Franchise reboots are all the rage these days in Hollywood, and the trend is starting to creep into the games industry as well. The Guardian's games blog is running a story discussing a few examples and pondering likely candidates for future reboots. Quoting:
"If anything, the concept of the reboot makes more sense in the videogame sector than it does in movies. For a start, games are complex entities, with each new iteration in a familiar series adding many, many hours of fresh narrative content. Entering, say, the Zelda, Resident Evil, Half-Life, Dragon Quest or Metal Gear worlds at this stage must be massively intimidating — even if the developers go to great lengths to make each entry work as a singular, self-contained entity within the canon. Also, videogames are going through a paradigm shift in terms of popular appeal at the moment. The faithful audience of young males has been joined by new demographics brought in by the Wii, PC casual games, and now the iPhone. Many of these people may be vaguely aware of long-running game brands, but won't have a clue about the key characters, sign post events and basic gameplay mechanisms."
So, which series (or individual title) would you like to see rebooted?
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Happens to me every time I drink XFKG MZJTZ. But then I chase it down with some JIZV KLZV and start thinking of Maud, and forget about everything else.
Spiro's been rebooting with every new iteration from the original game and on. How else could you explain that he keeps forgetting how to breathe fire?
I'm not sure if it really counts as a reboot since there's only been one console version so far, but i'd really like to see Kid Icarus! Rumors about it keep popping up from time to time along with vague statements by Nintendo, so hopefully it will actually get done at some point!
by Anonymous Coward
on Tuesday July 28, @09:38AM (#28852163)
I don't think we need a reboot of the Space Quest franchise as much as we just need another Space Quest game.
Sierra had one in the works (as in at least parts of the game were playable) about 5-6 years ago, but it was canceled. I don't think they ever disclosed publicly that they were working on it, but I know someone who was on the dev team. It sounded like they were staying pretty faithful to the spirit of the originals, although that may have been their downfall - sci-fi comedy is sort of a niche market, and Space/King's Quest-style old-school adventure games definitely are. Sierra is (or was at the time at least) basically the most cancel-happy publisher of all time, so I'm sure it didn't take much for them to get cold feet.
I would love to see a remake of any of the descent series remade. I still have each of them and from time to time have to play them even though they are getting old.
Descent was good but Descent: Freespace and Freespace 2 were great too. In particular the epic storyline, intrigue, unpredictability, immersion and voice acting, I feel, is unrivaled even compared to todays games. The missions would start off with really detailed briefings planning how everything should work, making the player think that everything will go according to the briefing, then nothing goes as planned, just like in real life. There were missions where you don't even win or aren't expected to win, whereas nowadays your games are like this "heres the missions go do it, oh you succeeded horay!".
As one of the Kahn developers (another one of them is sitting in the office next to mine), and one of the programmers of Descent 3 I have to respond.
First off, the Kahn/Kali days were loads of fun, playing Descent 1 over the internet back in 1996 is a great memory I still have.
IMO, the problems with D3 was that we never got the scale right for flying. D1/D2 had a feeling of speed because the tunnels were smaller and simpler. In D3 the designers tried to achieve a sense of massive complexes, which meant larger rooms and tunnels plus outdoor terrain. The problem there was the sense of flying fast was lost. I think this is the thing that disappointed most Descent fans. But I don't think that is what kept it from being a commercial success. I think the problem there was 1) feature creep made the development of D3 cost too much, 2) As you mentioned, the game was released in an era that had loads of hardware video card driver issues, which lead to tons of returns, and IMO the biggest issue: 3) Descent fatigue (lots of people bought D1/D2 because it was a unique idea, but by D3 they had already been there and done that).
Contrary to what you say though, D3 wasn't primarily developed for Glide. It was originally developed for Glide, but that's because at the time development started that was the only real option. A lot of effort was put into OpenGL, but there were constant driver issues causing us grief.
Also, I'm not sure what you mean about complaining about the use of TCP/IP for the online game play. I wrote the network layer for D3 (the same layer is used for other games including Freespace II if I remember correctly), and it used only UDP/IP for in game play. I think a lot of the complaints about laggy play were unfair given the networks people were playing over (no fast action game works well when pings get to 700ms or more).
