Kumiko Nikaido
Vindication...sweet.

You know about the preorder bonus DVD for Resident Evil 4. Dubbed, "The Making of Resident Evil 4", it's a 10-minute long interview with some of the RE4 staff, footage of the game, and footage of modeling work in creating the game.
You can find the torrent and stream of the DVD if you search the net, but if you just want to read what was asked and answered, look no further. Here's the full transcript of the interview:
Participating RE4 staff members:
* Hiroyuki Kobayashi (Producer)
* Masaki Yamanaka (Lead Character Designer)
* Yusuke Kan (Background Artist)
* Yoshiko Wada (Chief Sound Designer)
* Misao Senbongi (Music Composer)
* Yoshiaki Hiranbayashi (Cinematics Lead)
What's so different about Resident Evil 4?
Hiroyuki Kobayashi: The biggest change is that the game now has fully polygonal engines and backgrounds. We've also gone from a fixed-camera to a rear-camera for a first-person perspective. The actual controls themselves haven't really changed all that much, although this time Leon will be able to aim for specific body parts, like the head, arms, stomach, or legs.
I've worked on a number of Resident Evil titles in the past, and honestly I think the series had been recycling the same patterns, the same gameplay, every time. The creators were starting to get bored with it, and many moved on to other projects. So, I spoke to Mikami-san, the Director, and we talked about reshaping the series and winning back the fans, as well as winning over new fans who thought they would never play a Resident Evil game. So, in order to revitalize the series, we did a complete make-over.
Masaki Yamanaka: There are a lot of things brand new to the Resident Evil series. You can use the "Action" button to jump over things, get in vehicles, jump out of windows, and fight enemies....things like kicks, throw-moves....stuff like that.
Yusuke Kan: Earlier Resident Evil games have all been in everyday settings, allowing you to see your environment crumble around you. But with this game, you're entering a completely isolated world. We tried to represent that, and convey the different kinds of fear you would feel. Up until now, we've made our pre-rendered backgrounds very intricate and detailed, but now we have actual moving backgrounds, focusing more on the presence and realism, and having fun around. The biggest thing, of course, would be that the environments are really expansive. We've also had to integrate the indoor and outdoor areas, blending each area or section of the game into the world seamlessly. This was quite a challenge.
Yoshiko Wada: With this game, we're using non-English dialogue, mainly Spanish for the first time. And I think that really helps make the atmosphere of the game new and fresh. And of course, we also worked very hard on the sounds for the guns. I hope players listen, especially to the first hand-gun they start off with, and appreciate the work we've put into making the sound.
Are there really no zombies?
Hiroyuki Kobayashi: That's right! There are no zombies this time around. Instead, we'll see some new enemies. Leon is confronted by a strange group of villagers, but these villagers arent really human .they are these awful creatures. Youll have to play the game and solve the mystery to find out what they really are.
Yoshiko Wada: The enemies arent really zombies .and at actually at first glance look like humans. Their movements are much quicker, so theyre like humans, but not really ..kind of like sub-humans. For some of the voices, I used people from inside the company, and got some voices from recording sessions. I then mixed in some animal sounds, growling and such, overall it was a bit of a challenge to create these voices that were both human and inhuman at the same time.
Masaki Yamanaka: Well, theyre more human than the zombies were, in that theyre smarter they use tools and various weapons, and they attack in groups. When we were working on the villager enemies, we were very pleased, and thought they would be very scary. But, to add a little spice or a little extra shock, we started thinking, How about adding a big weapon .something really impressive? So, we came up with the idea for the chainsaw.
What is the story of Resident Evil 4?
Hiroyuki Kobayashi: Well, 6 years have past and we have Leon from Resident Evil 2 as an agent for the American government heading to Europe on a solo-mission to rescue Ashley, the Presidents kidnapped daughter. He arrives thinking he can just rush in, save her, and get right out. But, suddenly he gets attacked by these villagers. After fighting and getting captured, he finally makes his way to where Ashley is being held, and they attempt to escape together. In the process, you find out who these people are, and why theyre doing what theyre doing, and the mystery surrounding Leon and Ashley themselves.
What was the inspiration for Leons look?
Masaki Yamanaka: Well, compared to Resident Evil 2, there are a lot more story-setting elements to work with. Now Leon is more experienced, so I made him a little tougher than before to reflect that. But at the same time, I also wanted to maintain that coolness about it, so I didnt wanted to make him too buffed-out.
Talk about the atmosphere.
Yusuke Kan: For the lighting, we were able to use the GameCubes processing power, with lots of effects like fog, and focus on creating a believable atmosphere. Also, the differences between day-time and night-time are dramatic. During the day, you can see enemies easier ..theres literally evil in the air. But at night, its dark and of course a lot harder to see .and maybe youll see a darker and more vicious side-effect.
What is the musical mood?
Misao Senbongi: Im sorry, but thats sort of a secret. Youll have to play the game to find out. However, I can say that the music is different from anything heard in previous games, so expect a totally different experience this time around.
How is the camera-system different?
Yoshiaki Hirabayashi: Since there are a lot of different looking enemies in the game, we tried to think of creative ways to portray them in a more realistic manner, and that really comes out in the camera work. So, we spent a lot of time and effort in making the total finished product, especially the cut-scenes, where new enemies are introduced, really feel realistic to the player.
Hiroyuki Kobayashi: When trying out this new camera, there was a lot of trial and error .seeing how close-to or how far from the character would work the best. Weve also added a letter-box to certain scenes to make it more cinematic .more dramatic. So even though its 3-D, we dont have the abrupt movements making people sick. Plus, with the narrower view, theres more tension. And by being up-close, its easier to feel like youre right there in the game. So, I think simply changing the camera has added a lot of drama to the game.
Explain the use of motion capture.
Yoshiaki Hirabayashi: Actually, we experimented with a new mo-cap system this time around. In the past, we had used our own internal Capcom-system. This time, we were able to use more sophisticated cameras that were more precise, and I feel as a result we were able to get a lot of high-quality stuff. Of course, when we do motion capture that only records body movements, not the face. So, what we did was take the dialogue where we recorded in America, and had each animator animate the facial expressions by hand for each scene. And I think weve been able to achieve great results.
Final thoughts?
Yoshiaki Hirabayashi: Compared to Resident Evil Zero and the remake of the first Resident Evil, this game features a lot more action elements. I think everyone should be able to play through, solving all the puzzles, and having a good time through to the end. I really hope you get to play and see everything the game has to offer.
Hiroyuki Kobayashi: This is an all-new Resident Evil. So, whether you gave up on the series, have never played it before, or have been patiently awaiting this game since the last one came out, I feel it has turned out very well. So, if youre a fan of games, this game is a lot of fun and I encourage you to try out this action-packed chapter in the Resident Evil series. Thank you!