Only a few remakes of classic video games have been able to compete with the originals in terms of reviews.
Every developer who wants to make a remake should keep this in mind. They should aim to make the game more accessible than the original by updating the aesthetics and controls. The idea is to strike a good balance between introducing new content and retaining what made the game great in the first place.
These remake efforts are enormous endeavors that should not be underestimated. In the end, the primary goal should be to outperform the original in terms of reviews. However, only a few games have received a higher Metacritic rating. Even some of these examples barely managed to win.
Dead Space
Dead Space is one of the latest remakes that launched 2023 with a boom. There is a technical tie here. Both the Xbox 360 and Xbox Series X have Metacritic scores of 89. The PS3 version, on the other hand, received an 88 in 2008, while the PS5 remake of Dead Space received an 89.
For console players, this makes the remake the “better” game, yet any fan will tell you that the original still plays incredibly well today. It was a horror classic in 2008, and it remains so now. The only difference is that there is now a more attractive version to pick from.
Demon’s Souls
Demon’s Souls caused a sensation in the gaming world. When it was released on PS3 in 2009, it altered gaming forever by introducing players to a complex risk-reward structure. There was no other game like it at the time, thus it stood out.
Since then, FromSoftware has continued to release Souls games as well as Soulslikes like Elden Ring. Other developers have even imitated the formula, most recently Koei Tecmo with Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty. The original PS3 game received an 89, but the remake received a 92 when it was re-released on the PS5 in 2020. It’s still one of the system’s best-looking games, which may explain why it received a higher score.
Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon
The first game in the now-iconic Fire Emblem franchise is Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light. It was a Japanese-only release for the NES in 1990. Eggy Car game was first available to Western gamers in 2009 as a DS remake titled Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon. When long-forgotten Japanese games are remade in the West, the originals are usually forgotten. Even with the DS remake, the original NES version of Final Fantasy 3 has yet to be officially published outside of Japan.
In an unusual turn of events, Nintendo did offer the original Fire Emblem as a Nintendo Switch Online game in 2020, implying that it did finally receive a review score. It was also extremely low: 63 versus 81 for the DS remake. It was nice to see the NES version of Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light released outside of Japan for historical purposes, although it is archaic by today’s standards.
Metroid Zero Mission
Metroid was published in North America on the NES in 1997. Later, in 2004, it was adapted for the Game Boy Advance as Metroid Zero Mission. Surprisingly, Nintendo began releasing NES conversions for the GBA under the Classic NES Series name.Metroid was one of those games, and it ultimately received a review score.
The original Metroid, like Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light, was deemed to be excessively outdated by early 2000s standards, which is why it received a 58.Metroid Zero Mission received an 89, and unlike the NES original, it still holds up decades later. It and Metroid Fusion are both excellent Metroidvanias for the GBA.
Pokemon Omega Ruby
At this time, the Pokemon franchise is expected to produce remakes in the years between major mainline games.Pokemon Black and White are the next games in the series. Will there be remakes in 2023, 2024, or later?
For the GBA generation, Pokemon Ruby received an 82 on Metacritic, and the remake, Pokemon Omega Ruby, received an 83. The fascinating thing about these games is that Pokemon Sapphire does not shown on Metacritic, thus there is no comparison to Pokemon Alpha Sapphire, which received an 82. Overall, the remake category wins by a razor-thin margin.
Resident Evil 2
Even though the majority of Resident Evil remakes are technically superior, the scores don’t always reflect this. Resident Evil 3: Nemesis and Resident Evil 4 are examples of this. Resident Evil 2 is the sole exception to this rule.
The PS1 and N64 editions received an 89, while the Xbox One remake received a 93. Will anyone really prefer to play the original game with its clumsy tank controls in 2023? Probably not, but there’s a case to be made that the older version’s poor controls made the experience even scarier.
Yakuza Kiwami
Yakuza was released late on the PS2 in 2006. It did not receive the attention it deserved and was swiftly dismissed as simply another Grand Theft Auto clone. With a score of 75, the game barely stays in the green on Metacritic.
The Yakuza series remained a minority attraction in the West until Yakuza 0 was launched in 2017, which drew a larger audience. Following that, Sega appears to have been inspired to begin remaking the series, with Yakuza Kiwami being the first game to be remade. The Xbox One version received an 81. It may be argued that it is more of a remaster than a remake, but it offered so much more than just visual improvements that it needs to be included in this category.
