Not for the first time, we're going back to Resident Evil 4 - Capcom confirmed during June 2022's State of Play presentation that one of its most successful ever games was being remade for next-gen consoles and PC.The game has been updated to 2023 standards, and therefore looks absolutely superb, which is no surprise given how impressive Village looked last time out. Here are all the key facts for you, but do check out our review of Resident Evil 4 to see our verdict.

Resident Evil 4 trailers and release date

Resident Evil 4's first trailer appeared during a PlayStation State of Play event in early June 2022, and was that rarest of things - a gaming reveal that ended with a concrete date.

Thanks to that trailer we knew the game would arrive on 24 March 2023 - so it's out now, for those looking to step into Leon's shoes again.

A second story trailer came out in October 2022, showing off a more cohesive look at the game's famous plot.

It gives glimpses of famous set-pieces from the original. You can also check out gameplay that has filtered out of Capcom further down this page.

We got an even more comprehensive look at the game, including a bunch of its locations, enemies and characters, at another State of Play in late-February 2023, below.

It shows what some major boss fights and encounters will look like, and everything is looking frankly sparkling.

Resident Evil 4 platforms

While the game was shown off as part of a PlayStation event, it's not going to be exclusive to Sony's platform - Resident Evil 4 is out on PlayStation 5, but also on Xbox Series X/S and PC. Finally, it'll have support for PSVR 2, Sony's next-generation virtual reality headset.

Resident Evil 4 Chainsaw demo

After a live stream it held in early March 2023, Capcom announced that players could now download a demo of Resident Evil 4 to play through the opening moments of the game.

This includes a hectic firefight in a creepy village and gives a really good sense of the modernisation that Capcom has applied to the game.

It's available now on all platforms, so be sure to check it out if you're interested.

Resident Evil 4 VR mode

In February 2023 Sony launched PS VR2 at long last, and Capcom announced that it'll be patching Resident Evil 4 after its launch to support the new headset.

In way this makes perfect sense - Capcom has already converted Resident Evil Village into VR for PS VR2's launch, so it shouldn't be too hard to do the same for a game it's working on.

That said, Resident Evil 4 will be a third-person game by default, so that might make things more complicated. Hence, the VR update will come out some time after the game launches, but will be a free DLC.

Resident Evil 4 story

We're going to keep things vague in case you've never played the original Resident Evil 4, on any of the many, many platforms it has been re-released on since it first came out.

The game sees Leon Kennedy, star of Resident Evil 2, take on a dangerous mission to rescue the American President's daughter. She's been abducted by a cult based in rural Spain, taking the series into the wilderness slightly.

Everything you need to know about the Resident Evil 4 remake: Trailer, release date and more photo 1
Capcom

There, a mysterious plague has eaten away at the community and rendered them rageful and violent, leaving a gauntlet of ambushes and traps for Leon to navigate.

Meanwhile, there are typical Resident Evil shenanigans involving Albert Wesker and Ada Wong, among others, playing out in the background. It all adds up to one of Resident Evil's more pulpy stories, despite a tone that is at times quite realistic.

Of course, we don't want to spoil the extent to which Capcom might have changed the story and script - its remakes of Resident Evil 2 and 3 did make some updates and lengthen certain sections for pacing reasons rather than leaving things exactly as you remember them, after all.

Resident Evil 4 3
Capcom

This means that one of gaming's most familiar campaigns could well have some surprises up its sleeve.

Resident Evil 4 gameplay

Resident Evil 4 was a big step toward action-packed gameplay for the series when it was released, and we'd imagine that things will stay that way for its remake, with Leon gunning down big crowds of enemies with limited ammo.

From the reveal trailer, you can already tell that the visuals are an enormous step up, and one side effect of that will be far more realistic lighting, which could lead a wide range of locations to look a heck of a lot creepier and more atmospheric, from castle interiors to rundown houses.

In October 2022, as part of a Resident Evil showcase, Capcom showed off an extended gameplay demo from the game, which you can view below.

It confirmed that the over-the-shoulder camera viewpoint would return, thankfully - so that was one way in which the game will remain true to its roots. One enormous change, though, was that Leon would be able to move while aiming his gun - probably the single biggest limitation in the original title.

This will make things more fluid and significantly more modern but looks like it might be the most major gameplay change that Capcom is making.

We can catch glimpses of returning characters that will help Leon along the way in various trailers so far, and the game also has him shepherding Ashley (the kidnap target) for a lot of its length. Game Informer's cover story about the game revealed that Ashley no longer has a health bar, but can be downed and revived if she's damaged too much. She can also be directed around more deliberately by the player.

Resident Evil 4 2
Capcom

Capcom did mention in its summer showcase that the Ganados, the main enemy type in the game, have been totally redesigned to be scarier, so we might see a more widely varied stock of enemies in the villages and castle that Leon will navigate.

Certainly the gameplay we've seen so far underlines that the environment itself will be much scarier than in the original thanks to massive steps forward in lighting since then - expect actual darkness, for one thing.