This is a guest post from the wonderful Krystal Sim, who you can bother on Twitter @KrystalSim
A new game is like a new love in your life. It’s fresh, exciting and you don’t know each others’ faults at first. But after a few years, a few bad decisions and a disappointment or two, the cracks start to show. Sure, you’ll always have the memory of those heady early days but shouldn’t you maybe just cut your losses and look for something new? Someone better suited, and with fewer glitches.
Next month I’m going to buy the fifth version of a game I’ve owned since 2005. Hear me out. You’d be right in thinking that five versions of anything is probably teetering on the brink of insanity – well maybe Sgt Pepper – but like any avid collector there are some things you just can’t say no to.
In my case that game is Resident Evil 4, the apex of Capcom’s zombie slaying franchise and a title that has cost me more hours than I care to divulge, and across more platforms than any other game I own.
Earlier this year Capcom announced that both Resident Evil 4 and its predecessor Code: Veronica were coming to Xbox Live and the PlayStation Network in glorious high definition. Naturally gamer OCD kicked in and I felt a warm fuzzy glow at the thought of playing these titles again. But with achievements!
Then I started to think: am I wasting my time on a game that has had its day? After all, while RE4 was brilliant the valuable hours I’ll squander unlocking the Handcannon yet again could be spent on new IP.
And it’s not just Capcom trotting out the greatest hits. Remakes such as Goldeneye on the Wii (also bound for Xbox Live and PSN in the near future), the 3D remake of classic Zelda title Ocarina of Time on the 3DS and the long-awaited PS3 release of Team Ico’s Shadow of the Colossus (out in September) show there’s no shortage of older titles having a renaissance.
But is that healthy and what is it about revisiting old games that we find so appealing? The crux of it is somewhere between nostalgia, our own obsessive behaviours and publishers’ punting their wares to a younger generation of fans.
The remake is rose-tinted, albeit HD, replay of the good old days, and nostalgia is something gamers are no strangers to. Remembering the fun we had with these titles as kids and adolescents is a strong selling point. You might even get to catch up with great game that you missed first time around.
Then there’s the OCD factor – the need to get it on yet another platform, start from scratch and complete it all over again – part badge of honour, part obsessive tick. Trophies and gamerscores have also made things more interesting, replacing the old ‘57% complete’ notification on your dusty old memory card with a system that’s far more fun and competitive.
Really gamers love to see a good idea, well executed. Hell, even poorly executed but with a bit of style. Do that and we can forgive much, including a spot of repackaging, HD tweaks and a reasonable price tag for the chance to relive classic moments on current gen hardware.
Revisiting a game you’ve beaten before may sound a little redundant, but if it was memorable enough to warrant a return then perhaps we can forgive ourselves a spot of self indulgence. Where the danger lies is in relying too heavily on the past to influence the present. Too many sequels, too many past glories revisited and you risk missing out on that new IP.
Your attachment to a game franchise can be a bit like a relationship. Good ones can last for years but sometimes a game comes along that treats you so badly you have to call it a day. I’ve been praying Sonic fans would come to their senses and leave that deadbeat hedgehog for years. Sure Sonic 4 was good but who’ll be there to pick up the pieces when the next Flickies Island happens?
The appeal of the remake is very much dependant on whether things soured between you or if there’s still a tender place in your heart for an old flame. Of course I’m still going to buy Resident Evil 4 in HD. We’ve had our ups and our downs but I just can’t seem to quit them.
Resident Evil 4 will be available to download on 20 September, while Code: Veronica lands a week later on 27 September.
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Interesting points, nice to read someone’s thoughts from the other side of the fence. :D
I spend my life playing old games, like the movie business everything is treading ground which has been trod before.
I struggle to get excited over a classic game given a makeover as at its core it’s still the same game. I do get a feeling of nostalgia when playing something old, but i don’t wish for them to be any different, or brought ‘up to date’.
Add to that, that modern games are far easier (and shorter) than older equivalents, with the general behaviour evolving into ‘Buy game, play it, finish it, trade it in’, you no longer hear conversations in game shops of how b**tard-hard a certain section or level is.
I’m slightly dismayed by some of the re-issues especially in the case of things like ‘Okami’ or ‘Shadow of the Colossus’. Both of which had genuinely new ideas that the majority of people failed to recognise due to being up to their ears in having the latest recycled sequel. Perhaps there’s a small sense of elitism in there. ;)
Of course now they will stick out like a sore thumb because they’re just so completely different to Combat Ace 12 or Feed my Speed 25. It backstabs those of us who accepted them first time around though!
Last month i dusted off my copy of Black & White and it was fantastic. I beamed with a heady sense of nostalgia, but i wasn’t sat there thinking “Someone needs to redo this with fancy graphics”. In every logical way the game’s sequel is superior, but in its superiority it’s ironed-out the nuances and unpredictability that made the first game so memorable.
Achievements replace personal pride, playing for checkboxes replaces playing for fun. I may be stuck in the digital past but it’s a much happier place to be! :)
Sorry to be pedantic but Goldeneye Wii was hardly a remake. They used its good name to try and flog an original game, hoping people would think it’d be just like the famous N64 version.