Video game remake
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
In computer and video games, an enhanced remake (also called updated classics) is an updated version of a game that was originally developed for a less advanced system. Remakes with resolution upgrades are called high-resolution remakes. A remake with revisions in the plot, gameplay, and overworld is called a reimagined remake. The practice of updating old games began in the 16-bit era but was popularized during the Sixth Generation Era.
The basic features of an enhanced remake are graphical and audio enhancements (or "facelifts"). The methods of graphical enhancement include re-touching, decompression, polygon upgrade, texturization or texture resolution upgrade, additional animations, and two-dimensional to three-dimensional transformation (hence three-dimensional remakes, or the "Wild Arms Alter Code: F format"). Audio enhancements include new music, better sound quality, and remixes of the old music. Sometimes extra levels or other features are added, and the game engine may be improved. In most cases, however, the majority of gameplay itself is left unaltered.
Enhanced remakes occur mostly on video game consoles. They have occurred mostly during the 128-bit era. The system that the game is being enhanced from is called the source system, and the system it is been enhanced for is called the target system. The earliest enhanced remakes are 16-bit remakes of 8-bit games. Also, occasionally games that were originally released only in Japan are remade and re-released in the West, most notably Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels, Final Fantasy II of Final Fantasy Origins, and Final Fantasy III for the Nintendo DS. (See also Fan translation.)
Some examples of enhanced remakes include Super Mario All-Stars (from NES to Super NES) and Final Fantasy Origins (from NES to WonderSwan Color to Sony PlayStation). The enhanced remakes of Dragon Quest I-V were Japan-only, but some were unofficially translated into English, and Dragon Quest I-III remakes ported to Game Boy Color were officially translated into English but did not sell well outside Japan. The original version of Dragon Quest V was also Japan-only. The enhanced version still has a chance to be localized to North America.
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[edit] Controversy
Often changes made in remakes are scrutinized, by the purist or traditionalist, as being unnecessary or frivolous, such as the addition, alteration, or removal of plot elements, characters, voice acting, or new features. With 2D to 3D remakes, such as Wild Arms Alter Code: F, some feel 3D doesn't effectively convey the same artistic style or feeling as 2D. Typically when a game is remade, it is done so on a different platform on which it first appeared, such as Mega Man Anniversary Collection, Midway Arcade Treasures, or Sonic Mega Collection, via emulation of the original platform. This can lead to sound, graphical effects, or gameplay to differ from the originals, thus being an "imperfect" conversion. Arcade games are thought of as arcade perfect if all effects are as they were in the original. Such are called direct ports. With the advent of Wii's Virtual Console, direct ports to Playstation 2, GameCube, and Xbox may become obsolete for NES, Super Nintendo, N64, Genesis, and TurboGrafx-16 games.
Conversely, some gamers believe that these remakes give the games more vitality, and welcome new content. Purist gamers can perhaps believe that the enhanced version lives up to the original's quality, but typically do not accept it as canon, unless future games reference it as such. Although the original game is usually not included with their remakes, some enhanced remakes do include their respective original versions. For example, Metroid: Zero Mission for the Game Boy Advance includes the original Metroid for the NES as an unlockable.
[edit] List of enhanced remakes
This list does not include reissues (or direct ports) of original games, nor does it include clones:
| Game Title | Original Platform | Remake Platforms and Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Animal Forest | Nintendo 64 | Nintendo GameCube (as Animal Crossing) |
| Bubble Bobble | Arcade/Various | Game Boy Advance (as Bubble Bobble Old and New) |
