9 classic games we’d like to see remade

Main points

• Remasters introduce old games to new audiences.
• Recent remakes like Resident Evil 2 and Final Fantasy 7 have shown how classics can be modernized without losing their essence.
• Fans want remakes of classic games like Castlevania, Parasite Eve, Chrono Trigger, Banjo-Kazooie and Silent Hill.

Remakes have been happening for decades, but it’s only in the last few years that they’ve started to push the boundaries and reintroduce some of the great games of the past to audiences that might not have given them a chance. Sure, the graphical improvements are nice, but it’s the quality-of-life changes and accessibility that make the remaster so exciting. Who wants to spend hundreds of dollars on old hardware and rare cartridges that may not even allow them to play a game or two with their TV anymore?

There’s always a worry that going back to a classic game and remaking it will ruin what made it special. While I can’t say it’s impossible, we’ve had more recent examples of the opposite, even when remakes make drastic changes to the original. Look no further than Resident Evil 2 Remake and Final Fantasy 7 Remastered and Reborn to see how remakes can modernize games without losing the spirit that made them special decades ago. Excellent example. There are a ton of game remasters coming out, but the ones I personally want to see the most are the remasters of ten classic games.

1 Castlevania: Symphony under the Moon

The gold standard in Metroidvania

Symphony of the Night is still playable today just as it was when it launched on the PlayStation 1, and is arguably still the king of the metroidvania genre it helped usher in. To this day, you can still see the influence this game had on all genres of gaming, with vast maps that you can freely explore, upgrades that allow you to access new areas, and tons of secrets that only careful players can discover.

For the remake, I was hoping for a more drastic change in this case. This time let’s render the castle in 3D, allowing us to truly immerse ourselves in the world of vampires and monsters. Keep the structure the same, but add some new areas, secrets, and abilities, using 3D space to give it a new appeal. We’ve already seen the potential of this format in Bloodborne, but now we need to go all the way.

2 parasitism eve

forgotten gem

Squaresoft (which later became Square Enix) went all out during the PS1 era, releasing some of the best JRPGs on the market. In between these hits lies a curious hybrid of horror and RPG based on a lesser-known novel, Parasite Eve. The formula ended up working better than it should have, but it fell by the wayside on older consoles.

A Parasite Eve remake should take a hybrid approach to changing things up while remaining faithful. I believe the turn-based gameplay is at its unique and tense core, but we could do away with fixed camera angles and pre-rendered backgrounds. RPGs set in the modern day (well, the modern day of 1998, anyway) were still rare, and a more grounded tone might appeal to a wider crowd.

3 timed trigger

take it to the future

I can’t believe I’m still asking for this. Where is the Chrono Trigger remake! ? I’m not saying that games like Live A Live don’t deserve remakes either, but in terms of fan outcry, I can’t think of many games besides Final Fantasy VI that can beat Chrono Trigger 》. I don’t think there is a perfect JRPG, but Chrono Trigger certainly makes a strong case for it.

I don’t ask for the world here. Let’s make it HD-2D and keep everything exactly the same. Sure, I’d welcome some new side quests, items, secret bosses, or whatever, but the core game is so tight and well-designed that not much needs to be added. The characters, the plot, the world, the combat…are all great, and it would be a crime not to live up to modern standards.

4 Banjo Kazooie

Collect the King of Marathon

I would venture to say that Banjo-Kazooie and Banjo-Tooie are better 3D platformers than Mario 64. The personality, charm, variety of levels, number of new abilities, and sense of humor far surpass anything Mario had to offer in his first 3D adventure. Since Rare was acquired by Microsoft, all we’ve gotten is the disappointing Nuts and Bolts on the 360 ​​and the Rare Replay series on Xbox One, but we haven’t seen the iconic bears and birds since.

The world needs another kid-friendly platformer to rival Mario. Nintendo can only give us these experiences so often, no other big company is trying to compete in this space. Keeping the cartoon look and vibrant art style, but updating the visuals and controls to modern standards, the world will fall in love with these two unlikely heroes.

5 silent Hill

real horror

Horror games are back, and probably bigger than ever. Resident Evil is in full swing, Alan Wake 2 is surprisingly a horror movie, and dozens of quality indie games have us afraid to turn off the lights and go to bed. With the Silent Hill 2 remake coming out in 2024, I have to ask: why are we skipping the original? Yes, I know the second one is considered the pinnacle of the series, but the first game set the stage for almost every survival horror game that followed.

Silent Hill creates the suffocating and claustrophobic environment of a town buried in fog. You’re just an ordinary man trying to find his daughter while debilitating monsters lurk in the fog, with only your broken radio to warn you of their presence. It’s a quiet, introspective, creepy, gripping horror game that needed a makeover more than its sequel.

6 Mega Man

Keep it 2D

The OG Mega Man series is a classic, but it wasn’t until X revived the series that it became a serious contender for the best 2D side-scrolling action game ever. The graphics, tight controls, power-ups, and the way the stages are dynamic change depending on the order in which you approach them, making it an infinitely replayable game.

Unfortunately, the Series X went downhill quickly, especially after the switch to 3D. For the X remake, just stick to 2D sprites and keep the controls tight and responsive. Don’t reinvent the wheel for this.

7 gemini jet force

Hindered by hardware

I think remakes are best reserved for games that didn’t fully realize their vision at launch. There are few better examples than Jet Force Gemini, the forgotten third-person shooter for the N64 made by Rare. If you know anything about N64 controllers, you can already see the problem with this game, which is that any shooter on the console is crippled by a single analog stick.

While the remaster will automatically fix control issues simply by installing it on a modern console, there are plenty of other reasons why Jet Force Gemini is a hit today. It’s a planet-hopping adventure with satisfying weapons, three characters with their own abilities and upgrades, and a great soundtrack.

8 Wario Land

Not a Mario clone

Did anyone else know that Wario has his own series of platformers? Maybe because it debuted as Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3 it never got the attention it deserved, but unlike Wario himself, this isn’t just a low-budget Mario Austrian copycat version. The game is still structured as a 2D platformer, but Wario has attack capabilities in addition to jumping, and is focused on collecting coins and treasures.

As much as I love the Game Boy, I can’t deny that it’s hard to go back to. Let’s give this game the Mario Miracle treatment and fill it with bright colors and detailed animations to make it sing like it always does.

9 Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island

undeniably cute

Trust me, I dislike escort missions as much as you do, so escort missions throughout the game sound like a nightmare. That said, Yoshi’s Island is a dream. The platforming, various stages, and mechanics are all the same as you’d expect from a mainline Mario game, but now you can play as various Yoshis on a mission to escort baby Mario to the exit.

Art direction reminiscent of a children’s picture book makes this game stand out. The soft colors and rough lines feel like you’re playing a game you drew yourself as a kid. The music and different transformations are equally captivating and bring a unique style that we don’t see enough of these days. If this does get remade, please tone down baby Mario’s cries. It still haunts my dreams.