It’s award season here at Twinfinite! Today, we’re looking back at the best remasters and remakes of video games in 2019. Voted on by our editors, these were the games that best remade or remastered their originals, with polished visuals and refined gameplay, while staying true to the original vision.
Let’s start with some honorable mentions, followed by our two runners-up, and of course, our overall winner for 2019.
Best Remakes & Remasters of 2019
Honorable Mention: Crash Team Racing Nitro Fueled
Guides Editor Chris Jecks: If there was one game that dominated my early video-game-playing years, it was Crash Team Racing on the PS1. I remember being glued to the family TV for hours at a time, my parents wondering if Polar and I would ever, ever actually take poll position on Cortex Castle. I did… and then I hit Nitros Oxide.
Reminiscing aside, Crash Team Racing seemed like the perfect game to get the remaster treatment back when the craze took off at the start of this console generation. It still seemed like a good idea years after, when seemingly everything was getting a remaster. Then, finally, Activision gave in to fan demands. Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled released on PS4, Xbox One, and Switch.
Bringing all of the iconic tracks and characters you know and love, complete with shortcuts likely etched into your brain. Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled is a pretty faithful remake of the original when it comes to single-player and the general gameplay.
Some things had to change, though. The drifting mechanics were tweaked slightly, and there are swathes of new characters, karts, cosmetics, and post-launch DLC content to keep the game feeling fresh and like it belongs in 2019.
Despite some multiplayer issues when it first released, Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled’s online has since stabilized, making for some intense, kart-racing fun. Whether you played the original or not, pick up Nitro-Fueled. It’s the closest thing to a rival that portly plumber Mario and co’s kart racer has.