| Castlevania | NES | Sharp X68000 (Japan-only), Sony PlayStation as Castlevania Chronicles, Super NES as Super Castlevania IV, MSX as Vampire Killer, Arcade as Haunted Castle. |
| Comic Party | PC, Sega Dreamcast | PC (As Comic Party DCE), PSP (As Comic Party Portable) |
| Command & Conquer: Tiberian Dawn | PC | PC (Gold edition, with an enhanced graphical engine), Nintendo 64 (with 3D rendered models) |
| Conker's Bad Fur Day | Nintendo 64 | Xbox (As Conker: Live & Reloaded) |
| Counter-Strike | PC | Xbox, PC (As Counter-Strike: Source) |
| Crystalis | NES | Game Boy Color |
| Daikoukai Jidai IV: Porto Estado (Uncharted Waters IV) | PlayStation | Nintendo DS and PlayStation Portable as Daikoukai Jidai IV: Rota Nova |
| Dead or Alive 2 | Playstation 2,Dreamcast | Xbox as Dead or Alive Ultimate with enhanced graphics, extra costumes, an extra character and online play. |
| Deja Vu | Macintosh, NES | Game Boy Color, PC (as Déjà Vu I & II: The Casebooks of Ace Harding) |
| Diddy Kong Racing | Nintendo 64 | Nintendo DS (as Diddy Kong Racing DS) |
| Digital Devil Story: Megami Tensei | NES | Super Nintendo (part of Kyuuyaku Megami Tensei) |
| Digital Devil Story: Megami Tensei 2 | NES | Super Nintendo (part of Kyuuyaku Megami Tensei) |
| Dinosaur | Various popular Japanese computer systems (such as the NEC PC8801, PC-9801, and FM Towns in 1990 | PC in 2002, for Windows, as Dinosaur: Resurrection |
| Doom | PC | PC, Xbox, as Doom 3 |
| Double Dragon | Arcade/Various | Game Boy Advance (as Double Dragon Advance) |
| Dr. Mario | NES, Game Boy (Monochrome) | Super NES, Nintendo GameCube (part of Nintendo Puzzle Collection, Japan only), Game Boy Advance (as part of Dr. Mario & Puzzle League) |
| Dragon Quest (Dragon Warrior) | MSX, NES (MSX version Japan-only) | Super NES (released in Japan only, translated into English through emulation), Game Boy Color (adapted from Super NES version), cellular phone (MSX and cellular phone versions Japan-only) |
| Dragon Quest II (Dragon Warrior II) | MSX, NES (MSX version Japan-only) | Super NES (released in Japan only, translated into English through emulation), Game Boy Color (adapted from Super NES version). Bundled with the precedent entry when remade. |
| Dragon Quest III (Dragon Warrior III) | NES | Super NES (released in Japan only, translated into English through emulation), Game Boy Color (adapted from Super NES version) |
| Dragon Quest IV (Dragon Warrior IV) | NES | Sony PlayStation (Japan only) |
| Dragon Quest V | Super NES (original version released in Japan only) | PlayStation 2 (This version may get localized to North America. Resolution upgrade due to the traditional resolution of the new platform. Remake has an orchestrated soundtrack, performed by NHK Symphony Orchestra. Other Dragon Quest games up to Dragon Quest VII are likely to be remade in the same fashion due to an orchestral arrangement plan by composer Koichi Sugiyama.) |
| Dune 2: Battle For Arrakis | PC | PC (This was a DOS-based RTS game made by Westwood before Command & Conquer. Westwood remade the game as Dune 2000 with improved graphics, more units and a deeper storyline. They then released Emperor: Battle For Dune, which could be considered a remake of the remake.) |
| Earthworm Jim | SNES, Sega Genesis | 2D/3D remake for PSP (Working title Earthworm Jim PSP) |
| Final Fantasy | NES,MSX | WonderSwan Color, Sony PlayStation (enhanced from WonderSwan Color version and part of Final Fantasy Origins), cellular phone, Game Boy Advance (as part of Final Fantasy I & II: Dawn of Souls), Sony PlayStation Portable (20th anniversary edition) |
| Final Fantasy II | NES (original version released in Japan only) | WonderSwan Color, Sony PlayStation (PlayStation version enhanced from WonderSwan Color version and part of Final Fantasy Origins), Game Boy Advance (as part of the Final Fantasy I & II: Dawn of Souls), Sony PlayStation Portable (20th anniversary edition) |
| Final Fantasy III | NES (original version released in Japan only) | Fully 3D remake for the Nintendo DS. |
| Final Fantasy IV | SNES | Game Boy Advance, Sony PlayStation (as a part of Final Fantasy Chronicles in America, and the PAL Final Fantasy Anthology) |
| Final Fantasy V | SNES (original version released in Japan only) | Game Boy Advance, Sony PlayStation (as a part of Final Fantasy Anthology) |
| Final Fantasy VI | SNES | Game Boy Advance, Sony PlayStation (as a part of the American Final Fantasy Anthology, in PAL territories as a stand-alone title) |
