0:00:00.000,0:00:03.180 Right now, we are in the age of the remake. 0:00:03.180,0:00:07.380 From Dead Space to Demon's Souls, and [br]from The Last of Us to Like a Dragon, 0:00:07.380,0:00:11.100 it seems like every publisher is [br]now ransacking its back catalogue 0:00:11.100,0:00:14.520 to look for games it can reheat [br]and sell to us all over again. 0:00:14.520,0:00:18.780 But there's one studio that's doing [br]things differently - and that's Capcom. 0:00:18.780,0:00:21.120 Specifically its Resident Evil team. 0:00:21.120,0:00:25.860 Over the last two decades, Capcom [br]has remade Resident Evil 1, 2, 0:00:25.860,0:00:32.460 3, and 4 - and these games feel like way [br]more than just recycled retro favourites. 0:00:33.000,0:00:36.855 So - what are they doing differently? [br]And how do they pull it off? 0:00:36.855,0:00:41.285 Well - I'm Mark Brown, [br]and this is Game Maker's Toolkit. 0:00:43.620,0:00:47.460 Do you remember when Gus Van [br]Sant remade the movie, Psycho? 0:00:47.460,0:00:54.480 This was no ordinary remake: instead, it was a [br]near-perfect, shot-for-shot recreation of the 0:00:54.480,0:00:59.880 original film, with the same script, camera moves, [br]and musical score - but a few modern updates, 0:00:59.880,0:01:05.220 like shooting in colour, and adding more gore [br]and nudity to that infamous shower scene. 0:01:05.220,0:01:10.920 If you don't remember it, I'm not surprised - I [br]think everyone involved would rather you forgot. 0:01:10.920,0:01:15.780 The remake bombed at the box office, [br]it was savaged by critics, Roger Ebert 0:01:15.780,0:01:19.800 called it "pointless", and Hollywood [br]has never tried such a thing again. 0:01:19.800,0:01:20.760 *Pumbaa Farts* 0:01:20.760,0:01:21.660 For the most part. 0:01:21.660,0:01:23.460 But in the world of video games... 0:01:23.460,0:01:26.820 well this is actually how a lot of remakes work. 0:01:26.820,0:01:29.520 Despite using all new engines and assets, 0:01:29.520,0:01:33.360 the goal is to be as faithful as [br]possible to the original game. 0:01:33.360,0:01:37.200 To make a beat-by-beat [br]recreation of what came before. 0:01:37.200,0:01:40.920 But with a few conservative [br]tweaks to the gameplay or content. 0:01:40.920,0:01:43.260 Now this can certainly lead to good games. 0:01:43.260,0:01:46.740 And I've used these remakes to catch [br]up on titles I missed upon release. 0:01:46.740,0:01:50.460 But I think there are two big [br]problems with this approach. 0:01:50.460,0:01:54.180 For one, it can lead to games [br]with absolutely cutting edge 0:01:54.180,0:01:58.680 graphics - but gameplay that feels [br]dated and surpassed by later titles. 0:01:58.680,0:02:01.560 And two - if you've already played the original, 0:02:01.560,0:02:06.060 then this perfect recreation offers [br]little incentive to pick up the remake. 0:02:06.060,0:02:10.800 So that's why Capcom doesn't follow this [br]trend - while its remakes are heavily 0:02:10.800,0:02:16.200 influenced by the original games, it liberally [br]changes both the gameplay and the content. 0:02:16.200,0:02:18.900 For gameplay, take Resident Evil 2. 0:02:18.900,0:02:21.540 The PlayStation 1 original has these fixed, 0:02:21.540,0:02:25.980 CCTV-style camera angles, and [br]Leon moved around like a tank. 0:02:25.980,0:02:29.880 For the remake, Capcom did experiment [br]with keeping this viewpoint... 0:02:29.880,0:02:34.740 but ultimately went for something more modern: [br]turning it into an over-the-shoulder shooter. 0:02:34.740,0:02:38.460 And for content, look at Resident Evil 4. 