#16. SHADOW OF THE COLOSSUS (2018)

Back in 2005, Sony delivered what is, to this day, considered one of the greatest games ever made in Shadow of the Colossus, and while its 2018 remake obviously didn’t have the same impact, it certainly did justice to its source material. Bluepoint Games smartly decided not to mess with a winning formula too much, and instead, with its remake, decided to merely accentuate the original’s biggest strengths and polish up some of its rough edges. For newcomers and veteran fans alike, 2018’s Shadow of the Colossus is an excellent way to experience this all-time classic.

#15. DEMON’S SOULS (2020)

Merely a couple of years after releasing the aforementioned Shadow of the Colossus, Bluepoint Games and Sony delivered yet another excellent remake in the form of PS5 launch title Demon’s Souls. Once again, the developer approach the FromSoftware classic with great respect, choosing to keep the vast majority of the core experience intact and instead glowing up its visuals and production values. The Soulslike genre has come a long way since its made its debut with Demon’s Souls in 2009, but for those who want to go back to the beginning, the 2020 remake is an unmissable experience.

#14. CRASH BANDICOOT N.SANE TRILOGY

Crash Bandicoot was essentially dead and buried until not too long ago, but thankfully, Activision decided to bring the franchise with a bang. Developed by Vicarious Visions, Crash Bandicoot N.Sane Trilogy perfectly encapsulated everything that the original PS1 trilogy was about, capturing all of its highs and lows and wrapping them up in gorgeous modern-day visuals to demonstrate just why this iconic platforming franchise took off the way it did.

#13. BLACK MESA

Starting as a fan-made unofficial remake of the original Half-Life, Crowbar Collective’s Black Mesa had an eventful journey behind the scenes, but when it finally launched as an official remake with Valve’s blessing in 2020, it proved to be well worth the wait. From its new content additions to the smart ways in which it evolved the original game’s mechanics to, of course, the gorgeous visual glow-up it brought to the table, Black Mesa proved to be a worthy reimagining of one of the all-time greats.

#12. MAFIA: DEFINITIVE EDITION

The Mafia franchise has certainly been through the wringer over the years, and recent years in particular have been tough on its fans. In 2020, however, we thankfully got a respite from the dourness thanks to Mafia: Definitive Edition, an incredible remake of the series’ very first outing. The original Mafia’s story and writing and its excellent period setting are still fondly remembered as some of its biggest strengths, and all of that was able to shine that much brighter in the remake. Some of the gameplay and design choices felt a little aged, yes, but for fans of the series in particular, it was a wonderful blast from the past.

#11. THE LEGEND OF ZELDA: LINK’S AWAKENING

Despite being a handheld-only game, The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening has always held a special place in the hearts of Zelda fans, so to say that its Switch remake proved to be more than up to the task of remaking it for a new generation is no small praise. The biggest change it made, of course, was to its visual style, and while the new aesthetic may initially have proved to be an almost jarring change, ultimately, it turned out to be the perfect foil for the weird, bizarre adventure that is Link’s Awakening. Meanwhile, from its setting to its story to its world and dungeon design, the remake proved in more ways than one that the game’s qualities truly are timeless.

#10. TONY HAWK’S PRO SKATER 1+2

Much like with Crash Bandicoot, Activision and Vicarious Visions brought yet another dead and beloved franchise back into the limelight with Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2, and it would be safe to say that the results were even more resoundingly successful. Though one might argue that the original Tony Hawk games were a product of their time, going back to their incredibly tight and endlessly enjoyable gameplay, their oodles of content, their pumping licensed soundtrack, and all the visual upgrades that came with the remake only proved that the skateboarding masterpieces are just as great today as they were when they first launched.

#9. POKEMON FIRERED/LEAFGREEN

Game Freak loves remaking Pokemon games, and it’s done a fair few of them over the years, but it’s far to say that all but one (which we’ll get to in a bit) have failed to match the brilliance of their first remaking effort. Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen took players back to where it all started, bringing Kanto back to life on the Game Boy Advance with updated visuals and combat and progression mechanics, and the end result was absolutely glorious. It’s been nearly two decades since this duo of remakes first launched, but they still stand as one of the series’ greatest games to date.

#8. METROID: ZERO MISSION

Metroid: Zero Mission presents the definitive take on Samus Aran’s original adventure, remaking it so comprehensively, and so thoroughly modernizing it, that it functionally renders the original game entirely obsolete. You never have to even consider playing the original, because everything it did, Zero Mission did as well, but better, while doing even more on top. Keeping the same basic map, enemies, plot progression, and power ups, but with modern game design sensibilities and some better signposting for new players, and adding a triumphant epilogue at the end that truly showed us how the story of Samus Aran began, Zero Mission remains a high watermark not just for the Metroid franchise, but remakes in general.

