Releasing old games is certainly nothing new and not always evil, but as the market increasingly sprinkles with collections and deluxe editions of ten-year-old titles, it may be time to think about what you are willing to pay for.
That movies and TV series are released in new formats and in better picture quality a little now and then is really not something that people drop their chin off or sites write long news texts about. When a beloved game gets a new chance on a new console, however, it is another five, when big headlines are written and cheers are heard from nostalgic players.
Who can really complain that the developers give us the opportunity to replay one of our favorite games with cooler graphics on modern hardware or try that classic game you missed the first time, while getting the chance to support the developers you appreciate?
The problem is when it goes too far, like when Bethesda and Rockstar greedily release their popular games like “The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim” and “Grand Theft Auto V” for the fifty-eleventh time (the latter has already sold over 150 million copies), while fans have been longing for the next part for years.
From a capitalist point of view, it is not difficult to understand why they do this. After all, developing games is not free, so why should they not take the opportunity to bring home a little extra cuddle from the nostalgic wallets to be able to afford to develop the next lavish part?
I have only bought “Skyrim” and “GTA V” once in my entire life (and probably never again), but I can safely admit that I have been guilty of repurchasing games I love both once and twice. When I really like a game, I tend to buy it in several formats and when it comes to a collection or new edition of a classic that has a special place in my heart, the wallet opens eagerly and without much thought. When the news came that “Shenmue 3” was under development and the studio asked for money on the site Kickstarter, I backed the game directly in hopes of getting a chance to play the legendary predecessors that had previously only been playable on Dreamcast and Xbox (a wish that came true). –
However, this is often about older titles, which were previously on a console I no longer have standing in the TV cabinet or do not even own. Games that are simply not as easily accessible anymore, that were only released on a console or never even launched to a Western audience. For example, the recently released “Alan Wake” was only available on Xbox 360 and PC before, but has now given new players a new chance.
When it comes to remakes of classic games, it is also there a little different thing. This is more about renewing many times outdated gaming experiences for a modern audience, while of course it is partly about money here as well. Just like with remakes of movies and TV series, some people wonder why it should be done when the original is present and is good. However, the game medium is much younger than the film, so games that looked fantastic twenty years ago are sometimes better to keep in mind than to destroy with today’s critical eyes.
“Final Fantasy VII” from 1997 as an example is still a good game and is for many the world’s best game, but I understand that it can be acceptable to play it today if you have no relation to it, given its somewhat primitive graphics. In addition to the developers wanting to cash in on a nostalgic audience while new players can buy a copy, there is a will to make the game better with today’s technology and to reach the original vision that they could not approach with the technology of that time. All this makes “Final Fantasy VII Remake” from 2020 or the modern porting of the original a legitimate launch, unlike other examples.
At the same time, it is a bit tiring that more and more studios choose to make remakes of already proven cards, instead of investing in new and exciting projects. How much better can a remake of the barely ten-year-old “The Last of Us” really be and is a third interpretation of “Metal Gear Solid” really needed?
The worst is almost Nintendo who more and more often release their old games to new formats, slam on a Deluxe stamp and set a price tag of 600 kronor. They obviously know that the biggest fans will buy the ten-year-old “The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword” again for that price, but it accepts to pay that amount when other studios release entire trilogies with nicer graphics for the same price (or sometimes even lower).
Releasing “The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim” and “Grand Theft Auto V” to Playstation 5 and Xbox Series X / S, which were originally released in 2011 and 2013 respectively and are already playable on today’s consoles, is simply yet a way to make money on titles they vet will sell more – without having to make a particularly big effort. Here, there is no thought of preserving the game for the future or introducing it to a new audience that does not have access to the original (or the previous releases), but mostly just greed.
Maybe we should listen to the Bethesda director Todd Howard, as if “Skyrim” has told the site gameindustry.biz that “millions of people play it every month. That’s why we keep releasing it. If you want us to stop releasing it, stop buying it.”-
If we do not want to see games like “Grand Theft Auto V” milked to curse, we should simply not buy it no matter how much the developers attract with cooler graphics and faster loading times. I still want to believe that we consumers have the power to influence things like this, so that we hopefully not only get cheap re-releases, tired sequels and remakes of already proven cards in the future.
Which game have you bought the most times? What do you think of remasters and remakes?
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