Resident Evil 4 Remake brings the 2005 classic into modern gaming with stunning visuals, white-knuckle action, and environmental puzzles to solve. Among the many challenges awaiting agent Leon S. Kennedy is a mysterious locked drawer tucked away in the eerie Abandoned Factory area.
This guide will illuminate how to open that stubborn drawer by first finding its key in the Valley, then unlocking the dresser to claim a valuable mask artifact within. You‘ll also gain deeper insight into the location‘s lore and strategies for navigating its dangers.
The Haunting History of the Village and Las Plagas
To appreciate the Abandoned Factory‘s role in Resident Evil 4 Remake, it helps to understand the game‘s underlying lore. Leon Kennedy arrives in rural Spain to rescue the president‘s daughter Ashley Graham from a religious cult known as Los Illuminados.
This village cut off from the outside world harbors a dark secret – its inhabitants are infected by a mind-controlling parasite called Las Plagas. The cult‘s leader Osmund Saddler plans to use Las Plagas to brainwash powerful individuals for world domination.
Leon‘s mission quickly transforms into an ordeal of battling horrifying Ganados villagers and uncovering how Las Plagas transformed people into mutated slaves. The Abandoned Factory used to manufacture and study Las Plagas lies at the heart of these twisted experiments.
Navigating the Treacherous Factory Grounds
After escaping the village, Leon comes across a network of decrepit factory buildings where Ganados still lurk. This once busy industrial complex for processing livestock and goods now hosts the fruits of Saddler‘s research into weaponizing Las Plagas.
The visual design overhaul makes the factory intensely atmospheric, with rusty chains dangling from the ceiling and grimy machinery stained with blood. Flickering lights barely illuminate dusty halls crawling with parasites. The sense of danger and mystery permeates every dilapidated room.
Ganado ambushes are frequent, attacking in large mobs from all sides. Their numbers and confinement make the shotgun and grenades effective crowd control. But it‘s critical to lure out enemies and retreat to funnel them through chokepoints safely.
Tracking Down the Small Key in the Valley Settlement
Obtaining the small silver key to open the Abandoned Factory‘s locked drawer requires backtracking to the Valley region explored earlier. This settlement of ramshackle log cabins holds many useful supplies if you investigate thoroughly.
One nondescript cabin marked with a red door contains the essential key sealed away in a box. Here are more exact steps to snag this easy-to-miss item:
- Head up the path from the lake until you reach the cliffside log cabin with the red door.
- Enter the cabin and turn right to spot a wooden crate in the corner.
- Open the crate to find the small silver key inside.
With the key secured, return to the Abandoned Factory to unlock the drawer. It‘s worth sweeping the Valley again for ammo and healing items to prepare.
Step-by-Step Drawer Unlocking Walkthrough
The locked drawer itself resides upstairs in an abandoned house near the spinning fan trap. Look for the building with a convenient typewriter save point just outside.
Follow these instructions to smoothly unlock it:
- Enter the decrepit house and go upstairs to the bedroom on the right.
- Approach the dresser against the wall directly ahead.
- Examine the dresser drawer to trigger opening it.
- In the inventory menu, select the small silver key and use it on the drawer.
- After the unlocking animation, open the drawer to claim the Elegant Mask inside.
With just a simple use of the key, the drawer unlocks to reveal a critical mask for puzzle solving down the line.
The Significance of the Elegant Mask
This ornately designed mask resembling a woman‘s stoic face is one of the five needed to complete a special Aztec ruins puzzle. Placing all the masks on statues opens up a tunnel rewarding Leon with valuable treasure.
The Elegant Mask‘s regal motif connects to Spanish nobility and prestige. Its ties to Medusa imagery suggest a mythic ability to turn people to stone. Perhaps it relates to the parasitic Las Plagas rendering victims motionless slaves.
Collecting these masks seems to gradually unlock deeper metaphysical knowledge about the village‘s occult Los Illuminados rituals. Solving the ruins may reveal more of Saddler‘s apocalyptic plot.
Surviving the Factory: Optimal Loadouts and Strategies
Navigating the Abandoned Factory‘s tight spaces and ambush hotspots makes loadout and tactics crucial. Here are some recommendations:
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The shotgun is extremely effective against massed Ganados in close quarters. Its stopping power lets you control crowds.
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The rifle picks off distant or dangerous enemies like dynamite Ganados before they become threats. Its penetration penetrates cover.
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Grenades clear clusters of enemies quickly when surrounded or bottlenecked. Use them liberally.
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Flash grenades stun groups to set up clean shots or escapes. The crowd control buvs time.
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Always try funneling pursuers through doors or corridors to manage their numbers. Avoid open areas with no cover.
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Search meticulously for ammo and herbs; the factory is maze-like with many hidden items. Topping off supplies is key.
Adjusting your loadout and strategies based on the spaces ahead makes getting through this area very manageable. Think tactically.
The Factory‘s Grisly Grounds in Remake vs. Original
The Abandoned Factory in Resident Evil 4 Remake retains the same core map layout and drawer puzzle as the 2005 original. But the visual overhaul adds significantly more atmospheric detail.
The original had a more simplified industrial look, while the remake heightens the visual storytelling. There‘s more evidence of gore and human experimentation across the factory that deepens its unnerving history.
Enemy placements and item locations remain largely familiar, rewarding veterans‘ knowledge while still offering surprises. The Krauser knife fight location was tweaked to an alleyway instead of a control room.
Overall, the Abandoned Factory remake elevates tension and immersion in Leon‘s investigation of Los Illuminados. The environment design is a storytelling asset.
Cracking Puzzles Deepens the Survival Horror Experience
Solving the Abandoned Factory drawer puzzle represents a microcosm of Resident Evil 4‘s expanded environmental challenges. Exploration now involves scrutinizing the world for clues to unlock its secrets.
These cryptic puzzles add satisfying layers of problem-solving to the tense action. Finding keys to unlock containers or decoding passcodes requires perception and deduction. Figuring out solutions provides motivating mini accomplishments.
Overcoming the abandoned factory‘s locked drawer fuels the gratifying feeling of overcoming obstacles using only Leon‘s wits and tenacity. Cracking puzzles key to progress captures Resident Evil‘s essence of rugged survivor ingenuity.
Conclusion
With its eerie atmosphere and challenging enemies, navigating the Abandoned Factory tests all of Leon‘s abilities as he unravels the mystery of Las Plagas. Unlocking its locked drawer by retrieving a hidden key offers an intriguing puzzle amidst the action.
Solving challenges like this through exploration and observation allows players to actively participate in Leon‘s investigation, not just fight monsters. Assembling clues layered across the world to open new paths provides exciting eureka moments.
Cracking the abandoned factory drawer puzzle kicks off discovering the greater secrets locked away across the village. The elegant mask found inside is one artifact among many to unravel the Los Illuminados conspiracy. Survival means confronting the unknown with deductive thinking, resilience, and hope.