0:02:38.460,0:02:42.000 This remake mostly follows the [br]beats of the original game, 0:02:42.000,0:02:46.620 but regularly makes changes - content [br]is moved around, played out of order, 0:02:46.620,0:02:51.420 expanded, shrunk, cut entirely, [br]and replaced by brand new stuff. 0:02:51.420,0:02:56.760 So even if you've played the original, [br]this remake is full of surprising twists. 0:02:56.760,0:03:02.880 Take the iconic village siege from the [br]opening of the game - seems familiar enough, 0:03:02.880,0:03:07.860 but then I went up this tower and, [br]oh, that's not how I remember it. 0:03:07.860,0:03:11.640 And then I rounded this corner [br]and, oh no, what's happening now? 0:03:11.640,0:03:16.260 Capcom says "if we remade the game so [br]players do the exact same thing as the 0:03:16.260,0:03:19.440 original, that's not really [br]going to be fun or interesting". 0:03:20.640,0:03:25.260 Of course, it's not enough to just say "throw [br]out the source material and do something new". 0:03:25.260,0:03:28.200 Remakes are playing to our [br]nostalgia for the original, 0:03:28.200,0:03:32.760 and any changes can feel like [br]blasphemous meddling with perfection. 0:03:32.760,0:03:37.380 There are no shortage of remakes that have [br]angered fans by changing things too much. 0:03:37.380,0:03:39.720 Whether that's Ratchet's characterisation, 0:03:39.720,0:03:46.020 Peter Parker's face, or Venture Beat describing [br]Shadow of the Colossus's new graphics as "too good". 0:03:46.020,0:03:51.120 So, Capcom says its remakes "show love for [br]the original work through their content, 0:03:51.120,0:03:55.980 which includes both where the remake makes changes [br]and where it remains the same as the original". 0:03:55.980,0:04:00.180 They know when to stay faithful, and [br]know how to stray from the source. 0:04:00.180,0:04:04.320 One way to do this is to focus [br]on capturing the sensation of 0:04:04.320,0:04:07.800 playing the original game - even if [br]you're not copying the exact details. 0:04:07.800,0:04:12.480 For Resident Evil 2, Capcom says a [br]guiding principle was that "whenever 0:04:12.480,0:04:15.540 people play this, they should get the [br]same feeling we got back in the day, 0:04:15.540,0:04:17.940 even though the outer layers are different". 0:04:17.940,0:04:21.300 So while it loses the forced camera perspective, 0:04:21.300,0:04:25.260 the developers still wanted the game to [br]be tense and claustrophobic - and so made 0:04:25.260,0:04:29.640 it difficult to aim exactly where you want, [br]and kept the camera tight behind Leon's back. 0:04:29.640,0:04:34.140 A smart approach is to identify some [br]pillars of the original - things 0:04:34.140,0:04:37.500 define the DNA of what made it [br]so beloved in the first place. 0:04:37.500,0:04:43.860 For Resident Evil 4, that included stuff like [br]its lighting-fast pace, its b-movie dialogue, 0:04:43.860,0:04:48.180 the way you can tackle encounters in different [br]ways, and how fun the game was to replay. 0:04:48.180,0:04:53.760 The designers behind the Dead Space remake [br]had a similar idea - with "sci-fi horror, 0:04:53.760,0:04:57.180 unbroken immersion, and creative [br]gameplay" as the pillars. 0:04:57.180,0:04:59.940 "Any novelty, enhancement, enrichment, 0:04:59.940,0:05:04.020 or whatever had to fit inside one of [br]those pillars" - the developer says. 0:05:04.020,0:05:08.400 Importantly, these pillars [br]should be feelings, not features. 0:05:08.400,0:05:11.940 Aesthetics, not mechanics, to bring [br]us back to the previous episode. 0:05:11.940,0:05:17.100 This allows developers to change how the game [br]works, without messing with how the game feels. 0:05:17.100,0:05:20.580 For example - Leon can use his [br]knife for some brand new moves 0:05:20.580,0:05:22.800 like a parry, and a stealth takedown. 