Luis Sera

Luis Sera was one of several characters created by artist Masaki Yamanaka for the game Resident Evil 4 (2005). According to Yamanaka, Peter Jackson's adaptations were still popular during the development of Resident Evil 4, and as such, he wanted Luis to resemble Aragorn from J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings to rival protagonist Leon S. Kennedy as "the game's hottest man."{{cite web |last=Cryer |first=Hirun |title=Resident Evil 4's Luis was styled after a Lord of the Rings character |url=https://www.gamesradar.com/resident-evil-4s-luis-was-styled-after-a-lord-of-the-rings-character/ |website=GamesRadar+ |publisher=Future plc |access-date=April 15, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230324022013/https://www.gamesradar.com/resident-evil-4s-luis-was-styled-after-a-lord-of-the-rings-character/ |archive-date=March 24, 2023 |date=February 20, 2023 |url-status=live}} In an interview with producer Hiroyuki Kobayashi, he stated that Leon saves Luis, but he remains a muddled figure.{{cite web|last=Kemps|first=Heidi|title=Hiroyuki Kobayashi on Resident Evil 4 & Killer 7|url=http://uk.cube.gamespy.com/gamecube/resident-evil-4/551775p1.html|website=GameSpy|date=September 27, 2004|access-date=April 15, 2024|archive-date=January 30, 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250130122543/http://uk.cube.gamespy.com/gamecube/resident-evil-4/551775p1.html|url-status=live}}

Luis was voiced by American actor Rino Romano in Resident Evil 4, while André Peña in the 2023 remake of Resident Evil 4. In Japanese, Kenjiro Tsuda voiced him in the remake of Resident Evil 4. He was motion captured by Keiichi Wada in Resident Evil 4. Luis' appearance is based on a face model Meddy in the remake of Resident Evil 4.

Luis first appeared in Resident Evil 4 (2005) as a Spanish investigator, who is familiar with the village where the game takes place. He previously worked with cult leader Osmund Saddler, researching and developing the mind-controlling parasites known as "Las Plagas".{{cite video game|title=Resident Evil 4 |developer=Capcom |publisher=Capcom |date=2005-10-25 |platform=PlayStation 2 |quote=Sera and the Third Party (File): The whereabouts of Luis are still unknown. Most likely he's using an old secret passage taught to him by his grandfather, who used to hunt in this region long ago. I'm pretty certain that he's hiding our property somewhere in the forest.}} After discovering Saddler's evil intentions regarding parasites, Luis attempts to vandalize the cult's plans. He encounters Leon after they are both captured by villagers, and reveals that he is a former Madrid policeman who became dissatisfied with his job.{{cite video game|title=Resident Evil 4 |developer=Capcom |date= January 11, 2005|platform=GameCube}}{{cite video game|title=Resident Evil 4 |developer=Capcom |publisher=Capcom |date=2005-10-25 |platform=PlayStation 2 |quote=Luis Sera: I used to be a cop in Madrid. Now I'm just a good-for-nothing guy, who happens to be quite the ladies' man. Policía... you put your life on the line, no one really appreciates you enough for it. Being a hero isn't what it's cracked up to be anymore...}} Despite assisting Leon throughout the game, Luis is ultimately killed by Saddler before he can deliver a sample of Las Plagas.{{cite video game|title=Resident Evil 4 |developer=Capcom |publisher=Capcom |date=2005-10-25 |platform=PlayStation 2 |quote= Capture Luis Sera (File): It appears he took some vaccines when he stole our "sample". The vaccines we can do without, but we must retrieve the "sample" for it is our life blood.}} Luis reappears in the 2023 remake of Resident Evil 4 with an expanded role that provides more details about his past and full name.

Luis also appears on cards for mobile game Teppen (2019), added to the game in its "Haunted by Memories" expansion.{{cite web |url=https://teppenthegame.com/en/cards/packs/2020/hbm/ |title=Haunted by Memories |website=Teppen |access-date=2025-02-01 |archive-date=January 8, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250108144749/https://teppenthegame.com/en/cards/packs/2020/hbm/ |url-status=live }} In printed trading card media, he appears in the Bandai-produced game Resident Evil: The Deck Building Game.{{cite web |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110916200445/http://www.bandaicg.com/residentevil/ |title=Resident Evil [Deck Building Game] |url=http://www.bandaicg.com/residentevil/ |website=Bandai Card Games |access-date=2023-05-14 |archive-date=2011-09-16}}

