A Critique of Video Game Remakes

kmno · Jan 27, 2014

I'm having some problems understanding some of you here, so for a game to be a remake it should be almost diferent to the original in gameplay to be considered a remake? Does the GBA or even better, the PSP version of FF or FFII not count as a remake? Because those games are almost carbon copies of the originals save some extra touches (like the new dungeons), and even then I think they qualify as remakes.

Pedeadstrian · Jan 27, 2014

kmno said:
I'm having some problems understanding some of you here, so for a game to be a remake it should be almost diferent to the original in gameplay to be considered a remake? Does the GBA or even better, the PSP version of FF or FFII not count as a remake? Because those games are almost carbon copies of the originals save some extra touches (like the new dungeons), and even then I think they qualify as remakes.

Well, since there doesn't appear to be an agreed upon definition of remake, it's hard to say. Best example of my definition of a remake is Persona 4 Golden. It's not a copy and paste kind of thing, which is good.

the_randomizer · Jan 27, 2014

Summary: Some remakes are pretty good, some are just plain bad and lazy (the GBA Final Fantasy ones come to mind); they had terrible soundtracks, mode 7 glitches, slowdown in battles when spells took up the screen. Only saving grace FF6 GBA had was an improved translation, the framerate, sound and other glitches make it unbearable to play. FF5 was a lot better and ran 60 fps all the time.

FAST6191 · Jan 27, 2014

elgarta said:
Remade too much? No, unless it is getting annual remakes.

Re-released too much, or on too many platforms? Certainly.

Take the original Sonic the Hedgehog as an example. That game has seen so many re-releases on so many
Platforms that it really cheapens the game's worth overall and makes it a harder sell for
Old fans and new fans.

And Ocarina of Time has had an N64 release, GameCube release, Wii VC release and a 3ds remake.
Quite a few releases which are not over staying their welcome since it isn't on anything besides a Nintendo
System

On Sonic I would have thought it would have been the several suspect quality ports that cheapened the idea. How it impacts upon existing fans, beyond some boring attempt at elitism, I am not sure. That said Sonic 1 I am happy enough to not play, Sonic 2 (and some of the master system stuff I guess) was where things got interesting.

CydoniaDS · Jan 27, 2014

I like remakes as long as they are done well and offer enough new features/upgrades to make them worthwhile.
I can't wait to see Majora's Mask on the 3DS.

Also I just pre-ordered Fable Anniversary, which means I've bought the first Fable at least three times now, hah!

Apex · Jan 27, 2014

Sorry, but this article seems a lot more like a rant than something well thought out.

I honestly don't believe that you played any of the Final Fantasy 'ports' or remakes that you're criticizing. The fact that you can tout the Ocarina of Time remake as anything other that an enhanced port 'done right' compared to something like the DS remake of Final Fantasy IV, is kinda sickening. By the way, Ocarina of Time has been out since the Nintendo 64, and it's been 'ported' with minimal changes and no additions to both the Gamecube, the Wii through VC, (correct me if I'm wrong here,) WiiU vc, and the 3DS. With exception to the normal DS that's just about every system that could feasibly handle the game since it's release. The 3DS which needed a sales boost only got a paint job'd Ocarina of Time.

Ports are not remakes. Ports take a lot less effort, as it's more or less just moving a game to another system. I can not criticize ports, and you shouldn't either. Ports enable companies to get that tiny bit of extra cash that they need in an every increasingly expensive industry. Games aren't cheap to make, these ports are functioning as more than just extra cash to line the coffers of the videogame company giants. They help give companies larger budgets on new triple A titles, like Final Fantasy XV and Kingdom Hearts 3.

These are games I play once every few years anyways. I'm going to play them regardless, but the fact that each time I play them I get something new out of the experience, such as touched up graphics, new dungeons, increased difficulty, and new super-bosses, it seems like a win-win to me. Actual new content and the ability to play these games legitimately and optimized for my phone is great.

Finally, you made some mistakes: Final Fantasy IV wasn't for the Famicom, it was for the Super Famicom. Also if you're trying to make a point about how many times it was released, you missed a few. It was also released for the Wonderswan Color, and the PSP, as well as the 3D version for DS, which is the version on 'Mobile Platforms.'

Ryukouki · Jan 27, 2014

Apex said:
Sorry, but this article seems a lot more like a rant than something well thought out.

