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Games often get prequels and sequels on the same console that it came out on. Most of them get prequels and sequels on other systems. For example, Metal Gear Solid was released for the PS1 in 1998. It wasn’t until 2004 that MGS got a remake, except that it was on the GameCube. But, it’s things like remakes that make me think and wonder why other games from the past that were incredibly awesome don’t get the attention they truly deserve. Seriously. Why game companies don’t realize the potential is beyond me. Today, I will be outlining a list of ten games that, in my opinion, are in dire need of a remake for next generation consoles. So without further ramblings, here is my Top 10 Games That Need A Remake!

10. Primal Rage

Primal Rage flyerSometime in the late 90′s, I went on a Disney World Vacation, which included Sea World and Universal Studios. While the rest of my family was out doing stupid shit, I checked out Innovations. Now, if you don’t know what Innovations is, it was a huge warehouse that had HUNDREDS of video game consoles and arcade machines set up so people could play for free. That is where I saw Primal Rage for the first time. I know the mechanics of the game are ungodly terrible, but when you are a teen and you see dinosaurs kicking the shit out each other and eating people, you kinda start yelling “Squee!”. If this game could be put onto a next-gen console, I would buy it….but only if the mechanics and controls were heavily adjusted. It’s not so much the special techniques in the game, it’s the damn fatalities! Requiring you to hold 3 buttons while doing something on the D-Pad, then releasing said buttons and hold two more and performing ANOTHER action on the D-Pad. Yeah, that’s pretty ridiculous and I’m not surprised if players got arthritis at 15 because of it. Anyway, simplify the controls, upgrade the graphics, add some more story and characters and you got yourself a definite breadwinner.

9. Chakan: The Forever Man

Chakan CoverartOoh…remember this gem for Sega Genesis, Retro Fans? Remember how bloody hard it was? Seriously, if Ninja Gaiden(One of the hardest game series, in my opinion) can get a sexy remake followed by a remake of the remake AND a sequel, why can’t this get one? Honestly, you have a character what bested Death in battle….and let me say that again. He bested DEATH in battle! Who else did that? Dante from Dante’s Inferno? Please. That version of Death was a puss. No, the version of Death in Chakan was nothing to shake a stick at, and Chakan beat him. Of course, Death screwed him over by altering a deal he made with Chakan before the fight. I booted up my copy to see what Death told him. Here is the quote:

“You are a tactful swordsman, so I will not renege on our wager. I grant you the kiss of eternal life, but, for your arrogance and pride I will temper my gift with this curse. Each nightfall, evils will be shown to you, and the pain of their victims will be your pain. You will never know rest as you wander this world searching to slay the horrors that haunt your sleeping world. You will suffer grievous wounds, but you will not die, and as eternity rolls on, you crave my touch. Your face will bear my visage, and your eyes will burn with hellfire. Let it not be said that I am without mercy. There shall be an end to your curse, if all the beasts of the dark are slain, then you may find rest.”

Yeah, you don’t fuck with Death…he fucks with you. So, putting it on a next-gen console could potentially make a series of it. Not to mention the upgrade in graphics and music as wells as extending the storyline and gameplay would definitely bring back the old fans and get some new ones!

8. ActRaiser

Act Raiser art coverThis game was super fun and I am proud to say I still have my copy. The fact that it blends platformer-action with some simulation makes this game unique in itself. Actraiser has you playing the role of…well God, for lack of a better term. Although you aren’t called “God” but rather “The Master”, it’s pretty much a no-brainer in terms of figuring out who or what you really are portraying. Anyway, you have to save the world from the “Evil One” or Tanzra. To do this, you have to rebuild civilization. But before that, you have to clear the area of monsters and that is where the action-platformer aspect of the game takes over. After demolishing a level, you are then taken to the Sim Screen, or “God Mode” as I like to call it. From there, you use your “God Powers” to make it rain, burn bushes and trees and stuff so the people can build houses, bridges, and other crap. Putting this game on a next-gen console would allow expanded gameplay, especially in the simulation area, and definitely give people that warm, toasty nostalgic feeling.