| Final Fantasy Adventure (Seiken Densetsu) | Game Boy (Monochrome) | Game Boy Advance (as Shinyaku Seiken Densetsu in Japan and as Sword of Mana in the United States and Europe. All Final Fantasy elements have been removed); Mobile phone (visual upgrade) |
| Fire Emblem: Ankoku Ryuu to Hikari no Tsurugi | NES (original version released in Japan only) | Super NES (included as the first chapter in its sequel, Fire Emblem: Monshou no Nazo) |
| Various Game & Watch games | Game & Watch | Game Boy/Advance (As part of the Game & Watch Gallery series, which include the original & remake versions of the games) |
| Ghosts 'n Goblins | Arcade | Ported to NES, then brought to Super NES with enhanced graphics, completely converted into 3D on the Sony PSP. |
| Gradius 2 | MSX | X68000 (As Nemesis '90 Kai) |
| Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories | Sony PSP | Direct port to Sony PlayStation 2 with barely enhanced graphics. |
| Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories | Sony PSP | Direct port to Sony PlayStation 2 with barely enhanced graphics. |
| GripShift | PlayStation Portable | PlayStation 3 (as a downloadable game) |
| Gyakuten Saiban (Japan only) | Game Boy Advance | Nintendo DS as Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney. |
| Gyakuten Saiban 2 (Japan only) | Game Boy Advance | Nintendo DS as Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Justice for All. |
| Head Over Heels | MSX, ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC | Soon after the initial release a hi-res port was made for the Commodore Amiga, Commodore 64, Atari XL/XE. An enhanced remake was released in 2003 for Microsoft Windows, Linux, Mac OS X, BeOS. This remake was voted the 2nd best remake ever by PC Zone maganize. |
| Hitman: Contracts | PC | While not a game remake in the strictest sense of the phrase, of the 13 missions in Hitman Contracts, 6 of them were graphical, aesthetic and structural remakes of missions which had appeared in an earlier game in the series, Hitman: Codename 47. |
| The Journeyman Project | Macintosh, PC | The Journeyman Project: Pegasus Primce, for Power Mac in North America, Apple Pippin and Sony PlayStation in Japan. |
| The King of Fighters '94 | Neo-Geo | PlayStation 2, as The King of Fighters '94 Re-bout. 3D backgrounds and high-resolution sprites. "Re-bout" is the suffix for enhanced remakes of SNK fighting games. |
| King's Quest 1 | Various (Home Computers) | The original animated adventure game, produced by Sierra On-Line in 1984, it was re-released in 1987 with enhanced graphics (EGA) and sound. A fan re-remake was released by Tierra Entertainment in 2001. |
| Kirby's Adventure | NES | Game Boy Advance (as Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land) |
| The Legend of Zelda | NES | Super Famicom Satellaview (Japan Only) as BS Zelda Directly ported to the Nintendo GameCube in The Legend of Zelda: Collector's Edition |
| The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past | Super NES | The game received a direct port on the Satellaview (Japan only); later it was also ported to Game Boy Advance which included a new dungeon, as well as voice clips for some characters (also came with bonus multiplayer game The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords on the cart). |
| The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening | Game Boy (Monochrome) | Game Boy Color (as The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX, made over from monochrome to color.) Included a new dungeon that relied on the color screen, as well as the ability to take "pictures" during the game that could be printed onto the Gameboy printer. |
| Leisure Suit Larry in the Land of the Lounge Lizards | Various (Home Computers) | The original was produced by Sierra On-Line in 1987 (itself a re-make of their previous text-only 'Softporn Adventure'), and was re-released in 1991 with enhanced VGA graphics and sound, and a point-and-click interface. |
| Lunar: The Silver Star | Sega CD | Sega Saturn and PC, as Lunar: Silver Star Story (Japan only) , on PlayStation as Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete and on Game Boy Advance as Lunar Legend. |
| Lunar 2: Eternal Blue | Sega CD | PlayStation as Lunar 2: Eternal Blue Complete. |
| Lunar: Walking School | Game Gear | Sega Saturn (Japan only) as Magic School Lunar!. |
