Bionic Commando: Rearmed - Bionic Commando: Rearmed should act as a blueprint for developers ever looking to remake any game ever, ever. The best of the original Bionic Commando – namely the swing mechanic and platforming challenge – remains intact in GRIN’s remake. Around that core, GRIN gave the game an all-new look, co-op, multiplayer, and additional single-player content in the form of challenge rooms. Sloppy it is not. BCR featured a high level of polish and truly appeared to be lovingly crafted by devotees of the original. The final product was all the better for it.
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THE BAD:
Cyberball 2072 - Released originally in 1989, Cyberball 2072 allowed four players to take each other on in robotic football using a rather unique cabinet setup utilizing linked monitors. The game thrived in arcade when up to four humans came together to try to crush each other using robots. It is precisely that reason that the omission of any kind of competitive multiplayer drags this remake down so much. In creating the XBLA release, Digital Eclipse chose to only emulate one arcade machine. The result is a game in which two players can only play with each other on the same team. There is no local competitive multiplayer. There is no online competitive multiplayer. Without either, the game merely stands as a waste of five perfectly fine dollars.
Arkanoid Live - Arkanoid serves as one of the longest-running gameplay formulas out there. Known by many names over the years, the simple game of a paddle breaking some bricks still stands up to this day. Taito realized this and attempted to capitalize on it using XBLA. They certainly weren’t successful. While the core gameplay was left alone, the surrounding game simply did not measure up to standards. The game featured new animated backgrounds that did little more than make the on-screen action more difficult to follow. Coupled with the garish backgrounds, the audio makeup of the game featured generic techno music and indistinct sound effects. However, the worst offender was the control options available to the player. The game featured a needlessly complicated and faulty control scheme, forcing one to push far more buttons that should have to be pushed. When the only thing being controlled is a simple paddle moving horizontally, not nailing the controls is inexcusable.
Tempest - Tempest is a true classic. It left an undeniable mark on the world of video gaming that few games can dream of. It’s a shame then that it received such a half-hearted remake on Xbox Live. The XBLA version of Tempest doesn’t even serve well as a trip down memory lane due to a lack of precise control and poorly emulated sound. The new enhanced mode adds insult to injury by turning the game into an overpopulated visual mess. Stainless Games frankly failed in their mission to bring this venerable shooter to Microsoft’s online service.
Strangely enough, the more ambitious of remake projects have turned out to be most successful in this generation. Those tasked with basically emulating games of old faltered on their way to Xbox Live. Those that chose to tinker with the original workings of the classics we know and love ended up creating games that can stand on their own. Sure, it’s probably an overgeneralization but the fact remains. Here’s to hoping future recreators take these successes and failures into consideration.
