The Resident Evil 4 remake looks like it's going to be making a heartbreaking change from the original game by killing off the dog. The Resident Evil 4 remake looks like it's going to be a mostly faithful recreation of the original RE4 while still making some serious changes. As revealed by the latest Resident Evil 4 remake gameplay trailer, the new game is going for a darker tone, while expanding some areas and injecting new surprises to throw veteran RE4 players off-guard.
In the original Resident Evil 4 game, Leon encounters a dog stuck in a bear trap. Resident Evil 4 players have the choice to save the dog or leave it to suffer. If players take the time to save the dog, they will be rewarded for their efforts later on. Saving the dog in the original Resident Evil 4 sees him make a comeback later in the game when Leon is fighting the monstrous El Gigante.
However, it seems that the Resident Evil 4 remake may be taking away the ability to save the dog. As pointed out by IGN, the dog in the Resident Evil 4 remake appears to already be dead when players find it in the bear trap. This is a rather heartbreaking change to say the least.
Of course, it's possible that this isn't the whole story. Maybe the Resident Evil 4 remake will still let players change the dog, but this dead dog was shown for shock value. Then again, killing the dog does set a grim tone for the game right off the bat, reiterating that this new version of Resident Evil 4 is darker and more serious than the original, so perhaps players really won't be able to save it this time around. Resident Evil fans will likely have to wait and play the game for themselves to know for sure, but the good news is that the release date is in sight.
Barring any unexpected delays, the Resident Evil 4 remake release date is set for March 24, 2023. On that day, those across PC, PlayStation, and Xbox Series X will be able to jump into the revamped adventure and find all the major changes for themselves. An Xbox One version of the Resident Evil 4 remake is rumored, but has yet to be announced by Capcom at the time of this writing.
It will be interesting to see what other changes are made to the game besides killing off the dog. The Resident Evil 4 remake is making combat changes that will give Leon more ways to defend himself, like a parry mechanic and the ability to set cows on fire, but it's still retaining his over-the-top melee attacks. The game likely has even more changes in store, and fans will get to see them all early next year.
Resident Evil 4 launches March 24, 2023 for PC, PS4, PS5, and Xbox Series X.