Spyro the Dragon
It’s been way too long since we’ve had a proper Spyro entry grace our world, which is a shame. With gorgeous worlds, catchy music, and fun characters, Insomniac’s original trilogy deserves a complete remake to usher in a new era.
Ideally, Insomniac would get in on the action. The stellar work they did on the remake of Ratchet and Clank shows that they know what needs changing in their own work, and no doubt that they’d see what needs improving in Spyro. While the first game was more of a platformer, the remake would probably lean more towards action and exploration, taking in elements from the recent games, such as different breath types and being able to freely fly around an area. We’ve already seen more or less what a Spyro game would look like on current gen, so why not make it?
Brave Fencer Musashi
Square was no slouch during the PS1 era, putting out stellar titles such as Final Fantasy 7 and Brave Fencer Musashi, an action-RPG about a young swordsman saving a kingdom. Action games have improved since 1998, and if anyone could remake Musashi and do it justice, it’d be the folks of Platinum Games. Stylistic action is their bread and butter, as Bayonetta and Metal Gear Rising have shown. With two swords at Musashi’s disposal, both with their own different abilities and combined with the other elemental powers, it’d be another chance for their combat to flourish.
Medieval
Ah, who doesn’t remember the fun times that were had with Sir Daniel Fortesque and his quest for redemption? The first two Medieval games were pretty great back then, and it’s a shame that his adventures never really continued beyond the PS1. Gothic horror and skeletons mean that only one developer would be able to do Sir Dan the justice he deserves, and that’s the hard working folks at From Software. Sure, it’s not incredibly different from what they’ve been doing, but their love of difficulty and combat would serve them well here. After all, the first game was criticized for being too easy to master, so best to lean in the other direction. Keep the humor, though, and the Tim Burton influence.
Tenchu
It’s been quite a while since we’ve had a good ninja game, and it’s been even longer since we’ve had a Tenchu title. The series hasn’t entirely been the best it could’ve been since it left the PS1, and but the series needs a resurgence. We said that they’d be good for Medieval, but there’s no reason for From to not tackle their own baby as well. Arkham Asylum has shown that there’s a way to make stealth fun, even as you screw up, and here’s hoping From takes that formula to heart. Hand to hand would ideally follow in that regard as well, until it’s time to break out the swords. Plus, bring back the mission editor. That was rad.
Ape Escape
Look, the second game is already on the PS4 as a Classic, so may as well go whole hog and just remake the first game in its entirety. The first Ape Escape is pretty high up there on the list of best PS1 games ever, after all.
The first game was commended for its innovative use of the controller for the time, and that’s something that could still be recreated with the touchpad. With the PS4 now having been out for three years, developers have managed to find a way to incorporate into gameplay organically or in cool functions, as we saw with Killzone Shadow Fall and Infamous Second Son.
Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain
Legacy of Kain was the series that helped Amy Hennig grow to prominence as a game writer and director. While it’s more than a great game, the original PS1 title is what should be remade. Crystal Dynamics own the rights to the series, and as such, they’d be the ones to work on the remake. Instead of the top down perspective of the original game, this one would have to be a third person action title. The draining health meter would have to return, not only to add challenge. For harder difficulties, the health would drain way faster than on the normal difficulty. And of course, the day/night cycle needs to return, and with it a new selection of vampire abilities.
Silent Hill
One of the scariest games of all time, and one of the best games overall, getting a remake? Yeah, it more than deserves one, especially now that Konami doesn’t seem to want anything to do with the franchise beyond slot machines. So why not outsource it to some folks who get horror? Like say, Tango Gameworks, the folks behind the creepy as hell title, The Evil Within. Just remember to tone it down on the combat and focus on being scary, guys.
Parasite Eve
Yet another excellent Square title, this PS1 game was about NYC officer Aya Brea trying to stop a monster that’ll create a creature that can wipe out the human by making us all explode. Square would, of course, have to work on this. This actually could work as an episodic title, with each one taking place over the course of a day. It’d also make for a good opportunity to have multiple endings and paths for the player to take, in order to address complaints about the original being too linear and lacking replayability.
Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
Symphony of the Night is still regarded as one of the best Castlevania titles (probably the absolute best), and a remake of that game would be absolutely incredible. Again, Konami probably won’t be doing anything with this probable remake, so why not give it to someone like Ninja Theory? They can do fun, third person combat, not to mention their visual design would be absolutely stellar.
Tomba!
A pink-haired teenager hunting down evil pigs? Yeah, Tomba was a weird PS1 title, but it’s prime for a remake, done by the folks over at Volition. The concept alone sounds like something they’d come up with, and they’d make combat involving boomerangs and maces pretty fun. Plus, pigs!
