Writer "ashamed" of Resident Evil 4 "Hook Man" experiment
Resident Evil 3: Nemesis scenario writer Yasuhisa Kawamura is "ashamed" that Shinji Mikami had to step in to turn his "Hook Man" version of Resident Evil 4 on its head.
Kawamura was behind the notorious Hook Man, a Resident Evil 4 prototype scrapped after being shown at E3 2003. The final version, which bore no relation to Hook Man, released in 2005.
"Hook Man was merely an experiment and there was no true back-story," the designer told Project Umbrella.
"I wanted to make Biohazard 4 scarier and suggested using a particular scene from the film The Lost Souls, where the main character (played by Winona Ryder), while washing her hands in a bathroom, suddenly finds herself in a derelict building with a killer on the loose. An arranged version of this idea eventually turned into Hook Man.
"The idea went through several iterations as Mr Sugimura and I carefully refined this world (which, I have to say, was very romantic). Leon infiltrates the castle of Oswell E Spencer seeking the truth, while inside a laboratory located deep within, a young girl wakes up. Accompanied by a BOW dog, the two start to make their way up the castle. Unfortunately, there were many obstacles that needed to be overcome and the cost of development was deemed too expensive."
This is "Hook Man" or Beta 3.5 footage
of Resident Evil 4. This build was seen at
E3 before being scrapped.
Capcom scrapped the project before giving it a full public reveal, although much was later recycled to become Devil May Cry, and Resident Evil 4 went ahead with another scenario prepared by Shinji Mikami. Kawamura isn't proud that Mikami had to step in.
"I felt very sorry. You can even say that I was ashamed," he said.
Kawamura currently works as a freelance designer and scenario writer. His recent credits include Rise of Nightmares - which includes a gentle nod to Resident Evil - and El Shaddai: Ascenscion of the Metatron.
Thanks, GoNintendo.