The replay quotient of the Resident Evil 4 remake is already incredibly high. Aside from attempting the game on higher difficulties, odds are you will miss at least some of the collectibles or guns during your first run. Still, many people will want more, and the included extras like costumes and special weapons can only extend a single-player game’s life so much. This is where mods come in. From new models and outfits to reworked mechanics, mods can breathe new life into this survival horror masterpiece.
How to install Resident Evil 4 remake mods
Modding for the Resident Evil 4 remake is only really available for the PC version, and is most easily done through the popular Nexus Mod Manager. This safe, reliable tool allows you to browse, download, and apply mods with ease. After you download the manager, you simply need to save the mod of your choice, run the installer, go through the installation, and run the game with the mod. For a more detailed tutorial on how to do this, see the Nexus Mods tutorial or watch the video below.
HUNK Mod
Again, there are so many Leon replacement mods that this list could be filled with those alone. For our pick, we went with the old favorite HUNK Mod. As you can see, this replaces Leon with the mysterious Umbrella operative, complete with his own sounds (excluding dialogue of course). Playing as this masked soldier gives the game a very different feel. Just make sure you don’t have any accessory equipped or the head won’t work properly.
Merchant Now trade Small Key
One of the many collectibles in the Resident Evil 4 remake that can easily be missed are the Small Keys. These unique keys are used to unlock all the locked drawers you will no doubt encounter in the first several chapters of the game. Normally, you would need to track down and find each key, then backtrack to the drawers to loot their treasures. With the Merchant Now trade Small Key mod, you can load up on an infinite number of them for the low, low price of free.
No Ugly Yellow Paint Everywhere
For all you purists out there who think that the Resident Evil 4 remake is being to “gamey” by showing you which boxes and barrels you can break by splattering yellow paint on them, the No Ugly Yellow Paint Everywhere mod was made for you. And that’s it! This mod is just about making the game more immersive and more in line with how the original looked.
Classic RE4 Leon
We’re cutting ourselves a little slack on this one and considering this an outfit change for Leon. This is another one for all you lovers of the original Resident Evil 4 who want to see Leon back in his old uniform one more time. Sure, the Classic RE4 Leon outfit isn’t a major difference, but it is a nice way to inject a little nostalgia into your playthrough.
Health Bars
We are in complete agreement with the Health Bars mod creator in that this isn’t a mod you should use on your first run through the Resident Evil 4 remake. Like its name states, it shows you a health bar for all the enemies in the game. This could be fun for experimenting with weapons and combos in later playthroughs, but it would severely hinder the tension and immersion if you were playing for the first time. Considering how arcade-like the game can get in later playthroughs, it’s almost surprising this wasn’t an option in the game by default.
Church Bell No More (Infinite Timer)
The opening village fight is one of the most iconic encounters not only in the Resident Evil franchise, but gaming as a whole. People love it so much that they often start up a new game just to play this one part. While Mercenaries Mode does offer this map to play in more, it always has a time limit. If you wanted to see just how long you could survive this brutal assault, the Church Bell No More (Infinite Timer) mod makes that opening battle go on as long as you can survive. You can even add in tweaks, such as turning on Mad Chainsaw mode, infinite knife durability, and infinite ammo.
Kick Open Doors — Melee Anytime
For all the great additions the Resident Evil 4 remake made to the original, the option to boot open doors with a powerful kick is sorely missed. Loading up Kick Open Doors — Melee Anytime brings back the option to double-tap the interact button on a door to make Leon blast it open with a powerful kick, which will still knock down and injure any enemies hit by the door. It also comes with an option to simply make Leon kick whenever you like, without needing to stagger an enemy first.
Dead Space Remake Engineering Suit
Look, Resident Evil 4 and Dead Space were already compared to one another before either of the remakes landed within months of each other. Now that the two are going head-to-head for the title of best survival horror game of the year, and possibly best game of the year, why not bring the two together with the Dead Space Remake Engineering Suit? It’s the best of both worlds!
