Dead Space, Resident Evil 4, remastered versions of Metroid Prime and Tales of Symphonia, Return to Dream Land Deluxe… In 2023 alone, no less than half a dozen emblematic games will be offered a second youth, not to mention upcoming games like z as Final Fantasy VII Rebirth and Alone in the Dark Remake.
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The whole point of a new version of a game is to take a memorable or nostalgic experience from the original title and use the latest technologies to bring it to life, Yoshiaki Hirabayashi, the game’s producer, told AFP. Resident Evil 4 Remake arrives Friday on PC and the new Xbox Series and PlayStation 5 consoles.
Eighteen years after its first release in 2005 on GameCube, Nintendo’s legacy console, this remastered and modernized version of the 4th opus of the legendary series of horror video games aims to take full advantage of the graphical improvements made possible by current computers.
With a new version we don’t start from a blank page, we have a universe that is being built, a game that already exists and that people have also been able to try and enjoy. The start of development is therefore much faster and we can focus on what we want to improve or enrich, adds Eric Baptizat, director of Dead Space, a survival game that was first launched in 2008.
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Why such a strategy from publishers like Electronic Arts, Nintendo and Capcom, whose catalogs are nevertheless well stocked with novelties and big-budget productions (known as AAA)?
Like what Marvel did with Spiderman [au cinéma, cela permet] Maintaining franchises and making them come alive over time rather than creating endless suites, Cédric Lagarrigue, market expert and advisor to investment bank Alantra, explains to AFP.
It’s going to be a major trend in video games, we’ll have more and more remakes he thinks.
“It makes sense because video games, more so than cinema, are really making technological advances with each console switch. »
— A quote from Cédric Lagarrigue
Lower business risk
From a purely industrial point of view, these types of games have production costs, which are reduced since most of the marketing and design has already been taken care of [par la version originelle]adds Julien Pillot, economist specializing in cultural industries.
“Like cinema before it, video games have reached a stage where they must further dilute the risk of commercial failure. »
— A quote from Julien Pilott
With these complementary games, players are allowed to wait between two AAA games in an industry where companies are increasingly funded and therefore subject to increasing performance demands, he adds.
Playing on the nostalgia rope also allows publishers to build on an already-established fan base and notoriety while also catching up with other players who may have missed out on these iconic titles.
These new releases are aimed at young adults, often in their 30s, who want to re-immerse themselves in the games of their youth. Today, for many, these people find themselves in a situation that allows them to have a budget for games that end up taking them back a bit to childhood, emphasizes Julien Pillot.
“While much of the game’s reimagining is for people familiar with the original game, we also hope that a new generation of gamers who have never played the original title can take this opportunity to experience the essence of Resident Evil 4 to feel [grâce à la nouvelle version]’ adds Yoshiaki Hirabayashi.