Ben-DutkaOf all the advancements we've seen over the past few decades in the industry, I think we often gloss over one of the biggest new trends:
Games being released more than once.
You know, this happens a lot more than you might think. It can take the form of a Game of the Year Edition, a collection or bundle of some kind, or a high-definition update (very popular the previous generation). The examples are too numerous to count.
It seems like every time you turn around, another "new" release gets announced. Obviously, "new" is in quotations because in fact, many times, we've already seen the game(s) in question. They're either updated or added to in some way, but the bottom line is that there's nothing actually "new" about them. Now, on the one hand, there are obvious advantages: For those who never got a chance to play these games, they usually get the benefit of all the content in one place, and for a much cheaper price than if they had bought it all when it first released. Plus, HD upgrades of older titles let old-school gamers revel a bit.
On the other hand, I think the industry has fallen a little too much in love with these ideas. I'm all for things like the Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remasters and some of those jam-packed collections and bundles, but typically, it's just an easy cash-in method for publishers. I'm not necessarily complaining but as is so often the case, you can have too much of a good thing. Besides, how much effort and how many resources are being expended on such projects, when it could've been put toward something fresh…? That's a difficult question to answer.
What's your take?
I love them, as far as hd remakes I get to play the best version of some games I missed out on from before I started gaming. As for the ultimate editions of newer games I just wait for that edition and buy just it when it's $20-$30 and save myself a ton of money on dlc.
I may play most of my games over a year later than most people, but I save a ton of money.
I'm with you on this. I do the same thing for a majority of titles. I have a friend that buys brand new games all the time and seldom finishes them within a year of buying them. Such a waste of money and it explains why he never has money for the bars!
I don't really care for GOTY Editions, cause I feel like everyone already has the game, or at least, I know I sure as hell do.
This article reminds me, I so want an HD Remake of Jak X. Man, I've always wanted to play that online…
Jak X….::giggle::
Jak X was an appalling game, I have never met AI in a game which are such cheats! They're all very happy to stay ahead of you through out the race but as soon as you take over them the racers all hover behind your bumper! They just wait for that one moment you slip up and when that happens they all charge ahead in front! The game was just so infuriating, which is a game as Naughty Dog's Crash Team Racing on the PS1 is my favourite multi-player game of all time.
The ICO/SOTC Collection is a perfect example of how to properly do an HD port. Two of the greatest PS2 games that never saw enough sales given new life with a face lift.
The Silent Hill HD Collection is a perfect example of how to NOT properly do an HD port. They didn't even use the original code, they used the beta code!!! The HD version is actually WORSE than the PS2 originals in every way!
Like everything else it's all about the consumer being informed. I'm all for this type of product but don't expect the same level of quality across the board.
I had a blast with SH once they fixed that walking error in part III. That was a terrible thing I can't believe they released it that way.
It's all about the source.
There are so many issues with both games. For starters the different voice acting, the fog glitches, the frame rate issues, the change in dialogue, the changes to the cutscenes, the changes to the soundtrack.
The only thing I want in an HD port is a facelift, not a complete clusterf8ck of the original artists' creation. Check out Team Silent's comments on the HD collection. I could talk at great length about how pissed off it makes me feel.
You can choose the original voice cast
Only for Silent Hill 2 and that doesn't change the dozens of other issues with the port.
I've enjoyed the hd collections like Sly Cooper and the God of War collection of the psp games. I enjoyed them because it was an affordable way to play games that I had never played, or in the case of god of war, didn't have the system to play them on. What I really liked about them as well was the price, every collection I have seen has been at most $40. Also I'm all for game of the year editions, or definitive editions, for games that I never got around to playing, especially when they include all dlc and such.
I like HD stuff cuz the games look like bloody hell on an HD TV without the update. Usually smaller unknown devs helps with such things and I think that's good for the industry. GOTY editions are sort of a pain because it's like you are punished for wanting to get the game on Day 1.
Square Enix would do better to spend all their resources on updating old games than making new projects.
