Patreon Q&A #19

DaCody Asks
If you would have a remaster/remake "remastered" which would it be?

Honestly, MGS: Twin Snakes might be a real contender, because the real letdown of that game is its cutscenes and presentation rather than the gameplay. Taking the best pieces of MGS2's gameplay and combining it with the nostalgia of MGS1 is a great idea, but the game's cutscene director made Kojima's prior work look like a Documentary.

A remaster with redirected cutscenes could easily be a good hit, especially if it came to multiple platforms.

Resident Evil Revelations is another potential, if we're stretching the definition of remaster here. Revelations 2 is a game I've massively enjoyed, but went into with very low expectations due to my lackluster time with the original. Its weapons, animations, and effects are just too limp-wristed to really communicate the survival-horror atmosphere that was clearly intended.

Remastering that with improvements to presentation could really realize that game, however, due to the amount of people who enjoy it in the current state, that's unlikely to make a splash.

Last option could be Dues Ex: The Fall, although I never played the game enough to really get a solid opinion of its storytelling or gameplay merits. But I am a firm believer in remastering games that just needed that little extra kick to become good or even great.

Daniel Anugerah Asks
Would love to know your thoughts on EA's FPS reboot of Syndicate

Arguably the most 2012 video-game ever made, even more-so than Resident Evil 6. The lens-flare, gritty voices, and of course, dubstep, unfortunately characterize a game with positives and potential. The soundtrack actually grew on me with time, and the game's ambient pieces I think aren't given enough credit.

When the game doesn't obstruct your vision with hideously dated effects, it's downright gorgeous at times. Combat with the right set of perks, almost foretells the direction of ID's DOOM. And co-op had some great action.

What I've always wanted from the Syndicate license is game that truly exploits the antics of violent corporate espionage, rather than the technology itself, or story of a silent protagonist.

The only hope I see of that brand returning is if Cyberpunk 2077 does extremely well, and EA feels like throwing their hat into the ring. Fat chance, but one can hope.

Holy Shift Asks
Your favorite hand-to-hand combat scene in a game? Alternatively, what makes a fight scene good for you personally?

In games? Oh, that's a tough one. This is merely off the top of my head rather than a definitive answer, but Saints Row 2's various scenes with the Ronin come to my mind. Funny, creative, and very dramatic.

I think good fight scenes come in various forms rather than a specific formula. They can be grand like in Avatar: TLA, street-level fisticuffs like Black Lagoon, or utterly brutal like Daredevil. What I enjoy about fight scenes though, is a character being pushed. The older I get, the less interested I am in someone just walking in and clearing house, and are more interested in someone who gets beaten down but manages to get back up.

Finn Clarke Asks
What are your views on emulation and do you think it has a place in the preservement of games not readily available today? Also, do you have a personal favorite emulator?

It absolutely does! Not only does it allow more people to visit these old experiences without the specific hardware requirements, it even allows us to modify and potentially improve them. Visually with resolutions, textures, and lighting techniques not possible on old hardware, but even in gameplay with things like 60fps hacks.

I do think they need to be made far more accessible though. Far too many of them don't have the most basic of tools to help people experience classics in their best possible state.

Speaking of which, that leads to my answer for your next question.

ReDream.

It's a Dreamcast emulator with a small fee for all the features but it's 100% worth it, and puts PCSX2 or Dolphin to shame in its ease of use, quality of life, and installation. It is easily the benchmark that all emulators should strive towards.

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