#7. YAKUZA KIWAMI 2

Yakuza 2 is a fan favorite game for a lot of reasons, including characters such as Ryuji and Kaoru, hilariously over the top but epic setpieces such as a golden castle bursting from the underground into the streets of Osaka, or an actual brawl with a tiger, and the introduction of the fan-favorite Sotenbori map. It’s a beloved game and any remake needed to treat it with appropriate care. Kiwami 2 did a good job of that, to say the very least. While it was nowhere near as faithful to Yakuza 2 as the original Kiwami was to Yakuza 1, taking liberties with story, music, and even content, it nonetheless delivered an exceptional outing for the Yakuza franchise that ranks as one of the franchise’s highs.

#6. RESIDENT EVIL (2002)

The folks at Capcom are the masters of remakes, and that can all be traced back to 2002, when the Japanese company released a ground-up remake of the original Resident Evil for the GameCube. Even though the original RE1 was barely six years old at that point, the remake felt like a ridiculous jump forward, thanks in large part to astoundingly gorgeous visuals that somehow still manage to hold up to this day. RE1 remake also added significant portions of new content to the original game that enriched the experience in ways we couldn’t have imagined, from new areas to story additions to, of course, Lisa Trevor. The fact that the remake is still widely held up as one of the best survival horror remakes of all time should tell you all you need to know about how good it was.

#5. FINAL FANTASY 7 REMAKE

Remaking a game as legendary as Final Fantasy 7 is far from an enviable task, and it becomes even less enviable when you decide to change it from head to toe to the extent that it essentially turns into an entirely different game. With Final Fantasy 7 Remake, that’s exactly what Square Enix did though, and it was a risk that paid off. Covering only the first few hours of the original and turning them into a full-fledged first instalment of a trilogy, the 2020 remake boasted incredible visuals and spectacular combat, and somehow managed to make what was essentially a small section of the original game feel like a fleshed out experience in and of itself. Add to that the smart changes it made and the ways in which it played on fans’ expectations, and what we got was what may even be one of the best Final Fantasy games ever made.

#4. DEAD SPACE (2023)

There was a long period of time where it looked like there was no hope whatsoever that the Dead Space franchise would be able to come back to life, but thanks to Motive Studio’s recent remake of the 2008 original, that’s exactly what it’s done- and how. The Dead Space remake is, in a word, spectacular- a standard-bearer not only for how to remake a beloved classic, but also for survival horror games as a whole. The psychological horror, the nightmares that the decrepit Ishimura hides around every corner, the gripping story and the way it unfolds, the brutal and visceral combat and how incredibly enjoyable it remains from start to finish- everything that was true about Dead Space back when it came out is still true in its 2023 remake, but even more potent and even more effective.

#3. RESIDENT EVIL 4 (2023)

Of all the Resident Evil games Capcom has made so far, this one was probably the trickiest proposition, thanks, of course, to its immense legacy- but they proved to be more than up to the task. The RE4 remake is a masterclass in all the ways that the original was, and then some. With its pacing and its combat and the sheer, constant tension that pervades every second of the experience, it emulates the highest highs of its source material from start to finish, while it also finds a way to make just the right amount of clever, unexpected changes to keep even the most hardened of veterans on their toes, all while still remaining incredibly faithful to the game that it tries to recreate. Suffice to say, Resident Evil 4 is a masterpiece, twice over.

#2. POKEMON HEARTGOLD/SOULSILVER

Game Freak and Pokemon both peaked with Pokemon HeartGold and SoulSilver. The original games, Gold and Silver, were already considered the best instalments of the franchise and some of the best RPGs ever made, so to actually take those games and somehow make them even better was an astounding achievement. By and large, HeartGold and SoulSilver were very faithful to the original games, but smart visual and mechanical changes made them feel much more modern, allowing the timeless design of this densely packed experience to shine that much brighter. With a combination of next to no cuts, plentiful improvements, and the core excellent of the originals brought over as is, HeartGold and SoulSilver instantly cemented themselves as Pokemon’s best outing- a crown, many might say, they still hold to this day.

