Page Notes
Episode published on Monday 15th of January, 2007.
Much like Gil Grissom's cameo a few strips back, I had to make adjustments to this strip as well in order to make it less copyright infringetastic. The Merchant's menu screen (just how that works within the context of looking inside the Merchant's coat I still don't know) was originally just a picture of the actual menu, taken with a really naff digital camera while the menu was on my TV screen (in fact I even went to lengths to remove most of the items from the suitcase so that the equipment inside it resembled what Pain and the Captain probably had on them). The bloody thing even had a curve across it as I didn't have a flat HDTV at the time! So, to make reparations for my laziness, I've replaced the buy menu and inventory screens here with versions I've produced myself.
Around 24% of time spent playing Resident Evil 4 will be staring at and manipulating the inventory or buying stuff from the Merchant. The unique mechanic of the inventory that adds to the "survival horror" element is the fact that you must judge what you carry around with you with the limited space you have. Do you use space for that weapon accessory that stops Leon from waving his pistol around like a grandmother with crippling arthritis, or do you elect to use that space for health-restoring items and your accuracy be damned?
In previous titles in the series, it was just presumed that characters carried all their stuff around in their pockets, including RPGs, grenade launchers, 50 pound handcannons and a small armoury's worth of bullets. Resident Evil 4 took a new angle by introducing the idea that Leon carries all his stuff around in a suitcase, one that magically only materialises whenever you press the start button and is ethereal for the rest of play time. If you have minor OCD, like many people, then it was guaranteed that you would have to take regular intervals to rearrange the suitcase's contents into an orderly fashion using its internal item grid system. Every now and then the Merchant would give you the opportunity to upgrade to a larger suitcase, from regular sizes to xtra xtra large grande supremo size (a suitcase so large that it would actually require two people to carry).
I always felt that the suitcase was a missed opportunity - it's full of stuff and very heavy, so why did Leon never utilise it as an effective melee weapon?
Tagged:
'Matalo' Guy,
The Captain,
Location - Spain,
Max Valerion,
The Merchant
Comments
Transcript
Title - 32: "Occupant Sin 4"
Subtitle - xiii. "Brick Potential"
(Pain is examining the Merchant's wares, which include an attache case, a treasure map, a handgun, a shotgun and a rifle. This means that he is staring at the inside of the Merchant's coat, as the Merchant has it opened for him. From the viewer's perspective it actually looks like Pain is checking out the Merchant's crotch.)
Pain: You know, the cheapest thing here is the damn suitcase.
Merchant: You want it?
Pain: Hell no!
(Pain rubs his chin with his hand as he drifts off into thought.)
Pain: Hmm.
(We see his thoughts, starting with Pain's inventory screen including the attache case.)
Pain's thought: What would I do with a suitcase?
(Pain imagines collecting several bricks from around the dilapidated village area, complete with game style "Pain picked up a brick" indicator screens.)
Narrator (yes, Pain even imagines narration): Many bricks later-
(A bald farmer is stood out in the open.)
Farmer: Mata-
(The farmer is promptly hit in the face with a suitcase full of bricks, courtesy of Pain.)
SFX: BRICK'D!
(Pain finishes imagining the potential of a suitcase full of bricks, turns and walks away from the Merchant.)
Pain: Hmm. Tempting! But no. See you around, weird little trainspotter man.
(The Merchant waves his finger at Pain.)
Merchant: Oh I'll be around, stranger.
Captain: Where we going now, boss?
Pain: Church seems as good a place to start as any.
(From behind the Captain and Pain, we see the church in front of them. It sits atop a hill covered in gravestones against a sky of foreboding grey. Lightning crackles above it dramatically.)
SFX: KRAKOOM!
Pain: We've got to find some clues as to what's going on around here...
Episode tagline: *Le Gasp!* A major change in colour palette? That can only mean one thing...PLOT DEVELOPMENT!
