Re-make, Re-master, Re-gret

[Hikari.EXE]

I wanted to dedicate this thread to Remakes and Remasters alike after some analysing of my own, maybe you have gripes about how a game has been remade or retold in recent years, so let me give you some examples of my own.
A Remaster that disapointed me was the Blue-Point's remaster of Demon Souls, while I did like what the team did for Shadow of the Colossus, I feel they dropped the ball when it came to remastering the very first souls game that set the series on the road, there are many desing choices that left me confused as to why they did it, the game looks darker than usual (too dark even) and some enemies redesings really left me confused as to why they where even changed in the first place, I mean come on look at the Maneater boss fight!

The older model was scuffed, but it looked menacingly, the new one looks "too human" almost like someone wearing a costume.

On the Remake side of things, I recently played the Dead Space Remake and... It's pretty good, not without its fault ofc. The original was already a solid survival horror that honestly didn't really need a Remake, so when I heard they where remaking the game I got skeptical, but I'm glad they understood what made the original awesome and expanded on it mechanically... But I would argue that the original is just as good as the Remake, for one the supporting cast is more engaging in the original since they where the "voice of reason" since Isaac was a mute protagonist back then, but with the Remake they gave Isaac more authority by making him a voiced protagonist, but at the cost of making Hammond and Kendra more "reactive" than "active" in the story, hell Hammond is almost the silent protagonist in the Remake by how little he talks compared to Isaac lol.

I could go on more about both, but I just wanted to give some examples to start some disscusion on it, so what about you? What Re-make or Re-master made you Re-gret playing it?

 

[Yousef]

This will be a controversial pick but I’m gonna say it anyways. I don’t like the N.sane trilogy all that much if I’m being perfectly honest.
Good thread btw. Great opportunity to relay a lot of my frustrations with remakes.

 

[What's His Face]

Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster was a disaster of cut content.
Warcraft III: Reforged is the biggest WTFF@RD in gaming history.
The GTA Trilogy had more bugs than a roach motel.
Silent Hill HD Collection. 'Nuff said.
Tales of Symphonia Remastered - 60 fps to 30 fps IS a massive deal.

 

[Zerpina]

I Agree, Almost always a Remake just Ruins the game, they either Kill the look/Feel of the game, or change so much, and stray so far away from the Original, it doesn't really feel like the same game.

However Aspyr and Saber Interactive, Did a Great job on the Soul Reaver 1 & 2 Remake.
I Have played and Loved the Series since Blood Omen on PS1. and aside from fixing some Jank from the OG One, and Updating it. it still feels the same, and Well you can Switch to OG Graphics if you miss the look.

I Actually Pulled out my Treasure chest, and Bought them.

 

[wilddogsdivorce]

something that really bothers me is when awesome games get remakes that don't even try to be faithful, because the worst part is that we won't get a real one because they exist. and it seems like it's almost exclusively the games that deserve a remake the most.

the ff7 remake(s)... you want me to buy just midgar for full price, and it has awful non-optional action combat, plus the story is completely butchered? for realsies? no thanks... i think Link Between Worlds on the 3ds is a decent game, but it's almost unrecognizable as a link to the past remake.

 

[Zerpina]

"the ff7 remake(s)... you want me to buy just midgar for full price, and it has awful non-optional action combat, plus the story is completely butchered?"

"Link Between Worlds on the 3ds is a decent game, but it's almost unrecognizable as a link to the past remake."

Wholeheartedly agree on both points. FF7 remake is more or less Crisis Core, or how i took it.
And LBW, is fine, for a handheld Zelda. more akin to Minish Cap tho, IMO.

 

[Yousef]

I forgot to say but absolutely hilarious thread name.
While I don’t have time to elaborate on my earlier comment I’m gonna say I’m also not really crazy about Spyro remakes. They’re… fine? Remakes have unfortunately exited that time when they were charming. The old megsman remakes from psp and ps2 remakes of old 2d arcade games (like altered beast) are where it’s at. Almost all modern remakes lack a certain zest. Oh well. Hopefully the tony hawk remake won’t disappoint me….