I'd love to be involved with Descent again, but I really doubt it will happen.
BTW, my son was born right after D3 was released, and he really likes to play it now, which is pretty cool.
IMO, a large part of the problem is how closely the network code has to be coupled with the rest of the game. All game state data has to be transmitted, as well as the position, orientation, velocity, etc. Add in scripted events, and there's no simple general purpose solution to reusing the network logic.
Also, the internet is so unpredictable and varying in capabilities it is really hard to tune for bandwidth, loss, and latency. I know a lot of Descent 3 players were telling the game they had T1 speeds when they really were on dialup. That caused lots of dropped packets, terrible bouts of delayed packets (which looks like horrible lag), etc. All because they tried to send too many packets in too short of a time, thinking "faster is better" would give them a better experience.
This game NEEDS to be remade -- the story, characters, and gameplay mechanics are just about the best ever, but are trapped in an awful game engine with atrocious AI. Even with the major flaws, I still play through it about once a year. I would LOVE to see it remade with a modern engine, with all the rough edges smoothed out (and without the dumbed down, console-friendly interface of the PoS sequel!), and the story line and environments fleshed out a little bit further. That would be beyond an epic win.
Amen! The game was a tour de force, -despite- its short comings. How often can you say about the game "Well, it was terrible but it rocked my world." That was what Deus Ex was to me, and I played it years after it was released when it looked pretty old and the graphics were stale. It was a compelling, thoughtful, atmospheric and well-written piece of art. It was everything its sequel was not.
I would reboot Final Fantasy and make many of the characters less cheesy. I would also make the subject matter a bit darker and the interactions more free form. I think it would also be nice to have a non-turn-based combat option.
I would reboot Final Fantasy and make many of the characters less cheesy.
If you think the characters are cheesy, that's one thing, but why do you think this needs a "reboot"? What does "reboot" even mean here, given that almost every game has nothing to do with any of the other games in the series?
I would also make the subject matter a bit darker
Which FF game are you talking about? A number of the FF games have had fairly dark plots underneath their superficially colorful graphics; FF6, Tactics, 10, and 12 all come to mind immediately.
the interactions more free form
So... you want the series to basically stop being like a Japanese RPG and be more like a Western RPG?
I think it would also be nice to have a non-turn-based combat option.
FF 4 through 9, 11, and 12 all fit that bill. If you didn't mean "turn-based" but actually meant, "I want a battle system where characters don't line up in rows and swing at each other", there's still 11 and 12.
I could be wrong, but it sounds like you're basing your opinion of the entire series off of just one or two of the games.
Aside from FFX-2, each Final Fantasy game has been more or less independent of its predecessors, so essentially the series gets a small reboot with every game. And as for the non-turn-based combat option, FF12 came close -- each character still takes their turns, but it's less "your guys go, then the enemies go" and more of a "do your stuff, then wait for a cooldown" system.
I agree that I'd like to see a darker Final Fantasy -- while most of the FF games deal with the end of the world as a consequence for
There are about a hojillion XCOM reboots out there: some open sourced, some commercial. A common phrase is "spiritual successor." Honestly, you can't swing a dead cat on a google search [google.com] without finding one.
UFO Aftermath was the start of a great series with both the strategic and tactical options, all set in a post-apocalyptic world. UFO Extraterrestrials is another. Then there's UFO2000, UFO:AI... different games focus on different aspects of the game type.
XCOM is next in my line of reviews, so I've been gathering a ton of this information together lately.:)
Star Control II was remade into Ur Quan Masters... not a reboot with new graphics, but there is updated music and options to make it playable on any current system. I'd love a new sequel though. Go to Toys for Bob's sourceforge page [sc2.sourceforgenet] and sign their petition for commercial development if you're moved to do so.
The original Wing Commander games were great. For some reason the gaming industry has moved away from space fighter simulators. Which is disappointing, that was an early genre that was a lot of fun.
