We all have those memories of the past, a time where we think video gaming couldn’t get any better. A time where we thought the graphics were as good as they were ever going to get, where we didn’t complain about the camera angles because we just didn’t know any better.
Unfortunately, the reality of those times, is that our memories are nothing more than rose tinted glasses.
The truth of the matter is, the hardware just wasn’t there. Go an pick up an old game, find a way to play the first few minutes of it, and see if it still has that feeling that you so blissfully remember. Odds are, it won’t, and that isn’t the games fault.
Now though, the hardware is here, the technology is here, and in this year alone we have heard some pretty exciting news regarding some of our favorite classics coming back up for a second chance!
This year alone we’ve heard that we will be seeing a couple blasts from the past. Some of the most critically acclaimed, and cult following games have been thrown back up on the drawing board. The most recent announcement comes to us from Capcom this time around, and it appears to be that Resident Evil 2 is up on their project list. As such, with all the craze regarding remakes, we here at Modvive have decided to put together a list of some of the rose-tinted memories that we wouldn’t mind seeing a remake of.
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Dreygen’s Top Five Remake Requests
5. Legend of the Mystical Ninja
The SNES version of this game was brilliant. It is unfortunate that the interesting gameplay provided is a bit unpopular.
Top-down beat-em-ups have been pretty much replaced by the hordes of Diablo-style games of late.
I would like to see the Mystical Ninja of a simpler time, when you ran around different maps, batting enemies with a pipe, upgrading that pipe with a lucky cat pick-up, and saving poor ladies from dastardly milk delivery demons.
A few coats of pixelated goodness and an update to the original sound-track would be all this game needed to me to fall in love with it again.
4. ActRaiser
ActRaiser had an amazing mix up of Simcity and Castlevania.
While the sequel phased out the SimCity part in favor of the more traditional hacking and slashing, I felt that the mix between the two was very welcome.
I would love to revisit this hidden classic with updated mechanics and a shiny new coat, mostly trying to leave the core playstyle intact.
Being able to help a town rebuild after it was destroyed by demons, then going down among the people to defeat the very demon that is terrorizing them was an amazing element I have not seen replicated.
3. Wizardry 7
While I’d love to see a remake of any Wizardry, Wizardry 7 holds a special place in my heart. The atmosphere this series provides is amazing: The mixture of fantasy, medieval, and futuristic alien technology mixed so well here as you sliced through enemies with axes and zapped them with energy pistols.
The different races and classes also stood out to me. The lore and the world just captivated me. An update to this series is something I have wanted for a very long time. But the fall of Sir-Tech, and the studio formerly known as Sony Online Entertainment have all but buried this franchise after trying to make an MMO and stomping the name into the dirt.
Japan got ahold of the series as well, preserving the dungeon crawling playstyle, but completely ripping the lore and world out from under the series.
2. Quest 64
Quest 64 was a bit of a black sheep of RPG’s. It decided to go in a different direction and felt a bit ahead of its time, leading to it being quite hated by RPG fans. Those who could look past the clunky and cumbersome controls, and the horrible camera of the days when 3D games were just getting their legs, were met with a very innovative game for its time.
Just a boy with a string of hair coming from his head and a staff in his hand on a quest to save the world.
I was very excited by how your character grew stronger by doing certain tasks. Earning experience to level the different elements at your disposal was also fun. Finding hidden spirits that allowed you to increase this number further added such a nice exploration element.
Updating this game with a more open feel, a better camera system now that we’ve found out how these things work, and possibly infuse a bit more drama to the storytelling and there is a recipe here for an amazing gaming experience.
1. Lagoon
Known for having many strange translation issues and an odd playstyle, this game feels as if The Legend of Zelda and a classic JRPG had a one night stand and produced a beautiful baby. This is probably one of my top five RPG’s, and I would love to see it get the treatment it deserves.
Overall the progression of the game was done extremely well, getting various upgrades and mixing different crystals and staves for various magical effects. I adored the music in the game.
Each area had a distinct sound that made me smile and bob my head each time I entered. Polishing this game up and re-releasing it would be a fantastic nod to this forgotten game.
Additionally it would be quite easy to update the mechanics of the combat, enrich the story a bit more as it has a great one, and remaster the soundtrack to bring back all that head-bobbing goodness of yesteryear!
Favorite Remake of All time: Final Fantasy IV
As often as square re-hashes and spits out variants of its classic series, they are bound to get it right at some point. The fact is, they pretty much always put out wonderful remakes of their iconic franchise.
Final Fantasy IV being my favorite in the series, I couldn’t have been happier with their decision to bring voice acting and 3D models to the characters.
The additions to the game and ramped up difficulty gave me much more to do as I nearly had to learn the game all over again. Though, I would like to punch the person who decided Cecil should be pronounced the way it was in the game!
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Cody’s Top 5 Remake Requests
5. Sonic Adventure 1 & 2
Playing the levels made for Sonic Generation made me remember how much fun I had on the original version… that is until I actually went back and played the original.
