How Resident Evil 4 Influenced Shinji Mikami's Most Underrated Horror Game (2024)

For fans of survival horror games, the name Shinji Mikami is synonymous with the genre. After all, during his long stint at Capcom, Mikami served as director of not just the first game in the series, but also Resident Evil 4, which redefined the genre of not only horror games but third-person action games as well. However, Mikami eventually left the company, choosing to start his own studio, Tango Gameworks, and eventually releasing the return to survival horror that his fans were waiting for, 2014's The Evil Within.

The Evil Within was highly anticipated, and although it seemed on the surface that the game was a survival horror purist's dream, in reality, it turned out to be quite a different experience. Instead, it was a title that leaned heavily into action and kept its horror stylings as a secondary feature. In many ways, the first Evil Within is a spiritual successor to Resident Evil 4 masquerading as a more traditional survival horror title. Given Mikami's involvement in both, this makes sense. Here's how The Evil Within compares to Resident Evil 4's unique brand of action.

RELATED: Resident Evil 4 Remake Has to Keep This Aspect of the Original

One of the main ways that The Evil Within feels like a successor to RE4 is through its balance of action and horror. When it was originally released, Resident Evil 4 changed the way players thought about not just Resident Evil as a series, but action games as a genre. It challenges expectations, providing not just many more enemies for protagonist Leon Kennedy to deal with than in previous games in the series, but a variety of upgradable weapons with which to fight them. Resident Evil 4 is still a creepy horror game, but its gameplay is distinctly focused on action.

At first glance, The Evil Within seems like a return to focusing on the horror aspects of its survival horror roots. However, it quickly becomes evident to the player that although the trappings of a traditional survival horror game are present, the emphasis is almost always on action setpieces rather than the slow methodical gameplay for which the genre is known. Early on, protagonist Sebastian Castellanos finds himself overwhelmed by foes and the game introduces its stealth mechanics to players. In the first few chapters, players are encouraged to sneak around the environments, stealth killing enemies and setting corpses on fire with matches to avoid full-on combat.

However, this conceit very quickly becomes an afterthought as players collect upgrades, and the levels continually throw ammunition out like candy. The Evil Within may begin as a horror-focused experience, but within those first few chapters, it takes a tonal shift into a more action-oriented affair, centering on combat encounters

RELATED: Resident Evil 4's Most Important Feature Is One Players May Have Missed

The Evil Within relishes these combat encounters and throws them at the player more than it does any quiet, suspenseful moments. The game uses its Matrix-like setup to constantly change locale and setting, often in the service of the action gameplay, which although enjoyable to engage with, often takes the focus off of its more creepy setpieces. Like Resident Evil 4, The Evil Within also features a variety of boss encounters that further make it feel more like an action horror game rather than a traditional survival horror experience.

Another way that The Evil Within feels like a followup to RE4 is in its amazing atmosphere. The opening chapters of the game, where Sebastian encounters a hamlet full of haunted farming villages feel very akin to the village opening of RE4. Sebastian must dodge murderous villagers attacking from all angles with farming tools, and scramble from ramshackle building to farmhouse, collecting ammunition along the way just like players had to do with RE4's Leon. Admittedly, The Evil Within changes up its setting frequently, but each new area manages to feel just as gritty and unsettling as the last, just like RE4 does.

The Evil Within is a game that manages to deliver a unique experience full of mystery and suspense, while also invoking the memory of Resident Evil 4 in its very DNA. Resident Evil 4 was a game that inspired countless others, so it only makes sense that the mind behind it would produce another title that drew from this monumental release. Although The Evil Within's sequel would forge ahead to establish its own identity, the original game still occupies a unique place as a love letter to one of the most important action horror games ever made.