esident Evil 4 is like Michael Meyers or Jason Vorhees – the classic horror villain who just won’t die. Right when you think it’s finally safe to turn your back and focus on your next quest for survival, it pieces its shattered skull back together, grabs a pitchfork, and continues its blind quest to hunt you down. But unlike the clichéd slasher stars of the ‘80s, this is one zombie we’re not tired of seeing brought back to life.

Over two years after its initial release, Resident Evil 4 is still the benchmark in the survival horror genre. For those of you who missed the boat, here’s the recap: The game picks up six years after the resolution of Resident Evil 2 and 3. The U.S. government has successfully shut down the Umbrella Corporation, and  brash young Raccoon City cop Leon Kennedy has taken a job with the Secret Service. When the President’s daughter is abducted, Leon travels to a remote European village to investigate her last known whereabouts. There he stumbles upon a village where the population, known as Los Ganados, is governed by a parasite that takes over their bodies, making them act like zombies equipped with smarts and motor functions. In addition to the standard plot, Wii gamers can play through the Separate Ways storyline introduced in the PS2 version featuring the bodacious secret agent Ada Wong. 

Now to the question everyone is asking: How are the Wii controls? For the most part, the transition from a standard scheme to the motion-sensing controls is successful. Players will navigate using the analog stick on the nunchuk and aim with the remote while holding in the B button. The one hiccup in the controls is the aiming. You cannot scroll the screen by moving the reticle to the edge of the screen like with most gun-based games on the Wii. Instead, you must use the nunchuk to re-navigate the screen. The result is a rather clumsy scheme that can get you in trouble when Los Ganados are hunting you from more than one direction. Perhaps because of this problem, I noticed the boss fights were toned down in difficulty compared to the previous versions.  

As improved as the Resident Evil 4 controls were compared to the tank-like schemes of its predecessors, they still aren’t ideal. The final version of the game would have been the perfect time for Capcom to polish the controls with new features that nearly every game now takes for granted – like strafing and being able to shoot your gun while moving. Unfortunately, Leon still isn’t capable of performing these basic moves.

Minor complaints aside, Resident Evil 4 still stands as a must-play game for anyone who hasn’t done so already. It will only cost you $30, so what are you waiting for?