The controls were bad, there were a ton of glitches, and it just doesn’t hold up very well today.
I’d love to see Sonic Team go back and completely rehaul the levels for both games using what they know from the daytime levels in Unleashed and reworking the 3D levels in Sonic Generations.
4. Bushido Blade 1 & 2
These games were amazing back when they came on on the original Playstation.
The game featured before it’s time mechanics such as: limb specific damage, different weapons that each had three different fighting stances, a system that changed the outcome of the story depending on how honorable you were in fights, a ton of different fighting locations, and much more.
Its future proof design definitely make Busido Blade a series deserving of a remake. Not only because of how unique it is even by today’s standards, but also because of how well each feature will translate using better hardware.
Plus all the DLC possibilities make this surely something Square Enix would be intrigued to bring back.
3. The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening
With Nintendo releasing A Link Between Worlds on the 3DS and remastering Ocarina of Time AND Majora’s Mask, the Big N should just go ahead and justify remaking one of my favorite Zelda titles of all time.
Link’s Awakening started out as a Gameboy port of Link to the Past, so I’d love to see it get the psuedo 3D overhaul seen in A Link Between Worlds.
Make it happen Nintendo!
2. Final Fantasy VI
Players have gotten a remake for Final Fantasy I, II, III, and IV and we are currently in the midst of getting a remake of FF VII so why not VI?
Although I had love for FF V, FF VI has been and will probably always be my favorite in the franchise and it deserves some love.
Unfortunately, this will probably be the only game in my list that I can’t describe why it needs a remake or even how I’d like to see it done as I believe the tone is too serious to go with the chibi style that graced us in FF III and IV’s 3D remakes.
Regardless, there are so many scenes in this game that deserve 3D rendering that if this were to happen I believe it would put FF VII to shame due to the scope and characters alone.
1. WWE No Mercy
Everyone who owned a Nintendo 64 and was a wrestling fan knows this game very well.
Building upon THQ/AKI’s amazing gameplay from their WCW games, No Mercy is still considered one of the best wrestling games made to date.
Giving this one a graphical overhaul, more features, updated roster, and releasing it to the masses is just like printing money.
Just keep the gameplay intact, release it to Steam, and allow it to have Steam Workshop integration. Seriously 2K Sports, you will thank me for this!
Favorite Remake of All time: Sonic Generations
While technically not a remake of any specific Sonic title, Generations instead opted to celebrate 20 years of Sonic’s history by recreating levels from every era of his games and giving them a fresh coat of paint.
Having the option of using modern Sonic in levels like Green Hill Zone and Classic Sonic in City Escape was a blast, while listening to remixes of each also being a ton of fun.
It goes to show you that you can teach an old hedgehog new tricks, even if the owners don’t make use of them after the fact.
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Logan’s Top 5 Remake Requests
5. GunZ: The Duel
Gunz: The Duel was an online third-person shooter that I spent six to eight years of my life playing. The game itself was pretty boring when it first was released, but what made it special was the many glitches that players discovered that allowed you to manipulate the game and take advantage of animation canceling to attack faster, keep your block up with a split second opening, and switch between your gun and sword while firing at lightning fast speeds.
When GunZ: The Second Duel was announced, fans were hoping they’d keep the glitches that everyone loved so much, but they removed them and lost their skill-based edge, and a lot of fans.
Unfortunately MAIET has ceased operations, so unless the GunZ IP is picked up by a true fan of the old gameplay, the chances of seeing an HD remake are nonexistent.
3. Lost Kingdoms
When I was growing up, card games that involved monsters were nothing new. Every 90’s kid today knows Yu-Gi-Oh!, and a majority of them probably watched a few episodes, even if they weren’t fans.
The idea behind Yu-Gi-Oh! that held it back was the limited space in each arena that you summoned your monsters in. Lost Kingdoms by From Software was the answer, with full mobility around the world, throwing down cards to summon monsters to fight for you to save your realm.
The combat was smooth and enjoyable, the deck customization was superb, and the only thing this game lacks to this day is a modern makeover.
3. Gunbound
Finding a game to play was easy in 2007, but finding a game you could jump into and play a few game over Ventrillo before everyone had to go was difficult.
Gunbound was a free-to-play turn-based game developed by Softnyx that was very similar to the Worms series. The game features a decent amount of mobiles that you could control, each with their own pair of basic shots and a super shot.
Gunbound created so many hilarious, and jaw dropping moments, that it would still be worth playing today if the controls were fine-tuned and the graphics were bumped up.
2. The Penumbra Series
Penumbra: Overture, and Black Plague are still my most praised horror games of all time.
The atmosphere and story are positively startling, and the enemies you encounter in the dark depths of an icy wasteland are bone-chillingly horrifying.
Penumbra was the poster child for Frictional Games before Amnesia, and while I still like Amnesia, Penumbra will always be the reason I love horror games.
The game doesn’t look horrible by any means, but it does have a dated feel, and if you have to touch up the gameplay, you might as well go all out.