I particularly have fond memories of Wing Commander Armada, which combined in strategy elements. You had to explore planets, mine resources and build factories and ships, and you had to do it carefully. When your fleet met the enemies, it switched to the traditional fighter simulator. Even then though, you had a fleet of ships with goals, and you could switch control between them.
I'd love to see Wing Commander, or some other space fighter, done with today's technology.
Jumpgate Evolution [jumpgateevolution.com] may interest you, when it eventually comes out. A twitch-based space fighter sim MMO, with a pretty good sounding flight model.
The greatest arcade sports game in history, this game is begging to be remade for xbox live, the simplistic game mechanics yet deep skill still holds up to this day.
Grim Fandango. Just for the thought of being able to roam around in a full 3d environment with Manny would be awesome. Not that was a game that had style.
I just finished buying all the original Lucasarts adventure games that were released on steam (Dig, Monkey Island, Indiana Jones) as well as the new Monkey Island game (+episodes). My fiancee had me pick up the Wallace and Gromit games.
What I'm saying is, I'm still an adventure game junkie, and, if I have anything to say about it, any kids I have will be too. We need more of them.
This is obvious. Every 3d Sonic has sucked starting with Sonic Adventure (which sucked just a little) and has gone downhill since. Dump all the stupid characters and give it a 2d perspective again. Sonic Rush comes close, it would be nice to see a game of that quality hit a major console.
Sega had some great games in the 90s that I'd love to see done again:
- Crazy Taxi (how about a multiplayer version, everyone competing for fares?) - Jet Set Radio (that funky Tokyo-esque rollerblading game with its awesome soundtrack never gets old) - Shenmue (hell, forget the reboot, I just want to see the damn storyline finished!) - Sonic (on second thought, no, forget Sonic)
by Anonymous Coward
on Tuesday July 28, @09:06AM (#28851471)
Come on lucasarts - let's reboot the xwing series - xwing, tie fighter, etc.. make it have the same controls like before, joystick support, keep the simulation aspects, don't dumb it downor make it all consolitis.. I want to be able to manage my weapons shields and engines..
Guess what, the number 1 candidate I'd have named is getting a reboot. Mechwarrior. My head tells me that disappointment is still the likely outcome, but my hearts looks at the material they've put out so far and jumps for joy.
Other good candidates?
Wing Commander - it was the series that defined "cutting edge" gaming for a generation. I'd love to see this done properly on modern technology - including the heavy story emphasis and cheesy cutscenes.
Eye of the Beholder - this would need to be done properly. RPGs these days tend towards big open worlds, which can be great. But I'd love to see a decent, non-Diablo-style RPG which takes a classic, claustrophobic dungeon setting (running on a decent, modern engine) and places the emphasis firmly on survival and puzzle solving, rather than making friends and becoming the Grand Trademaster Caravanlord of Little Wizzlington.
Star Control - Pretend the third game never happened, just give us either a decent sequel or a franchise reboot in the style of the second game.
And finally (and this is what gets me flamed)... Half-Life. I didn't like Half-Life 2. I've replayed it a couple of times trying to "get" it and I still don't like it. The changes with the game-world of the first game are too jarring and badly explained. The idea of the mute protagonist just Does Not Work in the context of a more open-world game like Half-Life 2. It certainly doesn't work when you try to make said protagonist out to be some kind of a Messiah figure. Pretend HL2 never happened and go back to the feel of the original.
Half Life 2 is "open world?" I love the game, but it's totally linear. There's a series of arenas connected by narrow passages. Episode 2 had slightly more space, what with the driving sequence at the end, but even that was still an arena. And Gordon was mute all through the first game, so I don't understand why you feel it "works" in that one and not in the sequels.
We need a true shadowrun game. Nothing at all like the multiplayer shooter MS released.
A true old school cyberpunk game.
On a completely unrelated note, MDK could use revisiting.
OK, I know this would be the best selling game in the history of games... but I've been pining for an updated Sim Earth lately. There is so much going on with climate science I think it would be really interesting.