| Makaitoushi SaGa (Final Fantasy Legend) | Game Boy (Monochrome) | WonderSwan Color (original version also included, graphics made over from monochrome 8-bit to color 16-bit) |
| Mario Bros. | Arcade | Famicom Disk System as Kaettekita Mario Bros. as well as Atari and arcade, Game Boy Advance (as a bonus game on all of the Super Mario Advance games as well as Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga) |
| MDK 2 | PC | Dreamcast, PlayStation 2 |
| Mega Man Classic series | NES | PlayStation (As Rockman Complete Works, Japan only) |
| Mega Man | NES | PlayStation Portable (As Mega Man Powered Up or Rockman Rockman in Japan.) |
| Mega Man X | SNES | PlayStation Portable (As Mega Man Maverick Hunter X or Irregular Hunter X in Japan) |
| Metal Gear | MSX2, NES | Mobile Phone, PlayStation 2 (As part of Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence) |
| Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake | MSX2 | Mobile Phone, PlayStation 2 (Also as a component of Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence, the first English localization of the game) |
| Metal Gear Solid | PlayStation | Direct port to PC with barely enhanced graphics. Remake on the Nintendo GameCube (as Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes) |
| Metal Slug 2 | Neo-Geo, PlayStation | Metal Slug X |
| Metroid | NES | Game Boy Advance (as Metroid: Zero Mission - graphics, audio, and gameplay elements vastly improved to the standards of sequels Super Metroid and Metroid Fusion. |
| Mythri | Game Boy Color | Game Boy Advance |
| Ninja Gaiden | NES | Super NES (as Trilogy Pack), TurboGrafx-16, Sega Master System |
| Ninja Gaiden 2 | NES | Super NES (as Trilogy Pack) |
| Ninja Gaiden 3 | NES | Super NES (as Trilogy Pack) |
| Ninja Gaiden (Xbox) | Xbox | PlayStation 3 (as Ninja Gaiden Sigma) |
| Pac-Man | Arcade | Arcade (as a component of Namco Classic Collection Vol. 2) |
| Panel de Pon | Super NES (as Tetris Attack) | Nintendo GameCube (as a component of Nintendo Puzzle Collection), Game Boy Advance (as part of Dr. Mario & Puzzle League) |
| Pengo | Arcade/Various | Sega Mega Drive / Genesis (The original arcade game is included in this remake) |
| Phantasy Star | Sega Master System | Sony PlayStation 2 (as Phantasy Star Generation 1), Game Boy Advance in Phantasy Star Collection. |
| Phantasy Star II | Sega Genesis | Sony PlayStation 2 (as Phantasy Star Generation 2), Game Boy Advance in Phantasy Star Collection. |
| Phantasy Star IV | Sega Genesis | Sony PlayStation 2 |
| Pokémon Blue | Game Boy (Monochrome) | Game Boy Advance (as Pokémon LeafGreen). |
| Pokémon Red | Game Boy (Monochrome) | Game Boy Advance (as Pokémon FireRed). |
| Police Quest 1 | Various (Home Computers) | The original was produced by Sierra On-Line in 1987, and was re-released in 1991 with enhanced VGA graphics and sound, and a point-and-click interface. |
| Quake 3: Arena | PC | Dreamcast, PlayStation 2 |
| Quest for Glory 1 (AKA Hero Quest 1) | Amiga, Macintosh, PC (VGA) | The original was produced by Sierra On-Line in 1989, and was re-released in 1991 with enhanced VGA graphics and sound, and a point-and-click interface. |
| Rayman 2 | PC, Nintendo 64, Sony PlayStation, Sega Dreamcast | Sony PlayStation 2 (As Rayman 2 Revolution) and Nintendo DS (As Rayman DS) |
| Myst | PC, Macintosh (RealMyst) | |
| Resident Evil | Sony PlayStation, Sega Saturn, PC | Nintendo GameCube, Nintendo DS as Resident Evil: Deadly Silence. |
| River City Ransom (Downtown Nekketsu Monogatari) | NES | Game Boy Advance (as River City Ransom EX in the United States and as Downtown Nekketsu Monogatari EX in Japan) |
| Romancing SaGa | SNES (Japan only) | PlayStation 2 (as Romancing SaGa: Minstrel Song) |
| Shin Megami Tensei | Various (Originated on Super NES) | Sony PlayStation, Game Boy Advance - both original and enhanced versions are Japanese only. |
| Shin Megami Tensei II | Super NES | Sony PlayStation, Game Boy Advance - both original and enhanced versions are Japanese only. |
| Shin Megami Tensei: If... | Super NES | Sony PlayStation - both original and enhanced versions are Japanese only. |
| Shining Force: The Legacy of Great Intention | Sega Mega Drive / Genesis | Game Boy Advance (as Shining Force: Resurrection of Dark Dragon) |
| Sid Meier's Pirates! | Various (Home Computers) | PC, for Windows and Xbox. |
