The concept of porting and remastering video games to new consoles is far from new. In 2009, however, Sony would start a new trend in the video game industry by launching the God of War Collection, a high definition remaster of the first two God of the war Games. Originally designed to serve as an entry point for new fans before the release of God of War III, what followed was a massive influx of remastered games and collections that continues to persist over a decade later.
Most video game remasters bring little new beyond updated visuals. Sometimes that’s all a game, or a collection of games, needs, because their past flaws were minimal. On the other hand, there are remasters that go above and beyond by adding new content and addressing player complaints. Whichever direction a developer takes, players can almost always be assured that they’re getting the definitive version of an old favorite.
ten The Last of Us Didn’t Need Many Additions With This Remaster
The Last of Us Remastered is the perfect example of a safe remaster. One year before, The last of us provided the PlayStation 3 with the perfect swan song by winning more Game of the Year awards than any game before. This distinction was later lost to The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt in 2015, before the release of The Last of Us Part II reclaimed the series title. Naughty Dog didn’t have much to do for TOUR.
TOUR includes the typical bells and whistles of standard remasters, including improved visuals and sound, improved frame rate, and DualShock 4 functionality. TOUR also includes “Left Behind” DLC featuring Ellie and her friend Riley, a photo mode, and the ability to play the game with commentary from director Neil Druckmann and voice actors Troy Baker and Ashley Johnson.
9 The Legend Of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD makes this classic smooth sailing
Sometimes when a game receives a remaster, it can be hard to immediately notice the visual improvements. The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD is not one of those games. The once controversial cel-shaded graphics appear absolutely in high definition. It’s easy to put down the controller and marvel at the beauty WWHD East.
Yes WWHD was just a visual remaster, most The Legend of Zelda fans would be satisfied. However, Nintendo went a step further by fixing two of the originals. Wind Wakerintroducing the Swift Sail for faster sailing and more streamlined Triforce quest.
8 NieR Replicant Ver.1.22474487139… Allows the original NieR to have a chance in the spotlight
the original Deny flew under the radar when it was released in 2010. Despite disappointing reviews and sales, this Drakengard spinoffs would form a passionate niche. Deny would receive a sequel in NieR: Automata in 2017 it was both a critical and commercial success, which led to the aptly titled Deny remaster in NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139…
Ver.1.22474487139…based on the PS3 version of Denycontains an overhauled combat system and new story content that connects ver.1.22474487139… following him, Automata. The remaster also contains previously cut story content and re-recorded voice work.
7 Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection Adds Lots of Replayability
the Unexplored The series made a name for its stunning visuals and ability to invoke that summer blockbuster feeling when it launched in 2007 with Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune. Unexplored became one of Sony’s flagship series and one of the most critically acclaimed series ever produced.
When Nathan Drake’s story was supposed to conclude in 2016 with Uncharted 4: A Thief’s EndNaughty Dog enlisted the help of Bluepoint Games to remaster the original Unexplored trilogy for PlayStation 4. Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection features a photo mode, a new “Brutal” difficulty setting, and a fast racing mode. Drake’s Fortune would receive a significant graphical boost as well as combat tuning to bring it more in line with its sequels.
6 Mass Effect Legendary Edition gives players a good refresher course
A little like The Nathan Drake Collectionthe Mass Effect Legendary Edition is bundled with three iconic titles in one definitive package. Now players only need to start a single app to experience the full story of Commander Shepard and his crew.
Legendary Edition contains a single character creator that applies to all three Mass Effect securities. the original MEsimilar to Drake’s Fortunereceived an overhaul with visual and gameplay improvements that ease the transition from the first ME to its sequels go much more smoothly. the original ME also saw a decrease in its infamous and often memorable load times.
5 Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age has won over many Final Fantasy fans
Final Fantasy XII is often overlooked Final Fantasy Title. While FFXII has his fans and his detractors, he is neither passionately loved nor hated within the FF fanbase as a whole. While FFXII is praised for its content and voice acting, it also receives criticism for its MMO-like story and gameplay.
Final Fantasy XII: Age of the Zodiac given FFXII chance to win FF Fans. Zodiac age contains content that was previously exclusive to Japan FFXII: International Zodiac Job System as a working system and the difficult trial mode. TZA also features a re-orchestrated soundtrack and a high-speed feature to enhance FFXII rhythm.
4 Kingdom Hearts: The Story So Far Is The Best Way To Catch Up On Kingdom Hearts
the Kingdom Hearts is no stranger to releasing remasters, having seen three different remaster compilations covering different phases of Hearts of the Kingdom’ initial Xehanort saga. These remasters have been combined into a single compilation titled KH: The story so farand later grouped with KHIII in KH: All-in-one package.
What each of these remastered collections brings is content, like secret boss battles that were previously exclusive to the “final mix“versions of the original Kingdom Hearts, KHIIand KH: Birth by sleep. Similar to FFXIIthese versions were not originally released outside of Japan, making them must-haves for Kingdom Hearts Fans.
3 Persona 4 Golden looks like a whole new game
Similar to TLOUthe classic JRPG Persona 4 came out at the end of a generation. In fact, the PS3 was over a year old when P4 was released on PlayStation 2 (a conflict that personas 5 would avoid later). Since most gamers had already upgraded to the latest consoles, P4 was stuck on old hardware. That is until an improved version is released in golden P4 for PlayStation Vita. P4G would later escape Vita exclusivity in 2020 by releasing on PC in 2020.
P4G adds a long list of new content, including two new social links, a new dungeon, an expanded story with a new epilogue, new animated cutscenes, more opportunities to explore, and more difficulty settings. The PC version offers improvements such as the ability to run P4G at 4K resolution and 60fps.
2 The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim – Special Edition improves on a classic in almost every way
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim has seen many ports on various consoles. Skyrim the reissues were the subject of numerous memes to the point that Bethesda Studios jokingly released Skyrim: Very Special Edition for Amazon Echo devices. Skyrim would see a real remaster in the form of Skyrim – Special Edition (later upgradeable to the Anniversary edition).
the Special edition features significant graphical improvements and bug fixes. PlayStation fans in particular can now experience a working version of Skyrim after the much maligned PS3 version. the Special edition also includes access to mods on all versions, even consoles, which alone does Special edition one of the deepest remasters.
1 Halo: The Master Chief Collection is one of Bang-For-One’s-Buck’s Best Buys
Few video game series have had as much of an impact on their respective genres as the Halo did not only give the genre a firm home on consoles, but also become a pioneer of console online multiplayer.
In 2014, Microsoft would combine the Halo saga in a simplified package in Halo: The Master Chief Collection. CMC includes remakes and remasters of all first-person games Halo titles up to Halo 4every multiplayer map up to that point, and the Nightfall live action series. While the CMC got off to a bad start at first, notably for technical problems and its multiplayer, CMC has since rebounded to become by far one of the best buys for the money in games.
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