I honestly don't believe that you played any of the Final Fantasy 'ports' or remakes that you're criticizing. The fact that you can tout the Ocarina of Time remake as anything other that an enhanced port 'done right' compared to something like the DS remake of Final Fantasy IV, is kinda sickening. By the way, Ocarina of Time has been out since the Nintendo 64, and it's been 'ported' with minimal changes and no additions to both the Gamecube, the Wii through VC, (correct me if I'm wrong here,) WiiU vc, and the 3DS. With exception to the normal DS that's just about every system that could feasibly handle the game since it's release. The 3DS which needed a sales boost only got a paint job'd Ocarina of Time.

Ports are not remakes. Ports take a lot less effort, as it's more or less just moving a game to another system. I can not criticize ports, and you shouldn't either. Ports enable companies to get that tiny bit of extra cash that they need in an every increasingly expensive industry. Games aren't cheap to make, these ports are functioning as more than just extra cash to line the coffers of the videogame company giants. They help give companies larger budgets on new triple A titles, like Final Fantasy XV and Kingdom Hearts 3.

These are games I play once every few years anyways. I'm going to play them regardless, but the fact that each time I play them I get something new out of the experience, such as touched up graphics, new dungeons, increased difficulty, and new super-bosses, it seems like a win-win to me. Actual new content and the ability to play these games legitimately and optimized for my phone is great.

Finally, you made some mistakes: Final Fantasy IV wasn't for the Famicom, it was for the Super Famicom. Also if you're trying to make a point about how many times it was released, you missed a few. It was also released for the Wonderswan Color, and the PSP, as well as the 3D version for DS, which is the version on 'Mobile Platforms.'

Hey, thanks for the feedback, it's greatly appreciated. Some of your points were mentioned by others, and I do intend to make those corrections. Right now, the big concern with this article that I need to find time to rectify is the definition between remake and port, something I am going to comb over in a bit once I have time to actually sit down with it.

As far as the Final Fantasy IV mistakes with the system releases, I actually have that on the "Correction list" so to speak and will expand that. I definitely see where your criticisms come from, and in the end, it's due to the fact that I failed to make that distinction. Again, I will rectify this when I get the time to sit down and focus on those mistakes. Got stuck in the lab a little longer than I would have liked.

Guild McCommunist · Jan 27, 2014

For everyone going on about the "HD collections": They're more so meant to deliver a bundle at a budget and also let some people who missed out on the last generation get a chance to play.

Like I have a PS2 but I missed a few things. Like I never played God of War, Ico, or Shadow of the Colossus. I then got a PS3 and just bought the God of War Saga and got Ico and SotC from Playstation Plus. The collections are convenient, play better, look better, have more features, and all come at a nice price. I mean I got the God of War Saga, which comes with all 5 God of War games (well at the time of release), for $40. That's bang for your buck.

They're not intended as "remakes", just bringing games people may have missed or wanted to play again back for a buck.

And to people who are saying "W-well Ocarina of Time 3DS is better because the game is older!", hope you enjoyed paying $40 for a 15+ year old game with basically no changes made to it. Meanwhile I paid the same amount and got 5 God of War games.

FAST6191 · Jan 28, 2014

No argument to most of that but there been some truly lazy ports, Silent Hill probably being the more notable but it is not alone, and that can be a bit disconcerting. Granted the obvious response, which I would probably have made to myself, is very similar to the "so what if there is shovelware/sports games/some "totally and utterly" different FPS to your chosen FPS", "so it is coming out on Android, what does it matter to you" and similar things, mainly just wanted to say it is not all sweetness and light.

jmjohnson85 · Jan 28, 2014

I think most game "reiterations" can be classified into one of four main categories:

1. Emulation (completely unaltered game that runs on a different platform)
*The Legend of Zelda: Collector's Edition (GCN)
*The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time/Master's Quest (GCN)
*Virtual Console Releases (Wii/WiiU/3DS)
*PS1/PS2 Classics (PS3/Vita)

2. Port (game code has been altered to run on a different platform but no update to the game itself)
*Diablo III (360/PS3)
*Half-Life 2 (XBOX)
*The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Wii)
*Space Channel 5 (PS2)
*Grandia (PSX)
*Grandia II (PS2)
*Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete (PSX)
*Lucienne's Quest (3DO)