There hasn't been a good single player fantasy RPG game released in quite a while.
And I grew up on Wing Commander. From pixelated sprites to 3-D models. Nothing like nursing your ship through that last waypoint with one working mass driver hoping you don't meet any more nasties. Space sims seem to have dropped of the edge of the planet in recent years (EVE Online excepted). It would be nice to see one again so I can blow the dust off of my joystick.
Despite a growing interest in piecing one together by it's fanbase; Zelda has no definitive timeline.
Nearly each iteration of the series is a reboot.
Zelda 2 was a sequel to Zelda 1. Majora's Mask was a sequel to Ocarina of Time. And I suspect that the DS games I haven't played are related (Oracle series, Minish Cap series?)
The rest are independent of each other. Hell, the intro to Wind Waker basically spells that out.
We're talking about a series of like 12 or 13 games, where only 3 or 4 are direct sequels, and none of the series has 3 in the same series.
by Anonymous Coward
on Tuesday July 28, @09:24AM (#28851857)
I still religiously play Commander Keen every year or so. Even today, bouncing mushroom, slugs, and kid heroes in football helmets don't get old. I would love to see a remake, as long as it stays true to the original series.
I think Square-Enix needs to collaborate with Nintendo to make another Super Mario RPG. Few RPGs have the level of actual -fun- that Super Mario RPG had. Paper Mario and Mario and Luigi are pathetic imitations when it comes to Super Mario RPG. And above all the game seemed "fresh", having a lot of the same Nintendo characters but added a lot of new ones with impressive depth. Mix that with graphics that still look great today and it is a game just dying to be re-made as a DS or Wii game.
Give me a remake of Red Baron, and to get my WW2 fix in as well, Aces of the Pacific/Over Europe, and I'd be a happy man. (Throw in another vote for TIE Fighter and/or Wing Commander as well).
Just seems nobody even tries to make a good flight sim game any more.
If you're going to reboot an original you gotta do Oregon Trail!
not that it was really a series, but put in a better map, better hunting, different hazards, more types of supplies, open-ended route selection like gps navigation or something, roving bands of indians to deal with, much much more!!
i still have the old version on a flash drive with an old mac emulator and play it every now and then, so much fun hunting, i always max out the number of bullets i can take with me!
System Shock was too far ahead of it's time. The interface was inventive, but not in a good way. The creatures were scary, but had no AI to speak of. The graphics were cutting edge...in the 90's. And they game play has inspired the industry in so many ways, what would happen if the industry returned that inspiration?
The originals - Pool of Radiance, Curse of the Azure Bonds, Secret of the Silver Blades, Pools of Darkness. Wrap them in one long game. Tie them together a little more neatly. Remove the reliance on journals. (Although I will admit the translation wheel and journal were awesome in the day, now they only serve as a distraction -- dig through the box, find the manual, read the entry - and that's only if I've managed to forget what the entry was, which isn't likely.)
Remaking the games and giving PoR and CotAB the Fix command in camp would be nice. Updating the graphics would be nice. But the game play - what I refer to as fantasy based squad level combat, not role playing - could be hugely improved. You could add role playing elements by expanding the options in the games for solving the puzzles. Make the players think more in quite a few of the situations they found themselves in.
Though, SotSB could probably be left out to die. I don't have many fond memories of it. And this probably doesn't qualify as a reboot so much as a remake. And WotC, or whoever holds the AD&D license now, would insist on using 4e rules which would change the flavor of the game entirely...
Dungeon Keeper would be a fantastic game to see re-imagined. Eye of the Beholder. I'd enjoy seeing what some of the darker personalities of the world could do with the Warcraft lore, given the chance. Space simulations need to come back -- picked up FreeSpace and FreeSpace 2 at Good Old Games (http://www.gog.com [gog.com]) and loved 'em; they're made even better with the FreeSpace Source Code Project [indiegames.us] created by the source code release by Volition. (Hm, have they already been rebooted, or just remade? There are several new campaigns...)
