In our latest video countdown, we breakdown the 10 video games that are in desperate need of a next-generation remake.
The latest trend in video games has been to look to the past to find success in the future, and it’s had an extremely positive impact on the gaming community. More and more teams are bringing back their classic titles by remaking them with modern technology. Games like Resident Evil 2, Crash Bandicoot, Spyro the Dragon, Resident Evil 3 – Nemesis, and Final Fantasy VII Remake are just a few of the more recent games to receive the remake treatment. Now, with the next generation of consoles on the horizon, we look to the past once again to discuss which games should get a full-blown remake.
These are 10 Video Games That Should Get Next-Gen Remakes
- Sly Cooper
Kicking off our list is the greatest raccoon thief of all time, Sly Cooper. Back in 2002, Sly Cooper was one of the biggest video game franchises at that time. The stealth platformer series spawned four games, comics, and even a series that’s supposedly still in the works. Unfortunately, despite it being ported to PlayStation 3 10 years ago with The Sly Collection, most new gamers have no idea it ever existed, which is a shame.
Sly Cooper was ahead of its time in a lot of ways. Its style was a perfect balance between film noir and comic book, but in video game form. It featured stealth gameplay that hadn’t really been seen in other platformers, at that time. Plus, each character was oozing with charm inside of an addictingly fun story.
If a series is still in the works, what would help build more hype around it would be releasing a complete remake of Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus. Hopefully it would open the door for the rest to be remade, including Sly Cooper 2: Band of Thieves, arguably the best in the series. Unfortunately, Sucker Punch seems to have their hands full these days with Ghost of Tsushima, but maybe another studio could take the reigns and remind everyone who the greatest thief of all-time is.
- Jak & Daxter
Jumping from one platformer to another, Jak & Daxter takes the ninth spot on our remake list. Originally developed by Naughty Dog, the game series was dubbed as one of the defining franchises of the PlayStation 2 for its wicked-fun gameplay and fantastic story-telling. Two things Naughty Dog is known for.
While the art style of Jak & Daxter made it appear like it was a game made for kids, the story was…well…a different story. It was definitely comedic, but it was also dark at times. That darkness ended up growing from game to game, which made for an extremely intriguing story to follow.
Jak & Daxter: The Precursor Legacy was one of the greatest games to release in 2001. The franchise continued to own from 2001 to 2005 with Jak II and Jak III. A remastered collection would be released in 2012 for PS3, with a PS4 version releasing in 2017. Jak & Daxter is one of the series that laid the groundwork for PlayStation to become what it is. Let’s see what a remake could do for PlayStation 5. Crash Bandicoot and Spyro the Dragon proved that there is still a market for nostalgic platformers, so why not one of the best to ever grace a PlayStation?
- Beyond Good & Evil
This one might be a head-scratcher, but go with me here. Yes, Ubisoft is working on the prequel for Beyond Good & Evil and its set to be one of the most ambitious games ever developed. While excitement for the game is through the roof, the reality is there is a fair share of players who will go into Beyond Good & Evil 2 never having played the first game. I’d say that wouldn’t be a big deal since this is a prequel, but the introduction of Jade at E3 2018 makes the original game that much more important.
Also, Beyond Good & Evil was just a damn good game back in 2003. It told the story of Jade and Pey’j on a mission to save a group of orphans, in their charge, who were kidnapped by DomZ, but it’s so much more than that. Beyond Good & Evil is a journey of discovery for Jade and combats real-life issues like slavery and human trafficking. It’s an epic masterpiece that wasn’t given its due at its time.
I’m not saying to remake it as far as Ubisoft is going with Beyond Good & Evil 2, but a full remake would do wonders for Beyond Good & Evil in terms of context for players new to the series and on a financial standpoint. Back in 2003, it didn’t do well in sales, but this is a new generation of gamers and I feel as if this is the right time to tell that story, but it has to be remade. Who knows, too? Perhaps this could lead to a long-overdue sequel down the road.
- Psi-Ops: The Mindgate Conspiracy
One of the most underrated titles that was gone entirely too soon is Psi-Ops: The Mindgate Conspiracy. Developed by the departed Midway Games, you play as PSI-operative Nick Scryer who has his mind wiped in order to be embedded within The Movement, a terrorist organization comprised of a former PSI-ops General and several defected PSI-ops.
As the name suggests, the primary abilities in Psi-Ops were psychic in nature. In fact, the game specialized in “ragdoll physics”, which makes for hilarious, yet uber-satisfying encounters with enemies. With its similar brand of psychic gameplay and espionage, 2019’s Control, a surprise hit by Remedy Games, proved that a game like Psi-Ops: The Mindgate Conspiracy could thrive in today’s video game scene.
It’s unclear who, if anyone, owns the rights to Psi-Ops. The likeliest publisher would be Warner Bros. Interactive, who purchased most of Midway Games’ assets (mainly for Mortal Kombat) back in 2009. Though, it’s uncertain if Psi-Ops was part of the deal. Nevertheless, it would be amazing to see it remade.
- TimeSplitters
Time is an enemy to us all and, in the case of the TimeSplitters series, time may have made most of us forget that from 2000 to 2005, TimeSplitters was one of the hottest series around. The series revolved around characters jumping through various points in time to take part in temporal wars. The time periods went as far back as 1935 to fight in World War II to 2035 to battle in more futuristic warfare. Who wouldn’t want to do this again, but with next-gen tech?