#1. RESIDENT EVIL 2 (2019)

For our money, 2019’s Resident Evil 2 remains the absolute king of remakes, which, given the lofty company it keeps in this list, is huge praise. The jump from the original RE2 to its remake is absolutely massive, but even going from fixed cameras and tank controls to over the shoulder and third person shooting, the remake still manages to perfectly capture the essence of the original. Hell, it even enhances it. The gorgeous visuals, the stellar level design exhibited throughout the entire game (and in RPD in particular), the excellent boss fights, the implementation of Mr. X- all of it combines to make for a survival horror experience for the ages. The changes that the RE2 remake makes are, admittedly, pretty radical ones, and while some might bemoan the loss of, say, the zapping system, ultimately, they all contribute significantly to giving the game its own identity, so that the remake is able to stand alongside the original rather than either replacing it or being overshadowed by it. For fans of RE2 in particular, that alone is a massive achievement that cannot be overlooked.

A little over a year ago, Bluepoint Games remade the aforementioned Demon’s Souls exclusively for the PS5, and it looked absolutely gorgeous, to the point where it might very well be one of the best-looking games around right now. Given that, does FromSoftware feel a bit of extra pressure to ensure that it brings its own games up to scratch where the visuals are concerned? As it turns out, yes.

In a recent interview with EDGE magazine (via VGC), FromSoftware president and Elden Ring director Hidetaka Miyazaki (who also directed the original Demon’s Souls, Dark Souls, Dark Souls 3, Bloodborne, and Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice) spoke about the same, saying, “Yes, I’m pretty sure our graphics-creation staff felt that pressure more than anyone else.”

Miyazaki went on to acknowledge that graphical fidelity in general is an area where FromSoftware has been looking to improve. He said, “And not just with Elden Ring, but with all the games we make. Graphical fidelity is not something we put as the top priority. What we ask for on the graphics side depends on the systems and requirements of the game itself, and it takes less priority compared to the other elements of development.

“So this is always an area where I feel a little bit apologetic towards my graphics team because I know they work extremely hard. And they’ve worked extremely hard on Elden Ring – our graphics-systems team and our programmers have been pushing a lot of new features to create the best-looking games we’ve ever made.”

In the same interview, Miyazaki also said Elden Ring’s open world approach makes it “very close” to being his “ideal” game, and also talked about how the game ensures that players are consistently kept “interested, exploring, and having fun.”

Elden Ring is out on February 25 for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, Xbox One, and PC.

3D MOVEMENT AND CONTROLS (SUPER MARIO 64)

To say that Super Mario 64 is responsible for 3D games as a whole would be an exaggeration (to say the least). No, there was a whole slate of games in a 3-4 year period that helped lay down the foundations for playing games in a 3D space- but if we were to make a pie chart for that group, Super Mario 64 would get a whole massive slice of that pie all to itself. Launching in 1996, Nintendo’s seminal platformer defined the simplest things and actions, showing how to do 3D movement and camera control in games and establishing extremely fundamental things that are now taken completely for granted.

EVs AND IVs (POKEMON)

With Generation 3, the Pokemon series introduced EVs and IVs, and completely changed the metagame. Governing individual base stats and their values and collectively allowing for massive variation even within a single species of Pokemon, EVs and IVs have since then become crucial to the underlying mechanics that dictate how players catch their Pokemon, raise their Pokemon, and battle with their Pokemon. Sure, it’s still entirely possible for someone to do an entire playthrough of a Pokemon game and not engage too deeply with EVs and IVs, but especially where the competitive scene is concerned, these are crucial.

Following the departure of several high profile figures in quick succession and reports of Sony beginning to de-emphasize the Japanese market, it was recently confirmed by Sony that SIE Japan Studio was being wound down as a development studio. Now, the influx is continuing, with more developers either being let go or moving on.

The latest in that long list of names is Gavin Moore, who was the creative director of last year’s PS5 flagship launch title, the Demon’s Souls remake. Moore confirmed recently via his Twitter page that after over two decades at Sony, he is now moving on. “Time to seek out new and exciting opportunities,” he wrote, though did not elaborate.

Moore had been at SIE Japan Studio since 2003, where he worked on the Siren series, was the creative director on Puppeteer, and most recently, on Demon’s Souls. Prior to that, he spent six years at SIE London Studio, where he worked on the PS2 open world shooter The Getaway.

After 24 years at Sony and 18 of those in Japan, yesterday was my last day at #JAPANStudio. I will miss the great creative spirit and camaraderie of the studio that was a huge part of my life. Time to seek out new and exciting opportunities!! pic.twitter.com/XOW0XytYd4

— gavin moore (@GavinmGavin) April 1, 2021

WARNING: There are spoilers ahead for every game and series mentioned in this feature.