Wing Commander would be awesome to see revived. Ultima would be a fantastic series to see reimagined, especially the first three (which I never liked all that much due to the space portions). RIP Origin.:|
Most of the games that have been mentioned are or were gems. Maybe of their time, but they were really good. They don't need a reboot. They need a makeover. The formula was right and the game in a new dress would rock again.
I think what we should be looking for is games that had a great idea but went off in the wrong direction. Where the original idea was novel, stunning, the foundation of a truely great game, but the game itself was lacking in some way. Or games where the first installment was awesome but they botched it with the sequels.
Bioshock was a pale shadow of the masterpieces that were System Shock and System Shock 2. I've never, ever been scared and immersed while playing a game like I was in SS or SS2.
Rogue or Nethack (Score:5, Funny)
I would mix up all the letters.
Re:Rogue or Nethack (Score:5, Funny)
Happens to me every time I drink XFKG MZJTZ. But then I chase it down with some JIZV KLZV and start thinking of Maud, and forget about everything else.
Parent
Re:Rogue or Nethack (Score:4, Funny)
Parent
Re:Gorz (Score:5, Funny)
Only if room descriptions are like:
"u r in a maze of twizty pssges all aleik lol"
Parent
Not all series need reboots (Score:5, Funny)
Kid Icarus! (Score:5, Interesting)
The summary is dark, (Score:5, Funny)
Space Quest (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Space Quest (Score:4, Insightful)
I don't think we need a reboot of the Space Quest franchise as much as we just need another Space Quest game.
Parent
Re:Space Quest (Score:5, Interesting)
I don't think we need a reboot of the Space Quest franchise as much as we just need another Space Quest game.
Sierra had one in the works (as in at least parts of the game were playable) about 5-6 years ago, but it was canceled. I don't think they ever disclosed publicly that they were working on it, but I know someone who was on the dev team. It sounded like they were staying pretty faithful to the spirit of the originals, although that may have been their downfall - sci-fi comedy is sort of a niche market, and Space/King's Quest-style old-school adventure games definitely are. Sierra is (or was at the time at least) basically the most cancel-happy publisher of all time, so I'm sure it didn't take much for them to get cold feet.
Posted anonymously to protect the guilty.
Parent
Re:Space Quest (Score:4, Interesting)
What about a new version of Elite?
Or is it impossible to improve upon such a classic?
Parent
Descent! (Score:5, Interesting)
I would love to see a remake of any of the descent series remade. I still have each of them and from time to time have to play them even though they are getting old.
Re:Descent! (Score:5, Interesting)
Parent
Re:Descent! (Score:5, Interesting)
As one of the Kahn developers (another one of them is sitting in the office next to mine), and one of the programmers of Descent 3 I have to respond.
First off, the Kahn/Kali days were loads of fun, playing Descent 1 over the internet back in 1996 is a great memory I still have.
IMO, the problems with D3 was that we never got the scale right for flying. D1/D2 had a feeling of speed because the tunnels were smaller and simpler. In D3 the designers tried to achieve a sense of massive complexes, which meant larger rooms and tunnels plus outdoor terrain. The problem there was the sense of flying fast was lost. I think this is the thing that disappointed most Descent fans. But I don't think that is what kept it from being a commercial success. I think the problem there was 1) feature creep made the development of D3 cost too much, 2) As you mentioned, the game was released in an era that had loads of hardware video card driver issues, which lead to tons of returns, and IMO the biggest issue: 3) Descent fatigue (lots of people bought D1/D2 because it was a unique idea, but by D3 they had already been there and done that).
Contrary to what you say though, D3 wasn't primarily developed for Glide. It was originally developed for Glide, but that's because at the time development started that was the only real option. A lot of effort was put into OpenGL, but there were constant driver issues causing us grief.
Also, I'm not sure what you mean about complaining about the use of TCP/IP for the online game play. I wrote the network layer for D3 (the same layer is used for other games including Freespace II if I remember correctly), and it used only UDP/IP for in game play. I think a lot of the complaints about laggy play were unfair given the networks people were playing over (no fast action game works well when pings get to 700ms or more).
