How long is Resident Evil 4 Remake?

Guides
By last updated

The full length of the RE4 Remake, including story, 100% completionist playthroughs, and how many chapters.

How long is Resident Evil 4
(Image credit: Capcom)

How long is Resident Evil 4 Remake? That number will vary depending on how you play, with a lot of optional side content across all the chapters that can more than double the amount of time it takes you to play across the whole thing. If you're wondering about how long it'll be for you, we've laid out how many chapters there are and how long to beat Resident Evil 4 Remake below, with details on everything from completionist playthroughs to just the story to the nuances of New Game Plus.

How long to beat Resident Evil 4 Remake and story length explained

Resident Evil 4 length

(Image credit: Capcom)

The length of time to beat Resident Evil 4 will vary depending on players, and certainly skill level, but here's how you can expect your first playthrough to take.

  • Standard playthrough (story plus a few extras): 15-20 hours
  • Just story/critical path: 10-12 hours
  • 100% Completionist playthrough: 20-25 hours

The reality though is that these numbers are pretty varied, as many challenges, such as working out how to survive the Village in Resident Evil 4, might take multiple attempts for some players. Not only that, but ignoring a certain amount of side content might take even longer than doing it, as you'll be potentially less equipped with weapon upgrades and loot for the tougher encounters. However, with three members of the GR+ team having done everything in the game, we can confirm that, on your first time doing the story, it should take at least 20 hours for a full completionist playthrough of the Resident Evil 4 Remake, and likely longer.

However, this is not necessarily how long subsequent games will take, or how long New Game Plus can be, as there's different modes and extras that are accessible after story completion. Some of these unlock superior Resident Evil 4 weapons for easy combat, or can ramp up the difficulty to outrageous levels, depending on player choice. Consequently, NG+ playthroughs can be as short as five and a half hours (there's achievements and rewards for beating this time limit), or much longer, if you struggle against the increased challenge. Like the Resident Evil games before it, RE4 is designed to be replayed at least once, tweaking the experience the next time around to suit your preferences as a player. So while your first time Resident Evil 4 around will probably take 20 hours, the game expects you to come back at some point.

How many chapters in Resident Evil 4 Remake?

Resident Evil 4 remake tips

(Image credit: Capcom)

If you've noticed the Resident Evil 4 Remake chapters popping up in a slightly irregular way, you might be wondering: how many chapters are there in Resident Evil 4 Remake? There's sixteen chapters in the whole game, though it's worth mentioning that these chapters are not all the same length.

As a rule, chapters near the end of the game tend to be shorter and punchier, so your sense of progression is probably going to speed up compared to the slower chapters earlier on.

© GamesRadar+. Not to be reproduced without permission

Joel Franey
Joel Franey
Guides Editor, GamesRadar+

Joel Franey is a writer, journalist, podcaster and Very Tired Man with a BA from Brunel University, a Masters from Sussex University and a decade working in games journalism, often focused on guides coverage but also in reviews, features and news. His love of games is strongest when it comes to groundbreaking narratives like Disco Elysium, UnderTale and Baldur's Gate 3, as well as innovative or refined gameplay experiences like XCOM, Sifu, Arkham Asylum or Slay the Spire. He is a firm believer that the vast majority of games would be improved by adding a grappling hook, and if they already have one, they should probably add another just to be safe. You can find old work of his at Eurogamer, Gfinity, USgamer, SFX Magazine, RPS, Dicebreaker, VG247, and more.