7. Star Tropics

StarTropics Box Shot for NESThis game was, and still is, fun! My brother and I worked on this game for half the summer when we got it as kids. Hell, we even called the old-school Nintendo Power Hotline when we got stuck. Sure our Mom got pissed, but we needed the help as Internet wasn’t provided in our area at the time(1991, lol!). This game is considered a “Zelda Clone” because of it’s 2D top-down perspective. But, that was coined by ignorant Zelda fans and not by 100% of the Gaming Community. The game is unique in itself because instead of using your typical dungeon weapons(sword, axe, mace, etc.) you are given…a Yo-yo. Yes kids, a yo-yo is your only defense against the denizens of the underground in this game. Of course you have sub-weapons to help, but they are limited in quantity. But over the course of the game, your yo-yo gets upgraded and actually becomes bad ass! Anyway, remaking this onto the Nintendo Wii would be a fantastic concept. You could utilize the Wii Motion Plus and Wiimote to “throw” your yo-yo at enemies or using it to perform an attack with one of the many sub-weapons in this game. C’mon Nintendo!! Listen to the fans for once!!

6. Zombies Ate My Neighbors

Zombies 3 Ate my neighborsOh man, this game was good! I still play it on my SNES from time to time and I still can’t get over how fun it is! Especially if you have another person! Fanaticism aside, this game is a great! The game doesn’t have a story, per se, but the concept of the game is rather simple: Survive. Now, I’m not talking about Resident Evil-type surviving, no. Nothing that extreme. You’re just going through all the levels, rescuing people who I assume are your neighbors. You only need 1 rescue to complete the level, but if you get everyone you get a fat-ass score bonus at the end. The weapon line-up in the game is massive, and all are really cool. One of the cool things about this game is that instead of taking it’s cues from more modern day horror films, it reaches all the way back to old-school. Now, when I say old-school, I mean Boris Karloff and Lon Chaney Jr. old-school. For example, if you are fighting werewolves and you throw silverware at them, they die in one hit. Pretty sweet, right? I propose making 2 versions of the game. The Wii version would be kinda cutesy-artsy and geared more to the younger generation with bright colors, funny sounds and a clown. The PS3 and 360 version should have loads of gratuitous violence and gore, graphic language and boobs. Hey, if they can remake Splatterhouse with even more violence then the original, they can give this kick-ass game a worthy upgrade!

Supposedly they are making a horror/comedy based off the game. The article can be read here:

5. DuckTales

Ducktales NES CoverI wanna state for the record that I have lost A LOT of respect for Disney since they sold out over the years. Disagree with me? Well, you can suck a fat one. I grew up watching GOOD Disney as a kid. Examples are: Mouseterpiece Theater, Welcome To Pooh Corner, The Wuzzles, Gummibears, Tale Spin, and Darkwing Duck. DuckTales was another awesome show I watched all the time as a kid, and when they put a game out, I was stoked! The concept of the game was incredible simple: Make more money by grabbing treasure from areas around the world. The game’s mechanics were incredibly simplistic and considering the game was put out by the greatness that is Capcom, it was also super fun! So, a remake of this game would be quite profitable for Capcom and Nintendo as well as giving the Retro and Disney fans something to love and enjoy. Remaking it with Kingdom Hearts graphics and gameplay style would be pretty sweet. Not to mention the Wii desperately needs better games in it’s library, in my opinion.

4. Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake

Konami Metal Gear MSX2 1987Metal Gear 2 BoxartI put these two games into this category because they were on the same system and both are incredibly amazing. Now, let me clarify something. These two games are the ORIGINAL MSX2 Home Computer versions and not the shitty NES ports with the atrocious translation. No, these are the Metal Gears that deserve a remake. I’m not going to recount the story of MG and MG2:SS because if you haven’t played a single Metal Gear in your life than you need to seriously consider joining a monastery in Tibet. As I stated above, Metal Gear Solid got a remake! Albeit a GameCube remake, but a remake nonetheless. If Hideo Kojima would remake MG and MG2:SS for the PS3 with the same engine and style as MGS 4, it would definitely make the Veteran Metal Gear fans cream their shorts and it would definitely help the newer generation of Metal Gear fans understand the story a lot more. Of course lowering the amount of cut scenes in the conceptual remakes would be a good idea, too. I swear, you play MGS4 and it’s like watching a movie than actually playing the game…

Yeah, we’re getting closer to number 1…can you feel the excitement? No? Then lay off the hooch.