0:05:22.800,0:05:26.880 This could change the feel of the [br]game, making Leon overpowered. 0:05:26.880,0:05:31.500 But by making it so the knife can break and [br]need to be patched up by the merchant, Leon 0:05:31.500,0:05:36.720 stays one step behind, and the remake stays true [br]to the survival horror feeling of the original. 0:05:37.860,0:05:40.740 So - this approach can be [br]used to address the three 0:05:40.740,0:05:43.380 main things that all remakes should consider. 0:05:43.380,0:05:45.780 Number one is modernisation. 0:05:45.780,0:05:48.360 Remakes are entering the industry today, 0:05:48.360,0:05:53.640 and so people expect modern conventions and [br]conveniences like fast travel and quick save. 0:05:53.640,0:05:55.740 And they don't want to see mechanics that are... 0:05:55.740,0:05:58.680 I don't want to say dated, [br]so let's say unfashionable. 0:05:58.680,0:06:02.040 That's why Capcom pulled the [br]button-bashing quicktime events 0:06:02.040,0:06:06.600 from RE4 - "QTEs are not popular [br]in today's games," the devs said. 0:06:06.600,0:06:11.340 But, any change to the mechanics is [br]going to have a knock-on impact to 0:06:11.340,0:06:14.040 the rest of the game - and risk ruining the feel. 0:06:14.040,0:06:19.680 Take the new Goldeneye remaster - it makes [br]sense to update for modern first-person shooter 0:06:19.680,0:06:23.400 controls, but that makes the game, which [br]was designed for much clunkier inputs... 0:06:23.400,0:06:25.320 well it makes it a bit of a cakewalk. 0:06:25.320,0:06:28.800 Resident Evil 4 could have [br]fallen into the same trap. 0:06:28.800,0:06:32.040 In the original game, Leon couldn't aim and move 0:06:32.040,0:06:36.060 at the same time - he became a turret [br]every time he pulled out his pistol. 0:06:36.060,0:06:41.100 But not adding strafe was an intentional [br]choice on Capcom's part - in 2004, 0:06:41.100,0:06:44.880 it said "we didn't want to go into [br]the shooting / army type genre". 0:06:44.880,0:06:47.880 The remake, predictably, lets Leon strafe - and 0:06:47.880,0:06:50.460 he generally moves around like [br]a typical shooter protagonist. 0:06:50.460,0:06:55.500 But to counterbalance this change, the enemies [br]are now more aggressive and more numerous. 0:06:55.500,0:07:00.960 So despite Leon's newly nimble movement, the [br]game still feels as pulse-pounding as ever. 0:07:01.800,0:07:04.920 Number two is addressing [br]criticism of the original. 0:07:04.920,0:07:09.720 If there's one thing that puts me off from [br]replaying Resident Evil 4, it's Ashley. 0:07:09.720,0:07:13.200 This lengthy escort quest [br]can become an annoying bit 0:07:13.200,0:07:15.540 of babysitting that threatens to spoil the fun. 0:07:15.540,0:07:21.180 Of course, it would be tempting to dramatically [br]change how she works in this remake - perhaps make 0:07:21.180,0:07:26.340 her invincible and helpful, like the partner [br]characters in games released since 2005. 0:07:26.340,0:07:31.020 But that would change the dynamic of the [br]original game - so, instead, Capcom made 0:07:31.020,0:07:36.540 more considered changes, with careful tweaks to [br]her AI, her health bar, and her characterisation. 0:07:36.540,0:07:40.500 No game is perfect, and there will always [br]be elements that don't gel with fans... 0:07:40.500,0:07:42.480 or indeed the developers. 0:07:42.480,0:07:47.940 Talking about The Wind Waker, Zelda boss Eiji [br]Aonuma says "right after the game was completed, 0:07:47.940,0:07:51.510 there would be discussions about how we wish [br]we could have done something [different]" - 0:07:51.510,0:07:54.180 and so the Wii U version [br]makes some welcome changes, 0:07:54.180,0:07:57.120 like speeding up a contentious [br]late-game fetch quest. 