I'd love to be involved with Descent again, but I really doubt it will happen.
BTW, my son was born right after D3 was released, and he really likes to play it now, which is pretty cool.
Parent
Re:Descent! (Score:5, Interesting)
IMO, a large part of the problem is how closely the network code has to be coupled with the rest of the game. All game state data has to be transmitted, as well as the position, orientation, velocity, etc. Add in scripted events, and there's no simple general purpose solution to reusing the network logic.
Also, the internet is so unpredictable and varying in capabilities it is really hard to tune for bandwidth, loss, and latency. I know a lot of Descent 3 players were telling the game they had T1 speeds when they really were on dialup. That caused lots of dropped packets, terrible bouts of delayed packets (which looks like horrible lag), etc. All because they tried to send too many packets in too short of a time, thinking "faster is better" would give them a better experience.
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Deus Ex (Score:5, Insightful)
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Final Fantasy (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Final Fantasy (Score:5, Funny)
I agree, you spoony bard!
Parent
Re:Final Fantasy (Score:5, Informative)
I would reboot Final Fantasy and make many of the characters less cheesy.
If you think the characters are cheesy, that's one thing, but why do you think this needs a "reboot"? What does "reboot" even mean here, given that almost every game has nothing to do with any of the other games in the series?
I would also make the subject matter a bit darker
Which FF game are you talking about? A number of the FF games have had fairly dark plots underneath their superficially colorful graphics; FF6, Tactics, 10, and 12 all come to mind immediately.
the interactions more free form
So... you want the series to basically stop being like a Japanese RPG and be more like a Western RPG?
I think it would also be nice to have a non-turn-based combat option.
FF 4 through 9, 11, and 12 all fit that bill. If you didn't mean "turn-based" but actually meant, "I want a battle system where characters don't line up in rows and swing at each other", there's still 11 and 12.
I could be wrong, but it sounds like you're basing your opinion of the entire series off of just one or two of the games.
Parent
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Aside from FFX-2, each Final Fantasy game has been more or less independent of its predecessors, so essentially the series gets a small reboot with every game. And as for the non-turn-based combat option, FF12 came close -- each character still takes their turns, but it's less "your guys go, then the enemies go" and more of a "do your stuff, then wait for a cooldown" system.
I agree that I'd like to see a darker Final Fantasy -- while most of the FF games deal with the end of the world as a consequence for
Games of my youth! (Score:5, Insightful)
X-Com! Star Control! Especially given that the most recent sequels were horrible.
Re:Games of my youth! (Score:4, Informative)
There are about a hojillion XCOM reboots out there: some open sourced, some commercial. A common phrase is "spiritual successor." Honestly, you can't swing a dead cat on a google search [google.com] without finding one.
UFO Aftermath was the start of a great series with both the strategic and tactical options, all set in a post-apocalyptic world. UFO Extraterrestrials is another. Then there's UFO2000, UFO:AI ... different games focus on different aspects of the game type.
XCOM is next in my line of reviews, so I've been gathering a ton of this information together lately. :)
Star Control II was remade into Ur Quan Masters... not a reboot with new graphics, but there is updated music and options to make it playable on any current system. I'd love a new sequel though. Go to Toys for Bob's sourceforge page [sc2.sourceforgenet] and sign their petition for commercial development if you're moved to do so.
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Wing Commander (Score:5, Interesting)
The original Wing Commander games were great. For some reason the gaming industry has moved away from space fighter simulators. Which is disappointing, that was an early genre that was a lot of fun.
I particularly have fond memories of Wing Commander Armada, which combined in strategy elements. You had to explore planets, mine resources and build factories and ships, and you had to do it carefully. When your fleet met the enemies, it switched to the traditional fighter simulator. Even then though, you had a fleet of ships with goals, and you could switch control between them.
I'd love to see Wing Commander, or some other space fighter, done with today's technology.
Re:Wing Commander (Score:5, Informative)
Parent
NBA JAM: Tournament Edition (Score:5, Insightful)
Are you listening Lucasarts?` (Score:5, Interesting)
Grim Fandango. Just for the thought of being able to roam around in a full 3d environment with Manny would be awesome. Not that was a game that had style.
