Sega has had one heck of a wild ride in the gaming industry. It’s strange to think that there was a time when they were hardware heavyweights in their own right, when Sonic vs Mario battles raged in schoolyards all over the world. After that, the Dreamcast’s failure (though it enjoys a cult status now) marked their departure from the console business.
Be that as it may, though, Sega has a proud legacy to draw upon. All of Sonic’s success aside, they’ve been responsible for some of the most beloved and nostalgic games and franchises ever. Streets of Rage is one that’s fondly remembered, but is the time ripe for a remake of the 1991 original?
10 We Need A Remake: Everything Else Is Being Remade
In recent years, publishers and developers across the industry have been discovering just how lucrative remakes can be. We’ve been inundated with ports, HD remasters, ground-up remakes and such of an enormous variety of games, from MediEvil (pictured above) to the much-beloved Final Fantasy VII.
In an age where new IPs seem to be harder and harder to get right, devs seem to be profiting more and more from gamers’ nostalgia. A whole generation of gamers grew up with Axel, Blaze, Adam and the dastardly Mr. X, and when have fans ever been able to resist a remake?
9 We Don’t Need A Remake: The Original Is Super Basic
So, yes, there’s certainly a market there. If Sega were to lend a little HD to those blocky, rage-y streets, we’d certainly be tempted to hop back on board. As is always the case, though, it would take more than a simply coat of paint to revitalize this series, particularly the original.
Rose-tinted glasses aside, there’s no doubt that the original Streets of Rage is a darn basic title. It turns thirty next year, so this is to be expected, but the sequels lent some much-needed variety to the gameplay, in terms of moves the characters could pull off. Beat ‘em ups aren’t the most tactical and complex games at the best of times, but the first Streets of Rage really would feel super basic today.
8 We Need A Remake: It’s Still The Most Iconic, Though
There’s the rub: it’s crucial for remakes to appeal to fans of the original, but if that’s as far as things go, sales numbers aren’t likely to be very impressive. This one, in particular, would be a hard sell for anybody who isn’t familiar with Axel, Adam and Blaze’s solemn quest to clean up the streets.
The fact is, though, Streets of Rage is a series that managed to assume a proud place in pop culture. It’s a product of a simpler time, one of those games that you don’t need to have played to know the gist of. Hopping straight to a sequel would make no sense in that regard: it’s the original that deserves a showcase first.
7 We Don’t Need A Remake: The Sequels Were More Involved, More Varied
It’s amazing just how much can change in a few short years. Look at the jump from 1997’s Final Fantasy VII to 1999’s Final Fantasy VIII. Sure, Squall’s messy pixel-face didn’t really make him the best-looking guy here, but the game looked orders of magnitude better than its Lego-armed predecessor.
By the same token, Streets of Rage 2 arrived only a year after the first title but offered a lot of much-needed gameplay variety. More varied characters, special moves, a clunky and awkward but functional PvP mode… thee was just much more to the package. Streets of Rage 3 was criticised for playing things too safe and following the previous game a little too closely, but both had much more to offer in comparison to the limited original.
6 We Need A Remake: A Chance To Add Elements From The Later Games?
So, yes. There’s simply no denying that, thirty years on, Streets of Rage is showing every single second of its age. This is certainly a shortcoming, but it could also be seen as an opportunity too.
For a hypothetical remake, there’s scope to add content and mechanics from the game’s sequels. Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled, for instance, fully remade every inch of the original, but packed in all the tracks and racers from sequel Crash Nitro Kart as well. Not only would this approach give the team scope to add a variety of quality of life improvements, but special moves, dashes, more stages and the like would make the core gameplay feel much more satisfying and substantial as well.
5 We Don’t Need A Remake: There’s A Sequel On The Way
Now, to be completely frank, this could be seen as a positive or a negative. On the one hand, a remake of older series entries can be a great way to build hype for an upcoming sequel or reboot. Both releases could potentially work in tandem, supporting the other. On the other, though, nostalgic fans are already getting their fix: after around 26 years, Streets of Rage 4 is set to launch in 2020.
It’s not often that you see sequels emerge out of the woodwork after almost three decades, but here we are. As a more contemporary and appealing take on the classic series (yep, it’ll have trophies), this one will have fans and newcomers covered.
4 We Need A Remake: It Would Help Revive A Forgotten Genre
Generally speaking, side-scrolling beat ‘em ups are a product of a simpler time, and gamers tend to expect so much more these days. Sky-high production values, deep, cinematic stories, enormous open worlds to explore… for many, the simple pleasures of marching from left to right and pummelling waves of foes into sad hunks of bloody, defeated failure are long gone.
This sort of simple arcade gameplay died out with the arcades themselves, you say? Well, maybe there’s some truth to that, but you can never count out the simpler pleasures in life. Some of the most popular titles in the world (mobile games) revolve around quick bursts of flashy fun, and these sorts of titles are perfect for that if we give them a chance.
3 We Don’t Need A Remake: Is There Still A Market For It?
As we’ve mentioned, it’s been 26 years since Streets of Rage 3 was released. With that in mind, it’s completely understandable that a lot of today’s gamers would have slim to zero clue who the likes of Eddie “Skate” Hunter or Dr. Zan even are.
Gaming has taken meteoric strides forward since then, as have our expectations of what video games can do and should be. It’s really not surprising that there has been precious little action in the scrolling beat ‘em up genre since then, even among retro-loving indie developers. To flip our previous point about simple, on-the-go games on its head, how would a remake fair today? All eyes are on Streets of Rage 4’s eventual performance.
2 We Need A Remake: A Trilogy Package Would Be A Much More Appealing Prospect
By itself, a Streets of Rage remake would perhaps be a little lackluster. It’s a very short game, after all, and if you’re not a high score hunter, it won’t keep you playing for very long. This is where a potential trilogy package could come in.
A bundle of the first game with its two sequels, given the respect they deserve in the making, could be a hit. Perhaps something similar to Konami’s Castlevania and Contra Anniversary Collection, with a digital booklet about the making of the series included.
1 We Don’t Need A Remake: They’ve Been Re-Released A Lot, And Fans Wouldn’t Appreciate Changes
With the Streets of Rage series being so iconic, it’s already been re-released and ported several times over. It’s a jewel of many retro compilations, so all of those most enthusiastic about it surely own it already on some format or other.
As with any remake, there’s also the issue of making changes. Quality of life improvements are one thing, but make too many mechanical updates and you risk tarnishing long-time fans’ memories. Gamers have super strong feelings about that sort of thing, and perhaps some titles are best left alone.
NEXT: 10 Tips To Make Yourself Overpowered In The Resident Evil 3 Remake