0:07:57.840,0:08:02.100 And number three is making the game [br]more approachable and accessible. 0:08:02.100,0:08:06.120 A remake is trying to win over people [br]who never played the original - and that 0:08:06.120,0:08:09.360 includes those who bounced off the first [br]game, or were never able to start it. 0:08:09.360,0:08:13.260 The first Resident Evil Remake was [br]intentionally designed to ease in 0:08:13.260,0:08:17.580 new players, with Capcom accepting that the [br]first game really threw you into the deep end. 0:08:17.580,0:08:21.600 And Resident Evil 2 through [br]4 all come with an assisted 0:08:21.600,0:08:25.560 difficulty setting with features like [br]health regeneration and aim snapping. 0:08:25.560,0:08:30.360 Old games can be notoriously difficult [br]to get into, and rarely accommodated 0:08:30.360,0:08:33.300 players with disabilities - so [br]it's good to see remakes that 0:08:33.300,0:08:36.300 make things more approachable, [br]and add accessibility options. 0:08:36.300,0:08:39.120 The Last of Us Part 1 is a notable standout, 0:08:39.120,0:08:43.500 with perhaps the most extensive suite [br]of options seen in a game thus far. 0:08:43.500,0:08:47.280 But it's usually important to [br]make these changes optional. 0:08:47.280,0:08:52.980 In the Pokemon Diamond and Pearl remakes, [br]the devs added a team-wide EXP Share, 0:08:52.980,0:08:57.120 which means that when you win a battle, [br]all of your Pokemon get experience points. 0:08:57.120,0:09:01.680 This wrecked the balance and made the [br]game super easy, barely an inconvenience. 0:09:01.680,0:09:06.120 It could have been a good option for those who [br]want an easier time, but it's actually just part 0:09:06.120,0:09:10.320 of the game and can't be disabled, which [br]annoys those who want more of a challenge. 0:09:10.320,0:09:14.580 I kinda feel the same way about this [br]button in Resident Evil 4's remake 0:09:14.580,0:09:17.280 which automatically tidies up your attache case. 0:09:17.280,0:09:19.920 And I know I could just "not press the button", 0:09:19.920,0:09:23.580 but it's right there! Of course I'm [br]going to press the button! I am weak. 0:09:24.240,0:09:29.640 So, Capcom doesn't try to perfectly recreate [br]the original game, when it does a remake. 0:09:29.640,0:09:34.320 It freely changes characters, plot [br]points, mechanics, puzzles, and content. 0:09:34.320,0:09:37.980 This makes each remake feel as [br]fresh as a brand new release, 0:09:37.980,0:09:42.180 and enjoyable even to those who have [br]finished the original a million times. 0:09:42.180,0:09:46.380 But it uses the sensation of playing [br]the first game as a lodestar, 0:09:46.380,0:09:50.160 to carefully guide new changes [br]- keeping Resident Evil 2 scary, 0:09:50.160,0:09:54.480 and making sure Resident Evil 4 still [br]feels like an action-packed rollercoaster. 0:09:54.480,0:09:59.940 And I think this also helps explain Capcom's [br]least-loved remake: Resident Evil 3. 0:09:59.940,0:10:06.120 By nerfing Nemesis - by turning Jill's [br]invincible stalker into a simplistic set piece, 0:10:06.120,0:10:14.040 RE3 doesn't accurately capture the sensation of [br]the PS1 original - and so kinda fails as a remake. 0:10:14.040,0:10:18.480 But when done right, says Capcom, "a [br]remake of a game can deliver a new 0:10:18.480,0:10:22.380 experience to players while also touching [br]upon the memories we have of the original, 0:10:22.380,0:10:26.760 which is an appeal that is different from [br]the appeal of a completely new game." 0:10:27.540,0:10:31.860 But there's one problem when it comes to making [br]such massive changes in a remake. 