3. Enhanced Port (some mods to the original game have been made ie. "tweaked" video and/or audio, gameplay mods and maybe some extra content)
*The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX (GBC)
*The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D (3DS)
*The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker HD (WiiU)
*Final Fantasy X|X-2 HD Remaster (PS3/Vita)
*Chrono Trigger (DS)
*The Ico & Shadow of the Colossus Collection (PS3)
*Doom 3 BFG (PS3/360)

4. Remake (entire game has been rebuilt from the ground up)
*Final Fantasy III (NDS)
*Final Fantasy IV (NDS)
*Final Fantasy IV: Complete Collection (PSP)
*Conker: Live & Reloaded (XBOX)
*Lunar Legend (GBA)
*Lunar: Silver Star Harmony (PSP)
*Super Mario All-Stars (SNES)
*DuckTales: Remastered (PS3/360/WiiU/PC)

I don't think it would be appropriate to call categories 1 & 2 remakes since in most cases the actual game will remain entirely intact and unaltered.

It would be wise to distinguish between "Enhanced Ports" and full-blown "Remakes" but if someone were to refer to (for instance) Wind Waker HD as the new Zelda "remake" I would totally understand what they are talking about.

I would try to avoid using the term "re-release" since that is a vague term which doesn't establish whether the game has been "updated" or was simply just ported/emulated.

I suppose there could be a "5th" category which would be "Ports of Enhanced Ports" (Chrono Trigger for IOS/Android) or "Ports of Remakes" (Final Fantasy III for OUYA) but I would still just fit those games into categories 3 and 4 respectively.

Also, it would seem that "ports" are beginning to die out since most games nowadays are being developed on multiple platforms simultaneously.

Ryukouki · Jan 28, 2014

Who would have guessed that there's a bit more underneath the surface here! :wacko:

I really gotta keep up with that stuff.

Chocolina · Jan 28, 2014

So Final Fantasy gets a ridiculous amounts of ports, remakes, and adaptations; so do Beetles', Star Wars, and the Bible. Why is this even a discussion?
Is it really so surprising, or a big deal that one form of media, video games, shares common traits from other big media; literature, cinema, music?

Also threads like these aren't as introspective as they are a cry for attention.

Pedeadstrian · Jan 28, 2014

Chocolina said:
So Final Fantasy gets a ridiculous amounts of ports, remakes, and adaptations; so do Beetles', Star Wars, and the Bible. Why is this even a discussion?
Is it really so surprising, or a big deal that one form of media, video games, shares common traits from other big media; literature, cinema, music?

Also threads like these aren't as introspective as they are a cry for attention.

Correction: posts like yours are a cry for attention. If you're going to criticize an article, say more than "Uh, helllo~." He's not just saying remakes are happening, he's saying remakes are happening and wants to know how other people feel about them.

kmno · Jan 28, 2014

I actually agree with jmjohnson85 on the categories, though some games may be a little hard to choose where to put them, most of them are clear on where to be placed and this should also reduce the confusion on what constitutes a remake and what not.

jmjohnson85 · Jan 28, 2014

Chocolina said:
So Final Fantasy gets a ridiculous amounts of ports, remakes, and adaptations; so do Beetles', Star Wars, and the Bible. Why is this even a discussion?
Is it really so surprising, or a big deal that one form of media, video games, shares common traits from other big media; literature, cinema, music?

Also threads like these aren't as introspective as they are a cry for attention.

I tend to agree with you here but I think there is a different approach that could lead the discussion in more of a positive/uplifting way.

TheLostSabre · Jan 31, 2014

Resident Evil (GCN) is a good example of a remake.

FAST6191 · Jan 31, 2014

The_Lost_Sabre said:
Resident Evil (GCN) is a good example of a remake.

What about the DS remake?

A Critique of Video Game Remakes

Looking at video game remakes, do they have merit in the gaming industry?

Yes

No

Active Member

GBAtemp's Official frill-necked lizard.

The Temp's official fox whisperer

Techromancer

Member

Well-Known Member

See you later, guys.

(not on boat)

Techromancer

Well-Known Member

See you later, guys.

Well-Known Member

GBAtemp's Official frill-necked lizard.

Active Member

Well-Known Member

Naberius the Nauseous

Techromancer

Similar threads

Popular threads in this forum