One of the coolest parts of TimeSplitters was the level creator. While the first game only allowed you to develop maps for arcade multiplayer, the second game gave you the ability to create your own single-player story level. With today’s video games being all about shared experiences, bringing back this function of TimeSplitters would likely make for some insane level-crafting.
TimeSplitters was a First-Person Shooter, created by a group of ex-Rare employees who formed Free Radical Design. It’s now in the hands of Deep Silver, who is owned by THQ Nordic, and in 2019 co-creator Steve Ellis joined the studio to “plan the future course of the series”. Reminding gamers of how good this series was with a complete remake would go a long way to returning TimeSplitters to its former glory.
- Dino Crisis
Capcom redefined how good a complete remake could be with Resident Evil 2. With Resident Evil 3 – Nemesis in the books, it’s time for Capcom to focus their attention on another survival horror remake, but not from the Resident Evil franchise. Instead, it’s time for Capcom to dust off and remake Dino Crisis.
Dino Crisis was like a darker, interactive version of Jurassic Park. The original game was set on Ibis Island where members of The Secret Operation Raid Team (SORT) are sent to investigate a research facility and capture a scientist working on a special weapon project. Spoiler alert: they’re using Dino DNA. Their investigation sees the team come face to face with ferocious dinosaurs and other monsters infesting the island.
It was a terrifying, insanely good game. The sequels after Dino Crisis 2 may not have held up, as well, but the first two are more than capable of delivering the same incredible experiences felt in the Resident Evil remakes. Recently, Capcom filed a new trademark for Dino Crisis, but it’s unknown if a remake or even a sequel is officially in the works.
- F-Zero
Now I know the undisputed Nintendo racing game is Mario Kart. But what if the next racing game to grace the Nintendo Switch wasn’t from the Mushroom Kingdom? What if it was F-Zero?
F-Zero debuted in 1990 and was hailed as one of the fastest racing games around. It was also beloved for its incredible music and characters, along with unique racing tracks. Since 2004, though, the series has been nowhere to be found except for in other Nintendo IPs.
After his inclusion in Super Smash Bros., Captain Falcon became a household name and Nintendo still uses F-Zero tracks on both Smash Bros. and Mario Kart. It’s clear there is still a market for an F-Zero game and with Crash Team Racing as proof that nostalgic racing games can have success, now is the time to remake F-Zero.
Some aspects would need to be improved, like customizing a racer, character, and maybe adding a few power-ups, but F-Zero is the bad boy of the racing genre and its time he makes a fashionably late return to the Nintendo Switch.
- Chrono Trigger
Want to make a game people will lose their minds over? Remake Chrono Trigger. Since 1995, Chrono Trigger has been regarded as one of the best games to come out of Square, which is saying a lot when you think of the impeccable dossier they own. It has been compared to Final Fantasy in some ways and even held in higher regard to some fans.
While there are some similarities between Final Fantasy and Chrono Trigger, mainly in terms of gameplay and combat mechanics, Chrono Trigger told a vastly different story. Unlike any other game in 1995, Chrono Trigger used time travel to progress the story and even recruit characters. It told a captivating story with six amazing characters, each with their own specialties and motivations for joining the adventure.
Square Enix is focused on remaking Final Fantasy VII right now, but once that’s over, Yoshinori Kitase & co. should focus on Chrono Trigger Remake. It’s beyond past time and it would blow the entire gaming world’s collective minds on Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5, and maybe the mythical Nintendo Switch Pro.
- Silent Hill
The last two games to make this list come from Konami, the once-thriving developer that has since fallen from grace. One way they could rise back to prominence would be to remake one of the greatest survival horror games of all time, Silent Hill.
With the success of Resident Evil 2 Remake and the growing excitement of Resident Evil 3 – Nemesis Remake as indicators, it’s clear that gamers are hungry for some quality survival horror. The best of which were, frankly, in the past.
In Silent Hill, you play as Harry Mason, a man in search of his missing adopted daughter. He finds himself searching the twisted, mysterious town of Silent Hill, where he comes face to face with hideous monsters and the true origin of his daughter. This is one of the survival horror games that still scares people to this day. Just imagine if they did it in the style of Hideo Kojima’s P.T.! Everyone would lose their minds.
Nevertheless, it’s an absolutely riveting tale that needs to be retold on next-gen systems. However, it’s not the only game Konami should remake.
- Metal Gear Solid
Arguably the greatest game franchise to ever come out of Konami is the Metal Gear series. You could remake the first Metal Gear or Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake, but it was Metal Gear Solid that first used 3D technology and is still thought of as an iconic title.
Metal Gear Solid follows Solid Snake as he infiltrates a Nuclear Weapon facility controlled by FOXHOUND. While on this mission, Snake takes on loads of unique enemies like Psycho Mantis, Vulcan Raven, Sniper Wolf, and even his own twin brother Liquid Snake, in an effort to stop FOXHOUND from unleashing another Metal Gear on the world.
Metal Gear Solid is an epic entry in the Metal Gear franchise and deserves a remake for PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X. If Konami wants to continue to use the property, without series creator Hideo Kojima, this is the smartest way to go.
There you have it! Those are 10 titles we feel should get next-gen remakes. What video games would you like to see remade? Let us know in the comment section below or on twitter @cinelinx and myself @movethejoystick! Don’t forget to like, share, and subscribe for more videos!