0:10:31.860,0:10:36.660 You see, the reason why Psycho was [br]dubbed pointless is because the 1960 0:10:36.660,0:10:40.080 original is readily available, [br]and eminently watchable today. 0:10:40.680,0:10:45.840 In general, it's reasonably easy to remaster [br]a movie - which means to go back to the master 0:10:45.840,0:10:50.400 recording, and make a new print with an improved [br]picture, for a modern format like Blu-Ray. 0:10:50.400,0:10:55.680 This means that, in Hollywood, remakes are free to [br]liberally adapt the source material - completely 0:10:55.680,0:11:00.120 changing the film to work in a different time, or [br]a different culture, or with a different audience. 0:11:00.120,0:11:03.300 Change what you want: the [br]original is always available. 0:11:03.300,0:11:05.460 But games are different. 0:11:05.460,0:11:10.800 Old games get stuck on disintegrating [br]hardware, digital games get delisted, 0:11:10.800,0:11:15.360 online games see their servers go down, [br]and entire storefronts go offline. 0:11:15.360,0:11:19.920 And it's really tough to do a straight [br]"remaster" of a game - and there are 0:11:19.920,0:11:22.020 no shortage of crummy ones to point to. 0:11:22.020,0:11:26.940 Truly great remasters, like Metroid [br]Prime on Switch, are a rare treat. 0:11:26.940,0:11:30.900 So, for some players - well, [br]they're counting on a remake 0:11:30.900,0:11:33.660 as the only way to revisit their old favourites. 0:11:33.660,0:11:36.600 And they want it to be exactly [br]the way they remember it. 0:11:36.600,0:11:40.620 They're looking for that ultra faithful [br]recreation with a few modern updates. 0:11:40.620,0:11:42.840 They want Gus Van Sant's Psycho. 0:11:42.840,0:11:46.380 But I don't think this means we [br]need more shot-for-shot remakes: 0:11:46.380,0:11:49.860 it just means we need better [br]game preservation - and to 0:11:49.860,0:11:52.980 praise publishers who provide [br]access to the original titles. 0:11:52.980,0:11:56.640 Because no matter what you think [br]of the new Resident Evil 4 Remake, 0:11:56.640,0:12:02.580 it ultimately lives alongside an excellent, and [br]very moddable, HD remaster of the original game. 0:12:02.580,0:12:07.620 The RE4 Remake doesn't try to [br]overwrite or replace the 2005 original, 0:12:07.620,0:12:10.920 and I'm sure I'll be replaying both in the future. 0:12:10.920,0:12:16.140 Sadly, the older Resident Evil [br]games are not so easy to play today. 0:12:16.140,0:12:21.720 And I hope Capcom rights that wrong in the same [br]way it does its many, many Mega Man compilations. 0:12:21.720,0:12:24.420 But other developers are showing how to do it. 0:12:24.420,0:12:28.380 Nightdive Studios is currently [br]working on a wild new remake of 0:12:28.380,0:12:33.120 System Shock - but after acquiring the [br]IP it also released the original game, 0:12:33.120,0:12:36.540 an enhanced edition, and even [br]dropped the source code online. 0:12:36.540,0:12:40.680 And remember when Zero Mission [br]let you just boot up Metroid 1, 0:12:40.680,0:12:43.680 right there, in the game? That was neat. 0:12:43.680,0:12:46.920 Just don't be like Rockstar, who removed the Grand 0:12:46.920,0:12:51.420 Theft Auto games from Steam to make [br]way for its disastrous remasters. 0:12:51.420,0:12:57.300 Or Blizzard, who removed Warcraft 3 to [br]make way for its, again, disastrous remake. 0:12:57.900,0:13:02.940 So, what do you reckon? Is Capcom [br]king of the remakes? Or do you 0:13:02.940,0:13:07.440 prefer more faithful recreations? Let [br]me know in the comments down below.