18 Action Video Games You Must Play Before You Die

6. Resident Evil 4

You must experience: The opening village sequence, and the birth of over-shoulder shooting. Speaking of the foundations of action gaming - you wouldn't even have games like Gears of War in the states they're in if Shinji Mikami hadn't thought of throwing the camera behind the protagonist instead of above them. Not only that, but you can tell back in 2005 Capcom were determined to make a truly revolutionary entry in the series, throwing out a brilliantly tactile feel of gunplay, a shotgun with enough kick to win the World Cup and an atmosphere that remains the last time a Resi game could genuinely bring the scares alongside the standard signature thrills. The intro scene in particular remains the perfect opener for what's to come. The isolation of being a lone agent embarking on a mysterious Wicker Man-esque village full of potential enemies, the inevitable poop-hits-fan moment and the ensuing chaos that breaks away from getting you killed just as you're about to run out of ammo... Resident Evil 4 is just perfect game design, and you can feel its influence on every action-focussed title that followed.