Which Game Series Would You Reboot? 1120
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?
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
Re:Wing Commander (Score:5, Informative)
Comment removed (Score:5, Informative)
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.
Super Mario RPG (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Deus Ex (Score:3, Informative)
Deus Ex 3
Eidos Montreal is currently developing the third installment of the legendary series
http://www.deusex3.com/
Re:Wing Commander (Score:3, Informative)
Carmageddon (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Re-Boot To Mobile (Score:3, Informative)
New Mechwarrior IS in the works. (Score:4, Informative)
Re:Space Quest (Score:3, Informative)
Yes, but through a z-machine/infocom interpreter, such as one at the following: http://www.ifarchive.org/indexes/if-archiveXinfocomXinterpreters.html [ifarchive.org]
Re:Descent! (Score:3, Informative)
Freespace 2 is really still with us:
http://scp.indiegames.us/ [indiegames.us]
I have only just got around to playing it though for the first time. Plays well with a PS3 controller, however I am still really missing the three-axis joystick I build for Decent 1.
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.
Re:Zelda has no definitive timeline (Score:1, Informative)
Quick clarification:
The two NES Zelda games are related (Zelda II is a direct sequel of the original game)
A Link to the Past (SNES) and Link's Awakening (GB) are possibly related, possibly not.
Majora's Mask is a "gaiden game" to Ocarina of Time (i.e., it occurs after the events of OoT, but has no relation to its story).
The Oracle of Ages/Seasons (GBC) are related to each other (both create a two-game story arc).
The Wind Waker (GC) mentions the events of Ocarina of Time in its folklore.
Minish Cap and Four Swords (GBA), and Four Swords Adventures (GC), are loosely related just as Twilight Princess and Wind Waker are loosely related to Ocarina of Time.
Phantom Hourglass (DS) is a "gaiden game" to Wind Waker. Status of Spirit Tracks (DS - future release) is unknown but presumed to follow Wind Waker.
As mentioned, Twilight Princess (Wii/GC) is a stand-alone game that references Ocarina of Time just as Wind Waker does, though they are incompatible with each other on a single time-line.
That said, a really good reboot would be a game that mixes up the gameplay of the series and re-tells the story of the first two NES games. Just as The Dark Knight re-told the story of the first Batman movie without actually being a remake, a reboot that kinda remixed the first two games would be awesome.
Re:Deus Ex (Score:3, Informative)
There's the High Definition Texture Pack [offtopicproductions.com] fan project, which is pretty damn cool looking. There's only so much you can do with the original Unreal Engine, but it looks pretty good.
Master of Magic (Score:2, Informative)
MoM was like Civilization ... only with a magical/fantasy emphasis instead of Civilization's technology emphasis. It also had 2 worlds ... the day world, and a sort of "underworld" that you could get to through magic gates.
I'd update it, give it solo, multi-player (LAN, or closed list of players), and online modes (open to anyone on the internet, probably housed in a game company's servers)
and in the online mode, instead having the "underworld", the gates would lead to other online game groups where the overall power levels were comparable (so that the game could, in theory, keep building along, as long as there are other game worlds at a similar level of advancement ... and that latter qualification (comparable/similar-level-of-advancement) would keep things relatively playable so that small empires aren't clashing with empires that span 12 worlds).
If a player conquers a world, then they could save and exit the game, which just means that all gates to that world (or group of worlds) close until the player resumes.
Re:Deus Ex (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Marathon (Score:3, Informative)
I wouldn't mind a refresh of the original Marathon. Upgrade the engine and graphics but keep the game play and sounds, other than converting to true surround sound. Was totally creepy playing that at 3am, even with just a stereo setup.
Then vsit Marathon Open Source [bungie.org] to download an updated version of the Marathon engine, all three original games in formats compatible with the updated engine (free and legal), and a variety of graphical enhancements (high-res walls, weapons, basically everything but the monsters) created by the fans over the years.
Also, while you're at it download my own 52-level unofficial sequel to the Marathon Trilogy, complete with all-new hi-res goodness just like the originals now have: Eternal [bungie.org]. Also highly recommended: Marathon: Rubicon [marathonrubicon.com], another unofficial sequel.
Re:System Shock! (Score:2, Informative)
Which was just another no strategy required shoot 'em up with magic. (Renamed of course)