Resident Evil 4 – Ashley Controls And Survival Guide

Resident Evil 4 isn’t just about Leon’s survival, but also Ashley’s. The president’s daughter is trapped in a mountain village and, even after being rescued, she’s not trained for combat. As such, you’re gonna have to look out for her. Here’s our Resident Evil 4 Ashley guide to help you with the companion’s control commands and survival tips. Likewise, you can take a look at our beginner’s guide.

Resident Evil 4 Ashley control commands and survival guide

You’ll meet Ashley in Resident Evil 4 once you’ve reached the Church. This is done by completing the Mural Cave Puzzle for the Church Insignia. Once you reach a room on the top floor, Leon will rescue Ashley and, soon enough, you’re told about how you can issue commands.

Ashley formation commands

Ashley has two groupings/formations: tight and loose. This can be changed by pressing the right thumbstick.

• Tight formation has her staying close to Leon, which is useful if the two of you are running away from several hostiles.
• Loose formation has her staying far behind. This is so she can avoid AoE damage or arcing hits in case Leon is fighting enemies.

Take note of the formation you’re using. If Ashley’s too far from you, she could get taken away by the infected.

Keeping Ashley alive

The good thing about Ashley in Resident Evil 4 is that you won’t need to worry about her health. She technically doesn’t even have a health bar. Instead, there are two ways where her predicament might lead to a game over:

• Incapacitation – Enemies will always attempt to target Leon with their weapons. However, Ashley might get hit in the crossfire (i.e., wild swings from scythes or tentacles from Plaga parasites). If this occurs, she’ll fall down and you have to help her up by pressing the right thumbstick. If she gets hit once more while she’s downed, she’ll get killed for good. While enemies tend to avoid directly damaging her, some AoE effects like those mentioned above, as well as fire and explosions, might spell her doom.
• Grab and snatch – Certain enemies will also make a lunge for Ashley (i.e., often those that aren’t carrying melee weapons). They will grab and carry her away. Leon has to close the distance, represented by a bar in the bottom-right corner of your screen. Then, you’ll want to press R2/RT to backstab the target, freeing Ashley in turn. If Leon is too far or too much time has elapsed, Ashley will get taken away, leading to a game over.

Sometimes, it’s better to tell Ashley to stay hidden.

Ashley’s other mechanics

One more thing you have to remember when it comes to Ashley in Resident Evil 4 is that, as Leon’s companion, she’ll help you reach new areas. These are denoted by yellowish paint or boost icons. By interacting with these spots, Leon will push Ashley upward, and she’ll unlock doors or bring down ladders for you. Apart from that, there are situations where you can tell Ashley to hide, such as in the Valley area where you’d have to fight the chainsaw-wielding twins. It’s imperative that Ashley stays hidden so as not to cause any mishaps.

Moreover, we mentioned in our beginner’s guide that you can cheese many of the encounters in Resident Evil 4. This means aggroing enemy mobs, then running back the way you came to trick their AI. However, if Ashley is with you, her positioning matters. In some instances, she could be outside the gate and closer to hostiles, causing her to get grabbed. It’s possible for enemies to move away from you or toward you, which means you’d have to adjust accordingly.

Last but not least, you do get to control Ashley directly at certain sections of the game. You can learn more in our Ashley treasures and puzzles guide.

Be on the lookout for boost areas that Ashley can climb. These will often lead to treasures.