There are a lot of remakes running around out there with only more to come. So what gives? Are devs just out of new ideas or is it safer to make an older game with better graphics and gameplay? Or are we all just nostalgia junkies?
Maybe it is all of the above – and the fact that publishers need guaranteed hits and the cash they bring in order to fund new projects.
Is that why we’re seeing so many games getting remade? Don’t get us wrong, we love the new Resident Evil 2 (and 3), and the Final Fantasy VII Remake is pretty mind-blowing, too. But we also like new stuff just as much as anyone else.
And the remake tidal wave isn’t stopping anytime soon. We just learned that Tony Hawk’s classic games are getting another run at it and Nintendo’s bold plans to remaster the Mario titles for the Switch is probably some of the most epic news ever.
But all of this nostalgia rosé is making it hard to tell whether we’re happy drunk or punch drunk. After all, the wallet can only handle so many remade must-have titles in a year.
Of course we’re aware of games like Cyberpunk 2077 and how pioneering that is likely to be. But remakes are definitely in vogue know and that does give one reason to think. One interesting perspective is from Wired’s Julie Muncy, who speculates that remakes are like a form of video game comfort food. We’ve never heard it put that way before, but that makes sense.
Returning to Midgar or the zombie-filled streets of Raccoon City is comforting in a way. And without getting too deep about it, the events of the COVID-19 pandemic have had people longing for a return to normalcy. Even so, we probably shouldn’t prioritize the past over something new and different. That counts things like Half-Life: Alyx which uses an established IP and gives us something fresh and exciting from it.
The real debate is whether, like comfort food, video game remakes eventually become an established and expected occurrence. Additionally, the ramifications of a remake-heavy industry are interesting to consider as well. Unlike movies, games don’t have to recast characters and there’s a great deal of creative freedom when it comes to how future directors interpret past work. It’s no wonder that it’s a field of dreams for people who like to reimagine the glorious past of some games.
What do you think of the recent string of remakes? A trend that you enjoy or something that needs to go away to make room for new stuff? Let us know your thoughts on this story in the comments section below if you like.
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Source – Wired