| Skies of Arcadia (Japan: Eternal Arcadia) | Sega Dreamcast | Nintendo GameCube as Skies of Arcadia Legends. |
| Snatcher | NEC PC-88/MSX2 | PC Engine (as Snatcher CD-ROMantic), Sega CD, PlayStation, Sega Saturn. |
| Space Quest I | Various (Home Computers) | The original was produced by Sierra On-Line in 1986, and was re-released in 1990 with enhanced VGA graphics and sound, and a point-and-click interface. |
| Sonic Adventure | Sega Dreamcast | Nintendo GameCube and PC as Sonic Adventure DX: Director's Cut. All the glitches were left in, which was considered controversial. Game Gear Sonic games added as unlockables. |
| Sonic Adventure 2 | Sega Dreamcast | Nintendo GameCube as Sonic Adventure 2: Battle |
| Sonic the Hedgehog | Sega Mega Drive/Sega Genesis | Sega Saturn as part of Sonic Jam, and later Game Boy Advance as Sonic the Hedgehog Genesis, with spin dash move and saving added. |
| Super Mario 64 | Nintendo 64 | Nintendo DS (as Super Mario 64 DS)wii virtual console |
| Super Mario Bros. | NES | Super NES (as part of Super Mario All-Stars), Game Boy Color (as Super Mario Bros. Deluxe) |
| Super Mario Bros. 2 (Super Mario Bros. USA) | NES | Super NES (as part of Super Mario All-Stars), Game Boy Advance as Super Mario Advance. |
| Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels | NES (original version released as a Disk Card in Japan only) | Super NES (as part of Super Mario All-Stars), Game Boy Color (part of Super Mario Bros. Deluxe) |
| Super Mario Bros. 3 | NES | Super NES, (as part of Super Mario All-Stars), Game Boy Advance (as Super Mario Advance 4) |
| Super Mario World | Super NES | Game Boy Advance (as Super Mario World: Super Mario Advance 2) |
| Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island | Super NES | Game Boy Advance (as Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3) |
| Super Street Fighter II Turbo | Arcade | Game Boy Advance (as Super Street Fighter II Turbo Revival), Dreamcast (Super Street Fighter II Turbo for Matching Service) with added online play (Japan Only), PlayStation 2 and Xbox (Hyper Street Fighter II: Anniversary Edition, part of Street Fighter Anniversary Collection) |
| Tales of Phantasia | Super NES (original version released in Japan only) | Sony PlayStation (Japan only), Game Boy Advance, PlayStation Portable. |
| Tales of Destiny | Sony Playstation | Sony PlayStation 2 (Japan only). |
| Tengai Makyou II | NEC TurboGrafx 16/PC-Engine | Sony PlayStation 2, Nintendo GameCube, Nintendo DS (all versions Japan only). |
| To Heart | PC, Sony PlayStation | PC (As To Heart PSE), PlayStation 2 (As part of the To Heart 2 Limited Deluxe Pack) |
| To Heart 2 | Sony PlayStation 2 | PC (as To Heart 2 X-Rated). The most notable thing about this version is that it was remade as a hentai game. |
| Tomb Raider | Sony Playstation, PC | Sony PlayStation 2, PC as Lara Croft Tomb Raider: Anniversary |
| Unreal Tournament | PC | Dreamcast, PlayStation 2 |
| Warhawk | Commodore 64 | Remade for Sony PlayStation[dubious — see talk page][citation needed] and remade again for Sony PlayStation 3 with updated graphics and tilt compatibility. |
| Wild Arms | Sony PlayStation | Sony PlayStation 2 (as Wild Arms: Alter Code F). Remade as a 3D graphics game, a controversial remake idea. |
| WinBack | Nintendo 64 | Sony PlayStation 2 |
| Yoshi's Cookie | NES, SNES, Game Boy (Monochrome) | Nintendo GameCube (as part of Nintendo Puzzle Collection) |
| Ys | NEC PC-88 | NES, MSX, Windows, PlayStation 2 (as Ys Eternal) |
| Ys II | NEC PC-88 | NES, MSX, Windows, PlayStation 2 (as Ys II Eternal) |
| Ys III: Wanderers from Ys | NEC PC-9801 | NES, MSX, NEC TurboGrafx-16/PC-Engine, Sega Genesis, SNES, PlayStation 2, and PC as Ys: The Oath in Felghana. |
| Ys IV: Mask of the Sun | Super NES | Sony PlayStation 2 |
| Ys V: Ushinawareta Sunano Miyako Kefin | Super NES | Sony PlayStation 2 |
[edit] See also
- Clone
- cover version (music)
- Eye candy
- Emulator
- fan translation
- film remake (motion pictures)
- Total Conversion
[edit] External links
- http://www.retroremakes.com/ - A site dedicated to fan made remakes of classic games. (also at remakes.org)
- http://retrospec.sgn.net/ - A site that makes remakes.
- http://www.agdinteractive.com - A site dedicated to remakes of classic Sierra games.
- http://cezgs.computeremuzone.com/eng - A site that makes remakes for classic and actual systems.
