PlayStation Is Remastering The Wrong Games

Sony’s latest State of Play showcased plenty of exciting new projects, but was met with a wave of controversy over its Horizon Zero Dawn remaster. While Zero Dawn is a fantastic game in its own right, it’s already a visually stunning experience that runs excellently on the PS5, and even the PC with its 2020 port. Given the ever-increasing demand for remasters of untouched yet beloved Sony properties, it’s no surprise some fans feel like PlayStation is remastering the wrong games.

This isn’t the first time Sony has faced criticism for their focus on remastering somewhat recent games rather than pushing for new sequels, with the Last Of Us 2 Remake being a similar situation. Despite the initial mixed reception over TLOU2 getting a remake merely four years after its release, the added content was more than enough to satisfy most players. While more content and upgrades to an already successful game have their merits, there are plenty of franchises that deserve a loving remaster or remake in the near future.

PlayStation Games That Desperately Need A Remaster

Preservation And Easier Access to Classic Titles

With more and more games getting harder to find or delisted from digital storefronts, remastering games has become an essential part of preservation for the gaming industry. There’s no short list to choose from when it comes to games that players want to see remastered, with cult classics like BloodBorne, the Infamous series, or even the original Ratchet and Clank series being some of the most frequently mentioned.

A Bloodborne remake especially would result in an easy financial success for Sony, leaving fans dumbfounded that Sony hasn’t already taken advantage of this massive demand from dedicated fans, or players waiting to experience these games for the first time on new hardware.

All Games Revealed At PlayStation State Of Play (September 2024)

PlayStation’s September 2024 State of Play mixed some major reveals with a few minor updates, but it’s worth checking out everything that appeared.

If the latest rumors regarding the next Sony Remake are true, according to Game Rant, Days Gone is one of the most likely candidates for the next PlayStation remaster. While it does have similar problems of already being a somewhat recent and still graphically impressive game, its one that could definitely benefit from the newer hardware of the PS5 and PS5 Pro with its massive hordes of the undead. Giving a second chance to a game with a less than stellar release, even more players would get to experience the underrated action of Deacon’s journey through the apocalypse.

While fan reception has been more positive to these rumors than the more recent remakes, players have still expressed discontent with the choice to remaster games like this, rather than giving them the sequel they deserve.

Why Is PlayStation Remastering These Games?

Making The Most Of The PS5 and PS5 Pro’s Hardware

The most likely culprit behind Sony choosing to remaster more recent and already successful games is that it’s a much safer business choice. With how long it takes to make a remaster of older games, let alone a fully fleshed out remake, it can be difficult to measure what player interest will be by the time it releases. Concerning recent games where the assets are readily available for tinkering, there’s much less of a financial commitment than going through the hassle of building an older title from the ground up.

Both remasters for
TLOU2
and
Zero Dawn
are available to purchase as an upgrade to an existing copy, rather than forcing players to buy the games again.

Another key element is trying to take advantage of the PS5 and newest PS5 Pro’s advanced hardware, letting players push games to the extreme without waiting years for brand-new titles to release with their hardware in mind.

While these updates are great for players that own or plan on buying a newly upgraded PS5, some fans have criticized the remastering trend for being an excuse to pad the PlayStation 5’s somewhat small pool of first party exclusives. Despite player outcry, there’s no doubt that Horizon Zero Dawn and The Last of Us 2 are two of PlayStations biggest hits in recent years, but it’s still up for debate whether they really need remasters or not.

Source: Game Rant