 

[termite-egg-salad]

As much as I like Pokémon Diamond & Pearl, (incredibly cold take) I feel like the remasters were just …. eh….
I would’ve preferred if they just straight up rereleased the game honestly, the original graphics show much more style and charm than the newer 3D ones. It just doesn’t feel as alive.

 

[YuriSukiSan]

I think mentioning Warcraft 3 Reforged or anything touched by Blizzard lately would be cheating! I can't say I was a big fan of what was mentioned in the OP either, Bluepoint just bastardized DeS. They did the same too SotC as well, or at least I think they did! When even Kotaku writers are critiquing how the change of lighting fundamentally affects the feel of the game you know there's a problem.

It's like some devs are biologically incapable of understanding that the tone, the aesthetic, the lighting, everything was purposefully chosen for those games and altering them in any way drastically changes what it conveys to the player. Also, they totally gave the Wanderer the Bogpill, his face is just totally bogged.

My own personal pick would have to be Toys for Bob's version of Spyro. I know they were mostly well intentioned but they fundamentally changed how many of the NPCs looked and felt. It just feels like they took a lot of liberties. It's not quite as bad as basing the Flamelurker on Diablo rather than - you know - the Flamelurker but it's clear it was their own version of what they thought Spyro should be rather than a faithful 1:1 recreation. And I think that's my biggest gripe with a lot of remasters, it seems to be about taking someone elses lineage or achievement to pass it off as your own.

 

[Yousef]

My own personal pick would have to be Toys for Bob's version of Spyro. I know they were mostly well intentioned but they fundamentally changed how many of the NPCs looked and felt. It just feels like they took a lot of liberties. It's not quite as bad as basing the Flamelurker on Diablo rather than - you know - the Flamelurker but it's clear it was their own version of what they thought Spyro should be rather than a faithful 1:1 recreation. And I think that's my biggest gripe with a lot of remasters, it seems to be about taking someone elses lineage or achievement to pass it off as your own.

Someone finally said it!

 

[Clippy]

Perhaps I'll be the odd man out but I generally dislike the remaster/remake trend as a whole, especially since the games subjected to it are low hanging fruit. They were already good the way they were, no need to mess with them.

As far as I'm concerned re-releases on modern hardware are good enough for me. The only thing I need is that the game works on a modern OS and maybe supports widescreen resolutions as playing with black bars on the sides can be a little annoying with some games, especially when you use a mouse a lot.

I would like to see remasters/remakes of games that tried new ideas or had a cool concept but didn't work out for some reason. Maybe it was time constraints? Lack of budget? Publisher screwing over the devs? Now's a better time than ever to rectify all that and polish and finalize all those diamonds in the rough. Inject them with some QoL improvements and we just might have a great title on our hands.

I know this won't happen because it's much easier to take something that's already successful, give it a new coat of paint and print money but a man can dream.

 

[Yousef]

Perhaps I'll be the odd man out but I generally dislike the remaster/remake trend as a whole, especially since the games subjected to it are low hanging fruit. They were already good the way they were, no need to mess with them.

As far as I'm concerned re-releases on modern hardware are good enough for me. The only thing I need is that the game works on a modern OS and maybe supports widescreen resolutions as playing with black bars on the sides can be a little annoying with some games, especially when you use a mouse a lot.

I would like to see remasters/remakes of games that tried new ideas or had a cool concept but didn't work out for some reason. Maybe it was time constraints? Lack of budget? Publisher screwing over the devs? Now's a better time than ever to rectify all that and polish and finalize all those diamonds in the rough. Inject them with some QoL improvements and we just might have a great title on our hands.

I know this won't happen because it's much easier to take something that's already successful, give it a new coat of paint and print money but a man can dream.

“Perhaps I’m the odd one out”
On the contrary, this still fairly lines up with what’s being said here even if you’re strictly referring to just rereleases. How? Because a re-release is sorta STILL a more subtle “remake” because you’re not playing the game with the intended console and controller anymore. Although that’s obviously a less severe problem than a full on remake.

 

[YuriSukiSan]

Someone finally said it!

