The highly-anticipatedResident Evil 4remake launched to near-universal acclaim earlier this year, though there was one common criticism aimed at the game. Even though theResident Evil 4remake earned a great deal of praise for successfully modernizing then classicRE4experience, there was no getting around the fact that it simply had less content than its predecessors. TheResident Evil 4remake launched with no Mercenaries mode, no Assignment Ada, and most disappointingly of all, noSeparate Ways.
Separate Waysis a side scenario starring Ada Wongthat shows what she was up to during the events ofResident Evil 4. It was added whenResident Evil 4was ported to PlayStation 2, giving that version of the game something extra not found in the GameCube original.Separate Wayswas popular for expanding on theResident Evil 4storyline and showcasing fan favorite Ada Wong, so it’s understandable that many fans were upset when they realizedSeparate Wayswas not a part of the remake. Capcom has since rectified this, addingSeparate Waysto theResident Evil 4remake as a $9.99 premium DLC.
Resident Evil 4’sSeparate WaysDLC stomps on the gas right away and never lets up. Ada is thrust into the action from the start, with players forced to fight off deadly swarms of enemies in the castle area from the base game. It would be easy to get overwhelmed if not for Ada’s grappling hook, which players can utilize to make quick getaways.
Ada’s grappling hookis used for more than exploration. She can also use it to zip directly to enemies and hit them with a quick melee attack, which adds an extra layer toResident Evil 4’s revamped combat system. Ada is capable of pulling off all the fancy new moves that Leon has in the base game, which includes parrying and dodging. Adding Ada’s grappling hook to the mix makes theResident Evil 4remake’s already-incredible combat even more exciting.
While theResident Evil 4remake has shaken up melee combat, much of the action still revolves around shooting. In typicalResident Evilfashion, Ada has a powerful arsenal at her disposal. Shooting inSeparate Waysfeels as great as it does in the base game, with Ada having a solid selection of weapons and a nice variety of enemies to shoot despiteSeparate Waysbeing shorter than Leon’s adventure.
It’s true thatSeparate Waysis shorter than the coreResident Evil 4remake experience, and that’s to be expected from DLC. But even thoughSeparate Wayscan be completed in around 3-5 hours for an initial playthrough, it is still a full-fledged experience. All the features from theResident Evil 4base game that enhance replay value are accounted for inSeparate Ways, which means players collect treasures, complete side quests, level up weapons, and can go back through it all as many times as they’d like thanks to New Game+.
Capcom could’ve gotten away with simply updating the graphics for Separate Ways and calling it a day, but instead it has greatly expanded the experience. This version of Separate Ways features new story beats, new gameplay sections, and completely reworked encounters. TheEl Gigante boss fightin this new version ofSeparate Ways, for example, is now a breathtaking battle that has Ada zipping from one rooftop to the next and weaving her way around the beast with her grappling hook in scenes that look like something out ofAttack on Titan.
Everything in this version ofSeparate Waysis bigger and better than the original. It also goes out of its way to surprise longtime fans and help fill in the gaps left by theResident Evil 4remake base game. There was some concern that Capcom was essentially carvingSeparate Waysout ofResident Evil 4to sell it back to fans as a cash grab, but that’s not what’s happened here. It definitely would have been nice forSeparate Waysto be in theResident Evil 4remake at launch, but the DLC goes so far beyond what anyone could have expected that it’s very easy to justify its $9.99 price tag.
And while the DLC does offer incredible value, it’s certainly not perfect. The last chunk suffers from the same problems as the base game. Thecontroversial island sectionis still more annoying than it is fun, though it is at least shorter here. Some may also not be impressed withSeparate Wayslargely recycling areas and enemies from the base game, though it makes sense thematically and the verticality added with Ada’s grappling hook helps most familiar areas still feel fresh.
Nitpicks aside,Separate Waysis a mostly tremendous addition to theResident Evil 4remake and, along withThe Mercenaries mode updates that were released for free, goes a long way in making theRE4remake experience truly complete. Some may still not be happy thatSeparate Waysis a $9.99 DLC instead of being packed-in with the game like it was in the post-GameCube versions of the originalResident Evil 4, but this version ofSeparate Waysis a fundamentally different experience and one that surpasses its predecessor in every possible way.
Resident Evil 4: Separate Waysis available for PC, PS4, PS5, and Xbox Series X. Game Rant was provided with a PS5 code for this review.