Luis has received mostly positive reviews from critics. Thomas McNulty of Screen Rant described him as one of the memorable supporting characters in Resident Evil 4.{{cite web|last= McNulty|first= Thomas|title= Resident Evil 4 Remake Is Going To Give Luis The Spotlight He Deserves|url= https://screenrant.com/resident-evil-4-remake-luis-change-story-role//|website= Screen Rant|access-date= January 26, 2025|date= March 17, 2023|archive-date= January 18, 2025|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20250118094654/https://screenrant.com/resident-evil-4-remake-luis-change-story-role/|url-status= live}} Saim Cheeda of TheGamer also praised him as one of the best sidekicks, noting that he serves as Leon's situational ally in Resident Evil 4, which is "refreshing". Cheeda believes that his one-liners and ability to come on time make him a remarkable persona.{{cite web|last=Cheeda|first=Saim|title=Resident Evil Series: Best Sidekicks, Ranked|url=https://www.thegamer.com/resident-evil-series-best-sidekicks-ranked/|website=TheGamer|access-date=January 26, 2025|date=March 30, 2023|archive-date=January 14, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240114162324/https://www.thegamer.com/resident-evil-series-best-sidekicks-ranked/|url-status=live}} Luis' appearance in the 2023 remake of Resident Evil 4 received polarized reactions from fans. Following his reveal in Capcom's Resident Evil showcase, his appearance divided fans. Some fans have appreciated the redesign, while others have noticed that it is entirely different from his prior appearance, comparing him to WWE wrestler Seth Rollins, with some labelling him "ugly".{{cite web|last=Bellingham|first=Hope|title=Resident Evil 4 fans are divided over Luis' new face|url=https://www.gamesradar.com/resident-evil-4-fans-are-divided-over-luis-new-face/|website=GamesRadar+|publisher=Future plc|access-date=January 26, 2025|date=October 21, 2022|archive-date=August 11, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240811132017/https://www.gamesradar.com/resident-evil-4-fans-are-divided-over-luis-new-face/|url-status=live}} However, post-launch critics praised the remake for its depiction of Luis: Jade King of TheGamer described him as a "fan favorite" and "unexpected star" of the game.{{cite web|last=King|first=Jade|title=Luis Sera Is The Unexpected Star Of Resident Evil 4 Remake|url=https://www.thegamer.com/resident-evil-4-remake-luis-sera-story-character-trailer/|website=TheGamer|access-date=January 26, 2025|date=February 26, 2023|archive-date=January 10, 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250110133114/https://www.thegamer.com/resident-evil-4-remake-luis-sera-story-character-trailer/|url-status=live}}

In academic analysis, scholar Adriana Falqueto Lemos argued that Luis Sera's exaggerated appearance, accent, and speech are all part of the fictional representation of what a Spanish guy can be, with nothing extraneous. She further said that "there are ideological projects, even if unintended, that make certain ideas of the social and the real prevail through the manufacturing of video games, so why choose to portray a Spaniard in one way and not in another?"{{cite journal|last=Lemos|first=Adriana Falqueto|title=Livros e leitura em Resident Evil 4 (2005)|trans-title=Books and reading in Resident Evil 4 (2005)|language=Portuguese|url=https://dialnet.unirioja.es/servlet/articulo?codigo=8093249|issn=1982-5935|date=2017|journal=Travessias|pages=3–4|volume=17|access-date=August 13, 2024|archive-date=September 6, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240906070953/https://dialnet.unirioja.es/servlet/articulo?codigo=8093249|url-status=live}} The construction of the non-playable characters is one example of how Resident Evil 4{{'}}s "spatial and temporal diegetic inconsistency" is represented in its locations, according to scholar Andrei Nae. As stated by Nae, Luis is a Madrid-based police officer and a skilled biologist who embodies the stereotypical Mexican of the nineteenth century in twentieth-century American Western films.{{cite book |last=Nae |first=Andrei |title=Immersion, Narrative, and Gender Crisis in Survival Horror Video Games|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wo07EAAAQBAJ|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1000440652|date=2021|page=160|access-date=August 13, 2024}}

A line of Luis sexualizing Ashley Graham's appearance during their first encounter—"I see that the President's equipped his daughter with ballistics, too"—achieved generally unfavorable reactions from journalists.{{cite web |last= Faulkner|first=Jason |title=Resident Evil 4 Remake Ashley's 'Ballistics': Is the Line Still in the Game?|url=https://www.gamerevolution.com/guides/937508-resident-evil-4-remake-ashleys-ballistics-line-still-in-game|website=GameRevolution|access-date=January 26, 2025 |date=March 23, 2023}} In the 2021 Resident Evil 4 VR, Luis' line in the cutscene were removed.{{cite web|last=Stanton|first=Rich|title=Resident Evil 4 VR cuts out the sleaziness around Ashley|url=https://www.pcgamer.com/resident-evil-4-vr-cuts-out-the-sleaziness-around-ashley/|website=PC Gamer|access-date=January 26, 2025|date=October 21, 2021|archive-date=September 16, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240916055800/https://www.pcgamer.com/resident-evil-4-vr-cuts-out-the-sleaziness-around-ashley/|url-status=live}} Jason Wojnar of TheGamer criticized and described it as a "bad comedy".{{cite web|last=Jason|first=Wojnar|title=10 Quotes In Resident Evil 4 That Will Make You Think It's A Bad Comedy|url=https://www.thegamer.com/funniest-resident-evil-4-quotes/|website=TheGamer|access-date=January 26, 2025|date=April 4, 2021|archive-date=March 29, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240329063148/https://www.thegamer.com/funniest-resident-evil-4-quotes/|url-status=live}} Jons Holstrom of Dread Central described it as "cringey" and "gross". As Holstrom points out that it is not appropriate for Luis to casually sexually harass the daughter of the president, or anyone else. He added that Luis makes "suave" remarks, "but that character trope is overused and not effective. He can be cool without being a casual womanizer".{{cite web |last= Holstrom|first=Jans |title=Resident Evil 4 Remake: A List of Changes I Want to See|url=https://www.dreadcentral.com/editorials/488349/resident-evil-4-remake-a-list-of-changes-i-want-to-see/|website=Dread Central|access-date=January 26, 2025 |date=November 14, 2022}} After the removal of the line in the 2023 remake of Resident Evil 4, some fans have review bombed the game over its "wokeness".{{cite web|last=Bevan|first=Rhiannon|title=Resident Evil 4 Remake Spammed With Negative Reviews Over "Wokeness"|url=https://www.thegamer.com/resident-evil-4-remake-woke-review-bombing/|website=TheGamer|access-date=January 26, 2025|date=April 3, 2023|archive-date=December 14, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241214204003/https://www.thegamer.com/resident-evil-4-remake-woke-review-bombing/|url-status=live}}

{{Reflist}}

{{Resident Evil}}

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Category:Fictional Spanish people in video games

Category:Resident Evil characters

Category:Video game characters introduced in 2005

Category:Male characters in video games