|
We gamers are a very fickle bunch. On one hand, we have our old favorites, the games we love to play over and
over again, and – specifically in terms of RPGs – the stories we love to watch unfold, no matter how many times
we've seen them before. But, on the other hand, we expect new content from the companies who create our
games. We expect that content to be fresh and exciting and break away from the old things we've tried before.
So, when they try something edgy and unexpected (like, oh, Final Fantasy X, or Digital Devil Saga), we might
accuse them of "not listening to their fanbase," or when they give us more sequels or the same game in a new
packaging (like, oh, Final Fantasy X-2, or Digital Devil Saga 2), we complain that they "need to pay more attention
to what their customers want." It's no wonder why some of them never seem to "get it right," and that's because
we keep changing our mind at a moment's notice.
But what do we say about all of the old games – the ones that we get years after being retired with the sunset of an
old system? The Game Boy Advance is a haven for such gaming, and the Playstation Portable looks to be quickly
catching up, as old SNES and Playstation games are being re-released for a new generation of gamers. Nintendo
even brought old NES staples like Legend of Zelda, Excitebike, and Kid Icarus for new GBA players to try for
themselves, if they could look past the antiquated graphics and original $20 pricetag. What should gamers who
played these old games on their original systems – and, indeed, might even still own said games and systems –
think? Do we decry these re-releases as shoddy attempts at making a quick buck? Or should we encourage the
game companies to look into their vaults and blow off the dust of a few old favorites?
I would argue that we should seek to keep this cycle continuing for as long as possible. As someone who enjoyed
Squaresoft's RPGs on the SNES, I was delighted to find out that they would be bringing all of them – Final Fantasy
IV, V, and VI – to the GBA. Likewise, Valkyrie Profile was a delight to play, and I can see its release for the PSP
being just one more argument in buying one for myself in the future. Not only that, because I know that these games
were so good, I was excited to know that a new group of gamers could try them for the very first time...even if it did
mean that the price of my original copy of VP would take a nose-dive.
However, it must be stated that while old games should be shared with new players, sometimes the hunt for a quick
buck leads companies to make some questionable judgments. Seriously – did anyone seriously intend on buying
Ice Climber for $20 when it came out? And do we really need another Donkey Kong Country to play?
All in all, I believe that remakes are good, and hope to see more of them in the future. Perhaps when the PSP2 is
available in a few years, I can watch Laharl laugh maniacally while playing Disgaea from the comfort of my own
bathroom commode. And what's not to love about that?
|
RSS feed
iTunes