Yeah, I actually recently bought an older TV just for oldschool gaming. Best $85 I've ever spent on craigslist.
Same can be said for buying any movie nowadays.
I have three sets of The Lord of the rings trilogy uggghh. First three I had on DVD then as a gift was given the BluRay releases but then had to wait for an entire year later for the Bluray extended edition.
I understand with DLC and whatnot the convenience of GOTY titles but I am noticing a disturbingly similar trend to that of the movie business.
BTW your comment on SquareEnix is directly on point. I can't think of a single person I know who would be excited enough to play a brand new IP over an updated remake of a popular FinalFantasy or a new Kingdom Hearts title
Love em. I caught on to this scheme early, most of the games I have are the GOTY version if available. Games I want from publishers like Bethesda, Tecmo, Capcom, and Warner Bros. are games I know to hold off on. I don't mind waiting as long as I have other stuff to play.
For me the Gamecube's Resident Evil remake is the high water mark. Based on how underwhelming and convoluted the story (and games) stand currently, capcom would have been much better off continuing a trend by remaking the saga with a whole new RE2 and possibly RE3.
MGS Twin Snakes is another example how to re-imagine the same story and provide an updated look to the same game.
Never played God of War until the HD remake and it looks fantastic whereas RE4 HD doesn't look a whole lot different from the original.
Maybe the process is different from company to company but it seems to boil down as which HD remakes are a facelift and which ones are only there for the hype.
Twin Snales is a poor example of a remake. I am sorry to be so blunt but that game sucked the soul out of the original. It just lacked the atmosphere of the PS1 game and the cutscenes were ridiculous. Even if it had MGS2s mechanics the game just wasn't fun to play. I always play the PS1 version when playing Metal Gear Solid now.
Last edited by Vivi_Gamer on 2/17/2014 4:30:13 AM
I see what you're getting at Ultimadesires but you should know that isn't what I was implying.
Be the finished product good or bad I would rather play through a slightly different interpretation of the same game then one I have already played.
A cosmetic improvement to the resolution doesn't motivate me enough to play through a game I'm already familiar with.
-and frankly most older games that deserve the HD treatment, aren't playable by today's standards anyways
[Fear Effect for example]
Metal Gear Twin Snakes by any means wasn't a great leap forward but maybe more a mere step to the left. You obviously didn't like it, I felt it was ok. Opinions differ, nothing new there.
I did find it almost unplayable on the gamecube controller (call me a PSX Metal Gear enthusiast)
so I bought an adapter online which allowed me to plug a PS2 controller into the gamecube port.
That made a world of difference believe it or not after that I was able to enjoy getting through that extremely difficult game.
Last edited by Amnesiac on 2/17/2014 9:34:51 PM
I love GotY/Ultimate/Complete/etc editions, it means I generally won't have to worry about dlc if I'm just patient. A real lifesaver for those of us that struggle a bit on the economic side.
As for HD remasters, I've no real problem with them. Especially since they almost always come in bundles of several games.
exactly why i was so against the TR definitive edition.
yea its ridiculously priced, but more so its a massive waste of such a talented developer!
id love to see TLoU ported to ps4, but id scream bloody murder if ND did it.
im fine with remakes, HD collections, whatever you want to call it, as long as the right developers behind it.
and thats where smaller studios come into play, use them to create the HD remakes, and vita games, and leave the big studios to the new games.
My attitude towards all that is the exact same as my attitude towards DLCs: It all depends on the package.
When done wrong DLC is pure milking and damn annoying. But when done RIGHT… It enables you to spend more time and experience more in a game you love.
Like the Fallout DLCs. Those are great. Or the main DLCs for Borderlands. Or Saints Row, those are really good too.
GOTY editions can be great for those who have the patience to wait for'em. The HD remakes can be nice for those who care I suppose, although old games don't attract me personally regardless of visual presentation.
Last edited by Beamboom on 2/17/2014 3:25:22 AM
I care not for GoTY Editions. I do love HD Collections/Remasters of old games, especially if they have a collectors.
