21 Years Later, Resident Evil 4’s Best Line Is The Greatest Leon Kennedy Quote

Resident Evil 4 will go down in history as one of the best games ever made. You don't even really need to distinguish which version you're talking about (the original, the VR port, or the remake), as the answer is unequivocally "yes" to the question of "is Resident Evil 4 one of the greatest games of all time?"A large part of why this series works so well is that it's often very self-aware.Of course, it's hard to beat one of the best lines of the series, uttered by Leon Kennedy himself in Resident Evil 4 (both the original and the remake). While "Jill Sandwich" is definitely in the running, this line takes the cake.

Nobody Is As Unserious As Leon Kennedy

The line we're talking about here, of course, is: "Where’s everyone going...bingo?" Leon Kennedy utters it after the bell tolls in the town square, and all the villagers stop what they're doing and leave the battlefield. Boom, the title card hits, and you're in for a ride.

It's an iconic line that showcases Leon's unique brand of humor, and while it was present in the original, it was almost cut from the remake. Speaking to IGN, modern Leon Kennedy voice actor Nick Apostolides had this to say about the line, noting it almost didn't make it into the remake:

"A lot of those lines — the classics — they were there as possible keepers, or possible alternatives...That's just kind of how recording goes, you get a lot of variety and they'll see what fits best in the final product. Until I played the game, or until the footage started coming out for the marketing, I didn't even know they kept that line, that's how many you record. So I'm very happy they kept that line because a lot of fans would have been pretty disappointed."

He continues: "They actually wrote another line in place of that. We did it a few times, it just didn't feel right on set, and the cinematic director said, 'You know what, for s**ts and giggles, let's throw in the bingo line.' And I was like, 'Really?' And then he put it in. And it made the game."

Leon is the perfect person to deliver a line like this, given his "self-aware action hero" vibe, and it's fantastic that he's played by someone who seems to understand the character so well. It would have been a shame to omit this bit from the remake.

Resident Evil 4 Remains A Masterpiece

Regardless of the effortlessly cheesy dad humor from Leon, Resident Evil 4 would be known as a masterpiece. It manages to withstand the test of time in multiple arenas, especially when it comes to gameplay, enemy variety, and labyrinthine level designs. There's also a lot to love when replaying Resident Evil 4 in any form, including new secrets and extra difficulty levels to master.

Then there's The Mercenaries bonus mode, which is one of my favorite side modes in gaming history. I regularly replay it in the OG form, in Resident Evil 4 VR, and in the remake. The latter two specifically really showcase how deep Resident Evil 4's action gameplay go, especially in VR, since you're able to manipulate multiple objects in ways you can't with a traditional controller.

It's for all these reasons, and more, that gamers will be talking about Resident Evil 4 for decades to come. No matter what version I'm playing, I still get a kick out of the gameplay, and the dialogue is the cherry on top.