Completely unplayable
I realize that the GBA cannot replicate Resident Evil, and that changes had to be made to the set up, but there's no reason that the game needed to be this bad. The combat system is so bad that I cannot think of a word loathsome enough for it.
The could have just as easily tried to replicate a first person mode for encounters, instead you have this gage that you use, and a bar slides back and forth on the gage, and you have to fire when the darn thing is dead center or you miss. Getting used to this system is terribly hard because the timing is never consistent, and you end up wasting ammo trying to get your “aim” just right.
Whatever story element the game might contain are obviously not all that important as it is, as RE 4 seems to avoid referencing the title all together, and perhaps its for the best. I think that this game should be burned. The game play is so bad that the game is simply unplayable.