"Ask me about Grim Fandango" (Score:5, Insightful)
I just finished buying all the original Lucasarts adventure games that were released on steam (Dig, Monkey Island, Indiana Jones) as well as the new Monkey Island game (+episodes). My fiancee had me pick up the Wallace and Gromit games.
What I'm saying is, I'm still an adventure game junkie, and, if I have anything to say about it, any kids I have will be too. We need more of them.
Parent
Sonic (Score:5, Insightful)
This is obvious. Every 3d Sonic has sucked starting with Sonic Adventure (which sucked just a little) and has gone downhill since. Dump all the stupid characters and give it a 2d perspective again. Sonic Rush comes close, it would be nice to see a game of that quality hit a major console.
Hrmm (Score:5, Insightful)
Syndicate ...and if I was being blasphemous, The last ninja
Sega franchises (Score:3, Insightful)
Sega had some great games in the 90s that I'd love to see done again:
- Crazy Taxi (how about a multiplayer version, everyone competing for fares?)
- Jet Set Radio (that funky Tokyo-esque rollerblading game with its awesome soundtrack never gets old)
- Shenmue (hell, forget the reboot, I just want to see the damn storyline finished!)
- Sonic (on second thought, no, forget Sonic)
X-Wing vs Tie Fighter (Score:5, Interesting)
Xwing Series (Score:3, Informative)
Come on lucasarts - let's reboot the xwing series - xwing, tie fighter, etc..
make it have the same controls like before, joystick support, keep the simulation aspects, don't dumb it downor make it all consolitis.. I want to be able to manage my weapons shields and engines..
that would be awesome
Yay Mechwarrior (and a few more suggestions) (Score:5, Insightful)
Guess what, the number 1 candidate I'd have named is getting a reboot. Mechwarrior. My head tells me that disappointment is still the likely outcome, but my hearts looks at the material they've put out so far and jumps for joy.
Other good candidates?
Wing Commander - it was the series that defined "cutting edge" gaming for a generation. I'd love to see this done properly on modern technology - including the heavy story emphasis and cheesy cutscenes.
Eye of the Beholder - this would need to be done properly. RPGs these days tend towards big open worlds, which can be great. But I'd love to see a decent, non-Diablo-style RPG which takes a classic, claustrophobic dungeon setting (running on a decent, modern engine) and places the emphasis firmly on survival and puzzle solving, rather than making friends and becoming the Grand Trademaster Caravanlord of Little Wizzlington.
Star Control - Pretend the third game never happened, just give us either a decent sequel or a franchise reboot in the style of the second game.
And finally (and this is what gets me flamed)... Half-Life. I didn't like Half-Life 2. I've replayed it a couple of times trying to "get" it and I still don't like it. The changes with the game-world of the first game are too jarring and badly explained. The idea of the mute protagonist just Does Not Work in the context of a more open-world game like Half-Life 2. It certainly doesn't work when you try to make said protagonist out to be some kind of a Messiah figure. Pretend HL2 never happened and go back to the feel of the original.
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
New Mechwarrior IS in the works. (Score:4, Informative)
Parent
Shadowrun (Score:5, Insightful)
Sim Earth (Score:4, Interesting)
OK, I know this would be the best selling game in the history of games... but I've been pining for an updated Sim Earth lately. There is so much going on with climate science I think it would be really interesting.
Origin Systems Games (Score:3)
Ultima and Wing Commander in particular.
There hasn't been a good single player fantasy RPG game released in quite a while.
And I grew up on Wing Commander. From pixelated sprites to 3-D models. Nothing like nursing your ship through that last waypoint with one working mass driver hoping you don't meet any more nasties. Space sims seem to have dropped of the edge of the planet in recent years (EVE Online excepted). It would be nice to see one again so I can blow the dust off of my joystick.
Zelda has no definitive timeline (Score:5, Informative)
Despite a growing interest in piecing one together by it's fanbase; Zelda has no definitive timeline.