1. Gauntlet: Dark Legacy
When I was younger, my cousin brought a little game called Gauntlet: Dark Legacy over to my house and my life has not been the same since.
Gauntlet was a game I never heard of to this point, having been denied the opportunity for magazine subscriptions or internet access. Needless to say, I was hooked on the co-op action! Wizards casting spells, Jesters throwing bombs and dropping weights, and warriors casually throwing axes around like badasses against the undead.
The game had many unlockable characters, and gave you visual upgrades as you leveled up to let you see your progression to level 100. Collecting the runestones to face Skorne was an accomplishment I hold to this day, and doing it in HD would be just as satisfying, if not more so.
Favorite Remake of All-Time: Silent Hill 2
Like most fans of the series, I started with Silent Hill 2 on the Playstation 2, and I spent the next few days cowering under a blanket reading the game guide so I could know where all the scares were. I don’t need to cower with an instruction guide anymore, but that doesn’t mean that the game isn’t terrifying anymore.
There are plenty of games that need a proper HD remake, but Silent Hill is the prime example of why good games deserve the treatment.
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Alexx’s Top 5 Remake Requests
5. Spyro the Dragon
The only non-RPG on this list. Spyro the Dragon symbolizes something I find lacking in the gaming industry today. In our modern gaming, when someone says “Platformer” they think super meat boy, or I wanna be the guy. But where are the days of the collect-a-thons and platformers accessible to non-sadists?
I adored Spyro the Dragon as a kid and I would love to dive back into collecting dragon eggs and gems.
Let’s back away from platformers designed for speed-running, and go back to games that encourage finding secrets and taking the time to smell the dragon eggs along the way.
4. Earthbound / Mother 1+2
Since America is likely to never see “Mother 3” released in the US, they could at least re-release Earthbound. The RPG that pit kids gifted with Psychic powers against a huge alien menace captured the hearts of many (including mine) and gave Nintendo players an RPG experience to sink their teeth into.
The gameplay was superb and the humor in the story was enough for kids AND adults to enjoy.
Alternately a re-release of Mother 1+2, (a compilation of Earthbound Beginnings and Earthbound which was never released in the US) would be a perfect for fans of Earthbound, while also possibly garnering attention to a possible Localization of Mother 3.
3. Final Fantasy IX
With the Final Fantasy VII Remake being announced, this is a prime opportunity for a remake of Final Fantasy IX.
The story of Zidane and Garnet is one of my all time favorites in the franchise, with a stellar cast of characters, an interesting approach to learning abilities, and a theatrical aesthetic; Final Fantasy IX is deserving of a remake, even if Quina and the frog catching mini-game are both annoying as hell.
2. Chrono Trigger
How many games have you played in which the main protagonist actually dies before the end of the game?
Chrono Trigger is incredibly deserving of a quality remake for that reason and more. A story spread across time would appeal to both the fantasy-minded audience as well as those who enjoy a bit of sci-fi, and Chrono and the gang would look amazing with an HD remake, even if the update was in line with Final Fantasy IV, with a Cel Shaded animated sort of design.
1. Valkyrie Profile
Valkyrie Profile easily fills my top five on multiple lists. The incredible story steeped in norse mythology, tackling mature themes such as the nature of death, betrayal, love across time and a wide array of other themes make Valkyrie Profile a game perfect for the remake treatment.
Valkyrie Profile gave players the ability to step in the shoes of Lenneth, a Valkyrie whose job is to collect souls of the dead and bring them to Valhalla.
One of the best parts of the game was being able to see the way the souls died, the circumstances that led Lenneth to collect them, and then being required to offer up a certain balance of characters in each chapter. This encouraged the player to explore the game world and collect as many characters as possible, training them up as an offering to Odin. While Valkyrie Profile did get a pseudo remake for the PSP in Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth, i would still love to see a full console remake that would allow gamers to experience this beautiful experience all over again.
Favorite Remake of All-Time: Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remastered
People will likely question my sanity in terms of why this HD remake is my favorite thus far but believe it or not their are solid reasons for this.
The HD remastered version of Final Fantasy X and X-2 both contained the content of the International versions, which offered updated bosses, sphere and garment grids, as well as the FANTASTIC ability to skip cutscenes, (as some of the long ones right before bosses were absolutely obnoxious.)
I always adored the Final Fantasy X and X-2 games, so the ability to go back and enjoy them on my Playstation 3 is always incredibly fun, even if the Thunder Plains is still absolutely atrocious.
Editors Choice Remake Requests: Pathways Into Darkness, Eternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiem, Onimusha, Ape Escape, Streets of Rage 2
So what do you think about the ModVive crew remake request list? Do you agree with the gang that the games listed should be reintroduced to the world in HD glory?
Do you you have some titles in mind that were not mentioned that you think should have been included? Let us know in the comments below.
The post Dream Game Remakes Inspired by Resident Evil 2 Remake Announcement appeared first on Mod Vive.