HARBINGER (MASS EFFECT SERIES)

The Harbinger was built up over the course of two full games as the leader of a terrifying synthetic alien race that was hellbent on wiping out almost all intelligent sentient life in the galaxy. But king Reaper never really made it into his own boss fight. The final minutes of Mass Effect 3 strongly suggested that that would be the case, and honestly, after how well the series had built him up as the ultimate big bad, taking him on in a climactic confrontation felt like a no-brainer. Not for BioWare, apparently. Not only does Mass Effect 3 not feature the Harbinger as a final boss, it has no final boss.

SPEC OPS: STEALTH PATROL – SWAPPED DIFFICULTIES

A perfect example of how the lack of post-launch patches (which is something we now take for granted) could ruin a game. Its easy, normal, and hard difficulties were dubbed private, corporal, and sergeant respectively, only in the game itself, private and sergeant were, for whatever reason, swapped. This meant that people who wanted to play the game on the easiest difficulty were unknowingly playing it on the hardest, wondering all the while just why things were as frustratingly difficult as they were. Spec Ops: Stealth Patrol wasn’t exactly the best of games as it is, and this did it no favours.

On face value, Sony continues to maintain the stance that, contrary to reports, it’s not de-emphasizing the Japanese market– but troubling developments over at SIE Japan continue to suggest otherwise. Recently, major creative talent left the studio in a flurry, with Silent Hill and Gravity Rush creator Keiichiro Toyama being chief among them- and now, another major figure has departed.

Teruyuki Toriyama recently took to Twitter to announced that he will be leaving SIE Japan Studio at the end of December. In case you aren’t aware, Toriyama has been an important figure on the production side of things for several major SIE Japan games in recent years, including the likes of Bloodborne, Astro Bot Rescue Mission, the recent Demon’s Souls remake, and more.

Toriyama hasn’t joined his fellow former SIE Japan leads at their newly formed Bokeh Games (or at least he hasn’t made any such announcement yet), but he’s yet another talented individual who’s departed from the studio. One has to wonder what’s going on over there.

[Notice]
I will be leaving SIE WWS JAPAN Studio at the end of Dec. To all the users who have supported JAPAN Studio so far,thank you so much! I will continue to take on the challenge of creating new game IPs in my new company, and I ask for your continued support. #JAPANStudio

— 鳥山晃之 (Teruyuki Toriyama) | Thirdverse (@teru_toriyama) December 24, 2020

Sony has made a number of interesting changes to how Trophies work on the PS5. One of these sees the console automatically recording 15 second-long clips of the moment you unlock a Trophy instead of the snapshots the PS4 takes. Interestingly enough, as discovered by a Reddit poster, it does more than just record a short clip.

The Reddit user in question posted a clip of a Trophy they unlocked while playing Demon’s Souls for beating the Tower Knight boss fight, which shows that in addition to recording a clip, the PS5 also automatically records audio from your DualSense’s microphone. It seems like an interesting feature (especially for those particularly hard-to-get Trophies, of which there’s no shortage in Souls games), though if you want, you can, of course, turn it off by turning off your mic in the PS5’s settings.

I can only imagine what kinds of expletive-filled clips players will inadvertently unlock when they finally beat Old King Allant in Demon’s Souls. Those should be particularly interesting to see (and to listen to).

In last week’s charts for physical video game sales in the UK, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla debuted in first place, with the game having enjoyed a massive launch worldwide. This week, the open world RPG has fallen to No. 4, and Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War (which itself also released to a strong launch) has moved up to No. 1- despite a 27% week-on-week drop in boxed sales (via GamesIndustry).

Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales holds on to the third spot. It is, in fact, the best-selling game in the PS5 launch lineup, to no one’s surprise. Other PS5 exclusive launch titles like Demon’s Souls (No. 4), Sackboy: A Big Adventure (No. 5), and Godfall (No. 7) also figure in the PS5-specific top 10- though of these, Spider-Man is the only one to make it into the overall top 10 for the week. Miles Morales’ physical launch sales are down 57% from those of Marvel’s Spider-Man when it came out for the PS4 in 2018.

In the overall charts, FIFA 21 is in second place. Thanks to Black Friday discounts, the game saw a massive surge in sales, with a 121% week-on-week boost. Meanwhile, the recently released Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity debuts in 6th place, with physical sales 324% higher than 2018’s Switch release of Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition, but 43% lower than last year’s remake of The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening (which makes sense, since Hyrule Warriors isn’t a traditional mainline Zelda release).

You can check out the full top 10 for the week ending November 21 below.

1. Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War
2. FIFA 21
3. Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales
4. Assassin’s Creed Valhalla
5. Fortnite: The Last Laugh Bundle
6. Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity
7. Watch Dogs: Legion
8. Animal Crossing: New Horizons
9. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
10. Minecraft (Switch)