Call me grumpy but Spyro Reignited reminds me of that old imageboard meme comparing an original game then a remaster beside it with too many god rays and other silly effects. Or those god awful "NINTENDO HIRE THIS MAN!" videos where they've remade part of Super Mario 64 in the Unreal Engine and it just looks abominable. It's not bad bad. Or terrible, it's just not faithful. The RE4 remaster is great for people that have never played it before (and many fans) but for me? Crowbcats video shows that a lot of the games details were lost in the translation. And those details make up it's character.

Perhaps I'll be the odd man out but I generally dislike the remaster/remake trend as a whole, especially since the games subjected to it are low hanging fruit. They were already good the way they were, no need to mess with them.

As far as I'm concerned re-releases on modern hardware are good enough for me. The only thing I need is that the game works on a modern OS and maybe supports widescreen resolutions as playing with black bars on the sides can be a little annoying with some games, especially when you use a mouse a lot.

I would like to see remasters/remakes of games that tried new ideas or had a cool concept but didn't work out for some reason. Maybe it was time constraints? Lack of budget? Publisher screwing over the devs? Now's a better time than ever to rectify all that and polish and finalize all those diamonds in the rough. Inject them with some QoL improvements and we just might have a great title on our hands.

I know this won't happen because it's much easier to take something that's already successful, give it a new coat of paint and print money but a man can dream.

I don't think you're odd. I'm all over the place myself, in the right hands the idea of a remaster isn't necessarily a bad thing. It's just that more often than not it's a cheap cash grab or an attempt to reboot the series for the 'modern' audience, as much as I appreciate the LoK remaster (not so much the new graphical art) with all the added content you can now explore it seems more often than not it ends up like Turok. The remasters sold fairly well so now they're.. rebooting it as a live service Warframe clone.

 

[xuvetyn96]

In my opinion, the Halo: Combat Evolved remaster is vastly inferior to the original. The atmosphere and lighting is a lot worse on most of the levels, and they made it so the Covenant doesn't splatter blue blood all over the place when you kill them anymore for whatever reason.

Now in terms of good remakes, the Resident Evil 1 remake is an obvious example of how remakes should be done. Faithful to the original while still expanding on it in fun and interesting ways, and mixing it up a little bit to make it a new experience without straying from the core gameplay of the OG.

 

[Hikari.EXE]

Super happy this board is resonating with a lot of folks! To further clarify on the Dead Space Remake since others also gave in depth analysis of their dislikes of other Remakes. Of all the Remakes I played, the Dead Space one is the best, but I would still recomend the original for people wanting to play it, it's 20 bucks (12 rn on GOG, it's on sale) and still holds up today! The main problem with the Remake in my opinion is that it relies on knowledge of the original for some of it's scares and story beats, you can play it knowing nothing of the original and the story would be the same, but knowing the original, it makes it more like "They're reaaaaaaally stretching for context here" since they rely on the player having played the OG, and on the scare factor, there are some scenes on the game where a tentacle will try to pull you into a hole and kill you, but it always happens after returning to the room you originally passed through, what do they do in the remake? The tentacle pulls you on your way IN instead... SCARY!
Jokes aside, there where some things I like about the remake, for one most of the weapons got a rework to closely resemble their apearence in DS2, except the Contact Beam, they removed the ground slam alt fire. They also added side missions that better explored the game's lore, explaining what the fuck The Hunter was and a better glimpse into Isaac and Nicole's relationship, that's nice. NG+ also rules, they add new enemy types and an alternate ending if you collect all the Marker Idols... And that's it tbh.
This Remake is one of the better ones, and being a fan of the original was a honest surprise seeing them try their best to be as faithfull as possible, and doing enough of their own thing to justify making a Remake. With that being said, I hope they NEVER touch Peak Space 2- I mean, Dead Space 2.

 

[Cu-Neo]

For me the perfect remake is Resident Evil REmake. Not only they improved a lot of elements of the original game. But also added content that they couldn't be used in the original version mostly thanks to time and system limitations for example Lisa trevor herself and the whole Trevor family storyline. Maverick Hunter X is also a cool remake. I love what they did with VaVa (Vile) in that game, And is real shame that the game was a comercial failure to the eyes of "America" Capcom who wanted to sell call of duty numbers. And in terms of more actual ones, Mafia definitive edition was pretty good and the remakes of DQ3 and Persona 3 were perfect (except for the 35 dollar The Answer DLC and the fact that Kotone was missing)
OH I forgot to the Star Ocean Remakes on the PSP! altough now for Star Ocean 2 the Best version is the R version

 

[Hikari.EXE]

Maverick Hunter X is also a cool remake.