Chrono Cross
There hasn’t been a new entry in the Chrono series in a long time, which is a shame. It’s still possible for there to be one, but one thing that would help would be if Square remade their other PS1 classic so new players will know what it is. Switching through multiple dimensions would look pretty cool on the PS4, and a combat system like Kingdom Hearts’ would be sweet.
PaRappa
Oh yeah, the rapping dog should totally get a PS4 remake, how could he not? The music landscape has changed since he first rapped his way onto the scene, and it’d need to be handled by DJ Hero developers, FreeStyle Games. Throw in the ability to make custom raps, and you’ve got yourself a fun game!
Rampage
Total destruction? Giant monsters? Yeah, Rampage was the jam back in 1997, and wouldn’t it be sweet to play that again on your PS4 with a couple of buddies? At the helm of all this needs to be DICE, the guys behind the beautifully destructive Frostbite engine that’s powered the Battlefield games. When you’re being destructive, you want your work too look gorgeous.
Dino Crisis
Let’s be real: the world needs more games about dinosaurs. Sure, Ark: Survival Evolved is cool and all, but other times, you just wanna blast a couple of dinosaurs in the face. The original PS1 game was more survival horror, which is cool, but action’s gotta be the way to go here. Borderlands developer Gearbox could make good work with dinosaurs going feral in a science facility.
Brave Fencer Musashi
Action games have improved greatly since 1998, and if anyone could remake Musashi and do it justice, it’d be the folks over at Platinum Games. Stylistic action is their bread and butter, as Bayonetta and Metal Gear Rising have shown audiences. With two swords at Musashi’s disposal, both with their own different abilities and combined with the other elemental powers, it’d be another chance for their combat to flourish.
Parasite Eve
Square would, of course, have to work on this. What’s more, this actually could work as an episodic title, with each one taking place over the course of a day. Given their decision to give their recent action-RPGs real-time battle systems, that would be included here, along with the return of “tuning up” weapon and armor attributes. It’d also make for a good opportunity to have multiple endings and paths for the player to take, in order to address complaints about the original being too linear and lacking replayability.
Silent Hill
At this point, it’d probably be asking too much for anyone at the original studio to make this, so why not outsource it to some folks who get horror? Like say, Tango Gameworks, the folks behind the creepy as hell title, The Evil Within. Just remember to tone it down on the combat and focus on being scary, guys.
Medievil
Gothic horror and skeletons mean that only one developer would be able to do Sir Dan the justice he deserves, and that’s the hardworking folks over at From Software. Sure, it’s not incredibly different from what they’ve been doing, but their love of difficulty and combat would serve them well here. After all, the first game was criticized for being too easy to master, so best to lean in the other direction. Keep the humor, though, and the Tim Burton influence.
Tenchu
Yeah, we said that they’d be good for Medieval, but there’s no reason for From to not tackle their own baby as well. They can handle more than one project, as Bloodborne and Dark Souls III have proven. Arkham Asylum has shown that there’s a way to make stealth fun, even as you screw up, and here’s hoping From takes that formula to heart. Hand to hand would ideally follow in that regard as well, until it’s time to break out the swords. Plus, bring back the mission editor. That was rad.
Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain
Crystal Dynamics owns the rights to the series, and as such, they’d be the ones to work on the remake. Instead of the top-down perspective of the original game, this one would have to be a third-person action title. The draining health meter would have to return, not only to add challenge, but also because Kain is a freaking vampire, and that’s what they feed on. For harder difficulties, the health would drain way faster than on the normal difficulty. And of course, the day/night cycle needs to return, and with it a new selection of vampire abilities.
Tomba!
Dino Crisis
Chrono Cross
Xenogears
Ape Escape
The first game was commended for its innovative use of the controller for the time, and that’s something that could still be recreated with the touchpad. With the PS4 now having been out for three years, developers have managed to find a way to incorporate into gameplay organically or in cool functions, as we saw with Killzone Shadow Fall and Infamous Second Son. We think Naughty Dog could do the game justice, and they would hopefully find a way to add the touchpad in without feeling forced.
Rampage
PaRappa the Rapper
Spyro the Dragon
Ideally, Insomniac would get in on the action here, just to complete the circle. The stellar work they did on the remake of Ratchet and Clank shows that they know what needs changing in their own work, and no doubt that they’d see what needs improving in Spyro. While the first game was more of a platformer, the remake would probably lean more towards action and exploration, taking in elements from the recent games, such as different breath types and being able to freely fly around an area. We’ve already seen more or less what a Spyro game would look like on current gen, so why not make it?
Published: Aug 4, 2016 11:17 am