Resident Evil 4’s remake is an excellent reminder of how iconic and seminal the original was. The remake does not stray too far from any original story beat or gameplay interaction to make it divisive, and yet it is fully modern with updated controls that fans will already be familiar with from the last two Resident Evil remakes. Indeed, the Resident Evil 2 remake did a lot of the heavy lifting when it came to be the first modern third-person remake of Resident Evil, and its reimagining of NPCs was also a big leap forward for its storytelling.
Resident Evil 4’s NPCs are as goofy as they are charming, but the remake punches a couple of them up to be even more favorable. Luis is still suave and confident, for example, but his redemption development is much more salient, and he never crosses the line of being too corny for the game’s atmosphere to handle. Ashley becomes more independent in the remake as well, creating a much more interesting dynamic between her and Leon. However, Resident Evil 2’s remake still takes the cake with Marvin Branagh as one of the greatest NPCs in Resident Evil.
Resident Evil is Known to Have an Exciting Cast of NPCs
It is easy to be swept up in the popularity of Resident Evil’s legacy characters due to how often they are featured. That said, the characters who accompany players or meet up with them at random intervals are also incredibly interesting and iconic in their own way. Resident Evil’s Barry Burton is a phenomenal character with some of the franchise’s most nostalgic lines of dialogue, and even though he is playable in Resident Evil: Revelations 2 he is most well-regarded for his NPC role in the series.
Indeed, some NPCs have been known to make the transition to being playable characters at one point or another, and that gives them even more narrative significance in knowing that any NPC could end up becoming a playable legacy character themselves at some point. Resident Evil 4’s remake arguably drops the ball with its more serious reimagining of Ramon Salazar, and with antagonists only becoming more and more hyperbolic it will be interesting to see how future Resident Evil remakes are handled.
Why Resident Evil 2’s Marvin Branagh is Still the Best NPC
Either way, Resident Evil 2’s remake had a lot on its plate to establish with a new continuity line. Leon, Claire, Ada, and others needed to be portrayed in a way that could be carried over into subsequent installments. Ada was perfectly enigmatic and sly when interacting with Leon, while Claire was perfectly heroic and stalwart in protecting Sherry.
But Marvin’s character development through the Resident Evil 2 remake is unmatched in how it intertwines narrative and gameplay in the game’s opening hours. Marvin rescues Leon in Resident Evil 2 and it is not learned until Resident Evil 3 that it was Brad Vickers who had bitten him, which is an emotional moment all on its own. Marvin rests in the Raccoon City Police Department lobby while Leon searches for a way out, and players can pass him by on a makeshift bed.
Marvin even gives Leon the iconic combat knife that would later become the knife players repair and upgrade in Resident Evil 4’s remake, and his first initial is important when solving a combination code puzzle in the precinct’s office. Knowing that Marvin is bitten and will eventually succumb to his wound is a ticking time bomb where players are never sure if they are seeing him alive for the last time until he is eventually roaming the lobby as a zombie while players flee Resident Evil 2’s Mr. X.
Resident Evil 4 is out now for PC, PS4, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.