The newest generation of consoles is here and some first adopters are feeling the pain of having few games to play. The launch games are finished and most likely sold back for store credit, and we’re in the summer rut where nothing new comes out. So as I sit here and watch the dust settle on my PS4, I thought of a few franchises I would love to see remade in HD glory. We’ve taken a look at just how many series Microsoft has forgotten, so here’s a few Sony might do well to pick back up again.
7) Rogue Galaxy – Last seen January 30, 2007
Rogue Galaxy was one of those overlooked JRPG’s that found its home on the PS2. Developed by Level-5 who had previously brought us Dark Cloud and Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King. The game garnered great review scores all around, but just couldn’t pull in the sales. Why it couldn’t pull people in to buy it vexes me, the game is an action RPG that takes place in space. Everyone loves space! As the lead character, Jaster, you traverse planets to find three “Key Tablets” to find the missing planet of Eden. Just imagine Level-5 crafting a sequel to this game with the PS4’s graphic capability, the game’s cell shading would pop so vividly on the screen (see Wind Waker HD for proof) and just think how much fun it would be to fly through space. The past two generations haven’t had the luxury of Space Pirate games, it’s up to Sony and Level-5 to change that for us.
6)Syphon Filter – Last seen October 2, 2007
Syphon Filter allows players to play as Gabriel Logan, a member of the anti-terrorist agency, The Agency. He and his partner are in hot pursuit of a international terrorist in Nepal. That plot-line alone should have Sony chomping at the bit for a new, current generation iteration of this game. Have someone pen a great story of Logan coming out of retirement to train a new member of The Agency, only to get caught up in a huge global terrorist conspiracy. This gamer catching story would be accompanied with the over the shoulder controls, like Tomb Raider and Watch Dogs, which would play amazing on the PS4. I also think gamers would like a little more espionage in their consoles, Alpha Protocol was a big stinker to some players.
5)Wild Arms – Last seen August 9, 2007
Wild Arms was Sony’s answer to the Final Fantasy series. Each game would take place on the planet Filgaia, which would change with each new version of the game. The planet would always resemble that of the Wild West, and the main characters would wield devices called ARMs (Ancient Relic Machines). The battle system was turn based, as was such for the time, should this series make a reappearance, Sony may have to rethink that type of battle system. There are fewer and fewer turn based RPG’s on the market and one may think some gamers would be turned off by the antiquated battles. I think that bringing the series back, and keeping it as true to form would do wonders for old school RPG’s in the States. FFXIII and the Persona games still have turn based fighting, just updated to make it faster and more appealing to current gamers. Sony needs to seriously look at an RPG that is somewhat retro and takes place in a semblance of the Wild West, take my money please.
4)Siren – Last seen July 24, 2008
Survival horror has been waning the past few decades unfortunately. Hopefully Sony can see that there is a hole needing to be filled, and they can use their Siren series to do so. The Japanese have been scaring the pants off of us Yankees for quite some time, so why not let them do so in a grand fashion. The last time we saw Siren was in an episodic form on the PS3 and to be honest it was pretty hum drum. If they put the PS4 hardware to work, they could come up with their own Outlast and scare the pants off of unsuspecting gamers. With only The Evil Within to look forward to, I don’t see any reason for Sony not running with this title and laughing all the way to the bank.
3)Jak and Daxter – Last seen November 3, 2009
Naughty Dog has had a huge strain of success in recent years, Uncharted and The Last of Us have been making them and Sony oodles of money. So it should be time for them and Sony to take a chance on an old classic. Platformers are few and far between now, if you’re not buying all of the HD collections or remakes, you’re stuck with only Rayman and Mario to state your hunger. Platformers have almost gone the way of the doo-doo and it is for reasons of unknown. Platformers are what a majority of gamers grew up on, so it would reason that they would happily hand over their hard earned cash for some great new, next gen ones.
2)Dark Cloud – Last seen February 18, 2003
Level – 5 has some great classic RPG’s during the PS2 era, why they don’t resurrect these titles on the PS4, I wonder. This RPG has a different take than most though, in it you have to rebuild the world that you inhabit because evil forces are ruining it. This is another cell-shaded game that would just look amazing on the PS4’s hardware. Plus, there is a nice little niche market for RPG’s like this, just take a look at how well Ni Nu Kuni did under Level-5’s tutelage. The latest gen is starved for RPG’s so get on this Sony and you can easily surpass Xbox One, and the Wii U before Zelda comes out.
1)MediEvil – Last seen April 30, 2000
MediEvil was definitely a head turner when it came out three generations ago. The game was part hack and slash, part puzzler and part platformer, but all fun. I remember seeing commercials for it when I was in high school and wanting to pretty bad. Sadly I never got it in my youth, and only recently lucked out and found both versions for my PS1. But I digress, Sony could easily make this a humorous over the shoulder hack and slash, or go the Dark Souls route and make it painstakingly hard. I’d prefer a mixture of both, painfully hard yet extremely funny at the same time. I want to play as Sir Daniel Fortesque again and slash my way to victory.
These are just a few franchises that I believe need to be brought back for some fan service. What are some games you would like to see on your shiny new PS4 system?
Would love to see Dino Crisis come back swinging. One of my favorite games. It kind of went to pot after the second game with Dino’s in space but I really think if it was done seriously and well it could be amazing.