P.S. Have you guys seen the recent comments Toriyama made about Lightning possibly doing cameos in future FF titles? I laffed, then died.
Did see that, actually. Was like "Oh, geez." Followed by a facepalm. Would like to know where S-E gets their data saying that she's so damn popular.
Well it certainly is a love/hate relationship with HD Editions.
I hate the reason they exist which is because Sony removed the backwards compatibility function from Playstation 3's. In the European region all the games on a PS2 look utterly awful on a HDTV so it has made my 70+ PS2 collection redundant….
I love it however for giving me some of my favourite games in better quality than ever before! The Metal Gear Solid HD Collection is prime example of this. The MGS HD Collection preserved everything in the original game. Only it changed the aspect ratio to widescreen and upscaled the game to HD both things which are tremendously positive!
I get a bit fussy when they tamper with the actually games, Tidus' new character model in the FFX HD Remaster still looks like a doll. I sort of wish they did the same treatment as MGS – But I have to say I did enjoy the Kingdom Hearts HD Collection and that had tamperings too, so we'll see 🙂
Game of the Year editions have both positives and negatives too. While the GotY edition offers a future-proof on disc the prospect makes me hesitant to by a game on day 1 anymore – essentially because with a lot of GotY editions they seem to be released only 5 months after the original release. Also I had the name, the gaming needs an industry award system like the Oscars so the term 'Game of the Year' holds real value.
Well, if there's no DLC, there wouldn't be any GOTY edition in the first place.
Just add them on the PS4 and vita and stop it.
Divert your resources to making new Ps4 games
As a general rule, I'm a fan. Never really played the PS2, so getting to visit some of the classics is really great. And the GotY editions are really, really enticing for those games that just never got me jumping in the first place, like Fallout 3 and Dragon Age: Origins (technically the complete version, but whatever). It gives me a chance to visit them, with a heap more content than was originally provided, often at a lower price point for having waited. It's a win-win.
But I can see why they may be disliked by people who picked up the game/s early on, or feel as though these companies are gouging them by "demanding" that they pay for the same game multiple times.
I've enjoyed a couple of the HD remake collections and will probably buy more in the future. There are quite a few PS2 games I never got around to playing because we were too busy raising our kids at the time, so it's nice to pick up a whole collection for a bargain price now. And of course the improved graphics are a great bonus as well.
As far as game of the year editions, well if I'm even remotely interested in a game I'll probably buy it before the GOTY comes out. And if I'm only vaguely interested in it I don't really care about getting all the DLC included. I bought the regular edition of one game when it got another price drop after the GOTY version came out. The only GOTY versions I've bought were on PC – old favorites of mine on PS3 and when I needed to buy a second copy for PC, I was quite happy to get it with all the DLC for next to nothing on a Steam sale.
I often wait for the GOTY edition just so I get entire game on disk and own it forever.
Love 'em!!!
i only like it when i buy a game veryyyy late,when it's old like Fallout N.V. ultimate edition:all the dlc included and very cheap hehehe
I always tried to wait for the later limited or special editions for their added value & content, or any GOTY editions, especially now that I've been out of work for over 2 years & used up my life's savings.
And since I've been playing the hell out of Dragon's Dogma:DA(Level 102 now), I decided to see if I could also get Skyrim cheap, & I managed to pick up a used "Legendary Edition"(which includes the Dawnguard, Hearthfire, & Dragonborn DLC packs) a couple of days ago on the super, super, cheap.
And if I like it, I can only imagine the insane amount of hours I'll be putting into that one too, LOL
Last edited by BikerSaint on 2/17/2014 2:11:09 PM
Yeah, I've noticed you've been putting a lot of time into Dogma. I've put about 20hrs into the game since getting it last summer. Just think how epic adventure/rpgs can be on the PS4!
yeah you make a cud point ben but like you say there are some gud ones out there just don't want a flood of them comin in aye.
happy gaming =)
Complete collections are a good idea, and always were.
You can charge $15 for each piece of DLC, or charge $60 for the full game and all DLC included. How is that not a great deal?