OK. Why would Naughty Dog want to remake The Last of Us this soon?

[Sheikah]

Look, I don't want to belittle the effort that went into this, because there was certainly effort, but it still doesn't make it more interesting than a remaster in my eyes.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, graphics are the least important aspect of a game. I think that gets more and more true as we go further into console generations and the increases in graphical prowess get more and more miniscule. The fact is that by sticking so close to the original game, it's cemented itself as a remake that doesn't try to do anything new or interesting with the source material. And don't games as popular as the Souls series deserve better than being the same game, but prettier?

Ironically, if a Last of Us remake were to happen and it just so happened to include mechanics from the sequel, then I'd have to concede that despite it still being way too soon, it at least tried to mix things up more than the Demon's Souls remake. And that's my issue with remakes like that.

Yes, I'm well aware that I'm in the minority on this matter. A lot of gamers are perfectly content to have their remakes be purely visual upgrades and not much else. But that really shouldn't be good enough and no-one will change my mind on that.

You're getting overly hung up on the word "remake", is my take.

My understanding is that if it was a remaster you would have been fine with that, but if it's even better than a remaster visually then it's disappointing?

The point of this remake was not to reinvent the wheel. Bluepoint generally don't do that. It was to bring a highly requested game that was lost to the PS3 to the PS5. Of course if was going to get a graphical overhaul, it was a PS5 launch title. And the graphics here are incredibly important, whether you see it or not. The entire point of upgrading to PS5 is down to the graphics - otherwise it could have run on PS4. If they don't show what the machine is capable of then they're not putting forward a good argument for people to upgrade.

 

Can I ask, have you played the Souls games? It seems to me that you are demanding gameplay reinvention for the sake of it and I'm actually not sure what you're asking for, or why. Which bits of the gameplay need redesigning? Which parts were you not happy with?

[Glen-i]

12 minutes ago, Sheikah said:

You're getting overly hung up on the word "remake", is my take.

My understanding is that if it was a remaster you would have been fine with that, but if it's even better than a remaster visually then it's disappointing?

Yes, When something is described as a remake, I tend to expect something more than what we got in this regard.

Yeah, there's a very realistic chance that you're right about me getting too hung up about it. I accept that maybe my standards for this kind of thing are too high. But you start throwing the term remake around with games that don't really do that much to actually provide a fresh take on an old classic and the gaming industry will start pushing it further to see just how much they can get away with.

To be fair, I don't think Bluepoint are in the wrong, they were hired to handle this because that's what Bandai Namco wanted out of it. They did their job well and they should be praised for that. It's just not interesting to me in the slightest because I could theoretically boot up the PS3 and get the same experience, albeit at a lower resolution.

Edited April 11, 2021 by Glen-i

[CrowingJoe79]

Well, I don't think the new RE games are necessarily "bad games" in that they play sucky or anything like that. But if you're a fan who has followed the franchise for over 20 years, you will know that the story has dipped quite badly. The story is important, as is the gameplay, graphics, and character development. If the story is utter nonsense, then yeah. It can be off putting.

It's hard to care about Ethan Winters, as we don't ever see him. It just so happens I am not the biggest fan of the first person perspective either. Plus, 7 and now 8 don't really feel like RE sequels, other than Chris Redfield being involved again. But going from 5 to 6 and now 7 and 8, feels weird. Just how is this all really connected? LOL. 

However, The Last of Us can have relatable relationship quarrels, etc. Especially if you're a person who has lost someone dear to you. It has a story that draws you in, but the gameplay and graphics is something to speak of too. Basically, the new RE Engine based RE games look ugly and dark. In an appropriate way, sure, but it's very emo like though. However, the way Leon runs in the RE2 remake is just horrendous. Even if they didn't want to make it like RE4, they didn't do a good job by cutting out enemies and filtering out a lot of the plot aspects.

Edited April 11, 2021 by CrowingJoe79
My phone changes the spelling of certain words, which I fail to spot sometimes...

[Aperson]

I would argue that Sony has used The Last of Us as a template for ALL their first party titles. They want every game they publish to have a cinematic flair with in depth storytelling. At least, thats from my experience of seeing their games. The Spider-Man games by Insomniac certainly seem like an extended playable movie.

[Glen-i]

14 hours ago, Aperson said:

I would argue that Sony has used The Last of Us as a template for ALL their first party titles. They want every game they publish to have a cinematic flair with in depth storytelling. At least, thats from my experience of seeing their games. The Spider-Man games by Insomniac certainly seem like an extended playable movie.

Sony have always used cinematic games as a selling point, even way back in the PS1 days. FMV's was one of the huge selling points compared to the N64. (The advertising for Final Fantasy VII is a very blatant example of this)

So it doesn't surprise me that they would fall back on that for all this time, because it does work. Well, to an extent, it wasn't quite as effective when put up against the sheer accessibility of the Wii, this kinda made Sony change track a bit and not solely focus on the cinematic experience for a while. But then WiiU happened, tripped Nintendo over, and Sony went back to cinematic games.

[CrowingJoe79]

Well, Naughty Dog. What about Abby and Lev's continued adventures, eh!? 

Dozens of people and dogs died, just so Ellie could choose to spare Abby, just as they were at the finish line. No 'preferred ending' option available. LOL...

It's still a great game, but the original is in a class of its own. The hate for the second game, however, is just due to idiots and throat babies complaining because they probably don't understand that post apocalyptic fiction is NOT meant to be viewed as an openly happy time for anybody. Well, it can be, but it's normally a lot of carnage and loved ones will perish. As was shown with Joel. 

Remaking it is just pretty... meh, honestly. But money talks, I suppose.

I can just see it now. Naughty Dog really is gonna end up being the new Capcom, with how they crank out cash grab titles. Provided we don't go from clickers to lycanthropes, I guess I'm good.