3. Chrono Trigger

Hardcore Gaming 101 Chrono TriggerChrono Trigger has and still continues to gain a legacy amongst the gaming community. Constantly praised for its story, music and character development, Chrono Trigger has become a household name. The PS1 sequel, Chrono Cross, takes place roughly 1000 years after Chrono Trigger and it ties itself into several of Chrono Triggers storylines as well as a few plot holes. Now, there was apparently a fan-made, direct sequel to Chrono Trigger(based on one of the endings involving Chrono’s mom) but Square put a stop to it as soon as they caught wind of it…or so the rumor goes. Honestly, I could care less about a sequel at this point. I just want to see a next-gen upgrade for this game. Putting Chrono Trigger on the all three consoles would be grand idea! Hell, even putting it on JUST the Nintendo Wii would be good enough for. Yeah, I know the DS got Chrono Trigger, but that was something I like to call an “extended port”. It was exactly like the PS1 version, but they added features exclusive to the DS(Dual screen mode), 2 extra dungeons and a few songs they cut out of the original game. So, not technically a remake, but still a good port. Putting a remake of the game on the Wii(or 360 and PS3) would be a great idea. Mostly because you could do so much more on a disc nowadays then you could on a SNES cartridge or the current DS cartridge. C’mon Square-Enix, stop being stupid…

2. Final Fantasy VII

Final Fantasy VII box art coverWhat? You thought FFVII was gonna be number 1? Ha!! Keep dreaming and crying, fanboys and fangirls!
While I am not a huge fan of VII(I’m an VIII fan, actually), the game was masterfully done. It was a terrific blend of action and drama, and the music is incredibly memorable. Seriously…walk into a crowd of people at an Anime convention and play Aerith’s Theme. You’ll see reactions that still continue to amaze me. Hell, you might even get glomped(Convention and/or anime term for a playful tackle). Anyway, this particular game has spawned prequels and sequels out the ass, even its own movie(Which is amazing, by the way)! But, despite having all these wonderful things…there is no remake. However, a tech demo was shown at E3 in 2005 displaying how FFVII would look on the PS3. Well, even though the people who showed the demo stated that it wasn’t a game coming out, the fans took it to prophecy-level and begin to think their beloved game was getting a remake. At the time, Square-Enix didn’t confirm that. But, they didn’t deny it either. So…nobody was sure if Square-Enix was playing the “tip game”(obvious Wedding Crashers joke)with the fans or if they were serious about remaking a classic and just not telling anyone about it. However the CEO of Square-Enix, Yoichi Wada, revealed that Square-Enix is exploring the possibility of a remake, considering it’s high following and demand for a remake. Which isn’t a surprise considering how much potential bank something of this magnitude could produce.An article for this was written on Kotaku.

Now, I am not saying Final Fantasy VII was bad. Hell, the first time I saw Aerith get skewered by Sephiroth, it made me a little misty-eyed. But, my passion for a Final Fantasy game lies with Final Fantasy VIII. I know for a fact that that game will not get a remake or a movie, but I don’t care. The game is awesome the way it is. But I digress. FFVII would look amazing for PS3 and it would definitely show what all the Square-Enix developers are truly made of. Just give in and submit to the masses, Square-Enix! You know you want to…

And the number 1 game that needs a remake is…….

1. The Legend of Dragoon

The Legend of Dragoon boxartWhoo! That was a surprise, wasn’t it!? You feel all those memories flooding back now? Good….let it flow through you. Lol!

The Legend of Dragoon or TLOD, was supposed to be a “Final Fantasy killer”(That was coined by the fans and not by me, by the way). Yeah, no. TLOD was innovative because of it’s battle system. Sure, it was turn-based combat very similar to Final Fantasy, but it was WAAAY different. You actually had to press the X Button to perform the attack or “Additions” as it is called. With more use of them, they would become more stronger. New Additions were unlocked as you progressed in level, but some of them got a little more tough to perform. Now, this is where the players started complaining. “Ugh…it’s too hard!” “This is too hard! Why can’t I just attack!” Wah wah wah. I found it to be challenging, myself. But with proper practice, it’s gets as easy as Active Reloading in Gears of War. Remaking this game would be a godsend, especially for the 360 and the PS3. With today’s technology, they could do so much with TLOD. The music could be redone or remastered, the graphics engine and gameplay could be upgraded and the story could be expanded. This is one of those games that has earned a remake and has earned a place in all our hearts.

In closing, I would like to state that not every game deserves a remake. Some of them are perfectly fine the way they are. But these particular games have quite a large fan base. So, it’s no surprise to me if they continually get denied, despite the call from the fans. If video game developers took more time to listen to their fans, maybe everyone wouldn’t see them a giant, soulless conglomerate companies who only care about the almighty dollar. They say that people en masse can make a difference and I agree. I can’t speak for everyone, but I know that if the outcry is loud enough…there is always a possibility that we’ll finally be heard and rewarded for our efforts.

Until next episode…