside the main campaign, it revisits areas and environments from the main game but with new bosses and encounters, including several that were cut from the main game. Ada is equipped with a grappling hook that allows her to do long-distance melee attacks on her foes. It changes up the mechanics a fair amount, since she can close distances way better than Leon.

Separate Ways is a great addition to the game. It's not entirely new content, but the remixed areas are exciting enough that it's fun to go through them, and the return of several previously absent set pieces from Resident Evil 4 helps Remake feel like a more complete game. If you played previous versions of Remake and not this one, it's a great addition.

Also baked into the game is the Mercenaries mode, which is an arcade-style score attack mode where you take control of various characters from the game and fight to survive and collect points while you're under attack from seemingly endless hordes of enemies. Each character has their own specialized gimmicks, such as Luis Sera being able to plant giant dynamite explosives, Hunk having a terrifying neck-snap that kills enemies instantly, and Albert Wesker having the ability to melee and parry enemy attacks like nobody's business. There are also super moves that make characters much stronger for short periods of time; the moves can be chained together to make you an unstoppable offensive force.

I like Mercenaries a lot, but I feel it's a step back from the original Resident Evil 4 version. In Remake, the existence of the super moves completely warps the gameplay, and rather than learning to master and understand the mechanics of my characters, I ended up optimizing for getting superpowered as quickly as possible. It also makes it much easier to get high scores, especially with some of the stronger characters. It was disappointing because getting a top ranking in Resident Evil 4 was a challenge that I kept coming back to, rather than something that I knocked out in an afternoon in RE4 Remake.

Overall, Resident Evil 4 Gold Edition is a phenomenal game. For the most part, I love the mechanical changes to the main game, and I far prefer Ada's story in Remake than the one in the original PS2 version. The Gold Edition changes are nice but not strictly necessary, but it's difficult to complain about more free things. The only real disappointment is that the Switch 2 port is a tad weaker than other recent Capcom ports. It doesn't ruin the game, but it is a step back from Requiem. For Resident Evil fans looking for a handheld experience, RE4 Gold Edition is a worthwhile trip into a fantastic game.

Score: 8.0/10