OH! Maverick Hunter X mentioned!

 

[Waffles]

I actually have very little experience with this because I rarely buy into remakes and stuff... But one that bothered me considerably was Lunar: Silver Star Story Touch.

They took a great game that had been properly enhanced and remade for the PS1 and turned it into a buggy mess that could barely function and that had to be pulled from the phone stores (or so I have heard).

 

[Yousef]

I actually have very little experience with this because I rarely buy into remakes and stuff...

I think that’s understandable. If you play or have really good memory of the originals (or you’re simply a purist) then remakes have so little to sell you on besides you loving something so much that you don’t mind replaying it with a different coat of paint, which a lot of remakes do instead of fixing issues with the originals

 

[dropsmegamega]

My own personal pick would have to be Toys for Bob's version of Spyro. I know they were mostly well intentioned but they fundamentally changed how many of the NPCs looked and felt. It just feels like they took a lot of liberties. It's not quite as bad as basing the Flamelurker on Diablo rather than - you know - the Flamelurker but it's clear it was their own version of what they thought Spyro should be rather than a faithful 1:1 recreation. And I think that's my biggest gripe with a lot of remasters, it seems to be about taking someone elses lineage or achievement to pass it off as your own.

This. They completely miss the point of Spyro's character. They are meant to look silly

 

[middler]

Upon reading the title of this thread two games instantly sprang to mind but I wasnt sure about including them to the pile. Then I started reading all of your thoughts and the more I read I became worried that someone else would mention them before I could

Since no one did I will mention them they are Last of US Part 1, and Horizon Zero Dawn remasters. In my opinion they are 100% unnecessary to the point that it has further effected my already generally negative view of Sony as a company in gaming. These 2 games (the remasters anyway) are the very definition of a waste of resources and time.

 

[ThirdEidolon]

I Agree, Almost always a Remake just Ruins the game, they either Kill the look/Feel of the game, or change so much, and stray so far away from the Original, it doesn't really feel like the same game.

However Aspyr and Saber Interactive, Did a Great job on the Soul Reaver 1 & 2 Remake.
I Have played and Loved the Series since Blood Omen on PS1. and aside from fixing some Jank from the OG One, and Updating it. it still feels the same, and Well you can Switch to OG Graphics if you miss the look.

I Actually Pulled out my Treasure chest, and Bought them.

The remaster is good?

I know they found cut content and added it.
How is the new content?

Did they change anything substantial from the originals?

Post automatically merged: Dec 31, 2024

That being said Dead Space is probably the best example of a remake done right (yes Silent Hill 2 and REmake4 were fucking garbage.)

 

[Hikari.EXE]

That being said Dead Space is probably the best example of a remake done right

See, he gets it.

 

[Zerpina]

The remaster is good?

I know they found cut content and added it.
How is the new content?

Did they change anything substantial from the originals?

Post automatically merged: Dec 31, 2024

That being said Dead Space is probably the best example of a remake done right (yes Silent Hill 2 and REmake4 were fucking garbage.)

I Haven't played far into it yet, so dunno if they added or changed much. the controls have been streamlined, but mind you i haven't played the Ori's in well over 8 or so years, so memory is abit foggy on them

 

[YuriSukiSan]

The remaster is good?

I know they found cut content and added it.
How is the new content?

Did they change anything substantial from the originals?

Post automatically merged: Dec 31, 2024

That being said Dead Space is probably the best example of a remake done right (yes Silent Hill 2 and REmake4 were fucking garbage.)

I'm not a fan of the updated graphics but you can switch those off, obviously you can emulate the game for free so I hesitate to recommend it to anyone around here. For fans of the series though I do think it's a love letter, the lady that helped advise the team is a fairly well known mega fan of the game. Quite a lot of content that was cut from the base can be viewed under the bonus content options. As far as I'm aware the changes are toggleable, I can't comment on the control scheme but knowing Aspyr they almost certainly haven't done anything silly. The game has been very competently ported to modern systems.