Nearly each iteration of the series is a reboot.
Zelda 2 was a sequel to Zelda 1. Majora's Mask was a sequel to Ocarina of Time. And I suspect that the DS games I haven't played are related (Oracle series, Minish Cap series?)
The rest are independent of each other. Hell, the intro to Wind Waker basically spells that out.
We're talking about a series of like 12 or 13 games, where only 3 or 4 are direct sequels, and none of the series has 3 in the same series.
Two Words.... (Score:5, Funny)
BURGER TIME.
'Nuff Said
Commander Keen (Score:5, Interesting)
I still religiously play Commander Keen every year or so. Even today, bouncing mushroom, slugs, and kid heroes in football helmets don't get old. I would love to see a remake, as long as it stays true to the original series.
Super Mario RPG (Score:3, Informative)
Flight Sims (Score:3, Insightful)
Give me a remake of Red Baron, and to get my WW2 fix in as well, Aces of the Pacific/Over Europe, and I'd be a happy man. (Throw in another vote for TIE Fighter and/or Wing Commander as well).
Just seems nobody even tries to make a good flight sim game any more.
Oregon Trail! (Score:4, Interesting)
not that it was really a series, but put in a better map, better hunting, different hazards, more types of supplies, open-ended route selection like gps navigation or something, roving bands of indians to deal with, much much more!!
i still have the old version on a flash drive with an old mac emulator and play it every now and then, so much fun hunting, i always max out the number of bullets i can take with me!
System Shock! (Score:4, Insightful)
System Shock was too far ahead of it's time. The interface was inventive, but not in a good way. The creatures were scary, but had no AI to speak of. The graphics were cutting edge...in the 90's. And they game play has inspired the industry in so many ways, what would happen if the industry returned that inspiration?
Gold Box Series! Dungeon Keeper! Wing Commander! (Score:5, Interesting)
The originals - Pool of Radiance, Curse of the Azure Bonds, Secret of the Silver Blades, Pools of Darkness. Wrap them in one long game. Tie them together a little more neatly. Remove the reliance on journals. (Although I will admit the translation wheel and journal were awesome in the day, now they only serve as a distraction -- dig through the box, find the manual, read the entry - and that's only if I've managed to forget what the entry was, which isn't likely.)
Remaking the games and giving PoR and CotAB the Fix command in camp would be nice. Updating the graphics would be nice. But the game play - what I refer to as fantasy based squad level combat, not role playing - could be hugely improved. You could add role playing elements by expanding the options in the games for solving the puzzles. Make the players think more in quite a few of the situations they found themselves in.
Though, SotSB could probably be left out to die. I don't have many fond memories of it. And this probably doesn't qualify as a reboot so much as a remake. And WotC, or whoever holds the AD&D license now, would insist on using 4e rules which would change the flavor of the game entirely...
Dungeon Keeper would be a fantastic game to see re-imagined. Eye of the Beholder. I'd enjoy seeing what some of the darker personalities of the world could do with the Warcraft lore, given the chance. Space simulations need to come back -- picked up FreeSpace and FreeSpace 2 at Good Old Games (http://www.gog.com [gog.com]) and loved 'em; they're made even better with the FreeSpace Source Code Project [indiegames.us] created by the source code release by Volition. (Hm, have they already been rebooted, or just remade? There are several new campaigns...)
Wing Commander would be awesome to see revived. Ultima would be a fantastic series to see reimagined, especially the first three (which I never liked all that much due to the space portions). RIP Origin. :|
Duke Nukem! Honestly! (Score:4, Interesting)
I think we're on the wrong track (Score:5, Insightful)
Most of the games that have been mentioned are or were gems. Maybe of their time, but they were really good. They don't need a reboot. They need a makeover. The formula was right and the game in a new dress would rock again.
I think what we should be looking for is games that had a great idea but went off in the wrong direction. Where the original idea was novel, stunning, the foundation of a truely great game, but the game itself was lacking in some way. Or games where the first installment was awesome but they botched it with the sequels.
Re:System Shock (Score:5, Insightful)
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