Capcom has been killing it lately, and we aren’t just talking about head-shotting zombies. Not only are their major IPs continuing to be successful, but the video game giant has capitalized on redoing its classic titles better than most other companies could ever hope to. Fans are clamoring for Resident Evil Veronica, the next entry in the franchise to get a glow-up, and the early cinematics hint that this will be another excellent revisit of the franchise’s past. The path for which titles will receive the remake treatment seems clear, but here are some options they should consider after Veronica.
Darkstalkers: The Night Warriors
Let’s start this off with a genre near and dear to my heart: fighting games. It’s hard to imagine the company remaking a Street Fighter title with the success new entries have, so maybe reach back to something that was incredibly popular in the ‘90s – it even had a cartoon – and help an old franchise rise out of the coffin and live again!
I’m talking about Darkstalkers, which has a unique and charismatic style with a flair for the gothic, stacked with a roster of monsters from a wide array of legends and folklore. The characters are colorful and pop off the screen, so it’s no surprise people still remember this series—everyone loves Morrigan, for…reasons.
The games have been ported over the years and included in collections, but it deserves so much more — a true revival. Instead of just trying to pick up where they left off, this could be a great opportunity to take the story from the three main games and give these creatures a severe facelift.
Keep it 2D, offer an awesome story mode similar to its contemporaries, maybe take some hints from Killer Instinct (2013) or Mortal Kombat (2011), and we should be ready to rule the night once again.
Final Fight
One should never pass up an opportunity to pummel the Mad Gear Gang. We always need new great entries in the beat ‘em up genre, and ever since the release of Streets of Rage 4 impressed me so much, I have been begging for a true remake of Final Fight. Yes, we technically got Final Fight One, but that isn’t good enough.
This game was amazing in the arcade, but many of the home console versions were compromised in various ways, so it’s time to take all of the best aspects, put them in a new engine, throw on a fresh, yet appropriate, coat of paint, and make sure the music kicks ass. My only warning: please don’t try to do it in 3D; this never seems to work for this franchise.
We can take story aspects from the first three games if we want to expand things. We could even do some quality guest characters since this story takes place in the same world as Street Fighter (as well as other Capcom franchises), and fans will finally be able to do four-player co-op with all of the characters. No need to leave Guy out this time.
At the end of the day, we just want the opportunity to go back and wreck Metro City, while saving it from the bad guys. That’s not too much to ask.
Dino Crisis
In the far, distant future of 2009, dinosaurs will become a big problem again according to this classic. Our wonderful protagonist, Regina, is trying hard not to become a snack and help the Secret Operation Raid Team (S.O.R.T.) explore and discover the truth on Ibis Island.
Yes, this is pretty much Resident Evil with dinosaurs – inspired by Jurassic Park: The Lost World – but since it was made by the same team, it’s also quite solid and worth reevaluation.
Just be careful, these lizards aren’t chumps, as they’re surprisingly quick and can even knock the gun out of Regina’s hand. The game lives up to the survival horror label (even though it was marketed as ‘panic horror’), with ammo limitations, puzzles, proto-QTEs that show DANGER flashing across the screen, and more.
Fans have been asking for a remake of this intense game for quite some time, if Capcom could ever pull themselves away from RE, and it’s quite deserving of the reimagining treatment. I can’t wait to see what they do with some of these cutscenes, enemies, and action set pieces here. If this adventure was exciting on the original PlayStation, imagine what they can do now. Hopefully none of these new dinosaurs will have feathers.
Maximo: Ghosts to Glory
For some heroes, death is just the beginning, and if the Grim Reaper’s greed doesn’t put a stop to Maximo’s crusade, nothing will. The king has returned from war to find the land in turmoil, and now he must face a new enemy, save the sorceresses, and rescue the Queen, all while trying to keep his clothes on.
This game takes place in the Ghosts ‘n Goblins universe, so many of those rules and tropes apply here, just in 3D now and with slightly less difficult, frustrating arcade action. This game was a killer on the PlayStation 2 and could enchant a whole new audience with a properly handled remake.
The unique Manga art style should be recreated with care, and the music would most likely be compelling remixes of the original tunes – a little accentuation on the spooky and orchestral work – as is tradition.
If this remake sells well, there’s already a sequel waiting in the wings that could use the same treatment. It’s time for the return of the king, to fight back against the undead army, and for the love of the Grim Reaper himself, make sure there are plenty of stylish boxers for us to unlock through gameplay.
Resident Evil Gaiden
Putting an RE title on here feels like cheating in some way, but let’s be honest, does Resident Evil Gaiden count in any real conversation? Hold on, I know this sounds like a joke, but there really are people out there who enjoy this weird adventure from the Game Boy Color, and no one could say they predicted this addition to the line of remade games.
In many ways, it’s the lost buddy cop romp on a cruise ship, but with zombies, that fans never knew they needed; a forgotten chapter in the legendary careers of Leon S. Kennedy and Barry Burton that has unfortunately been deemed non-canon.
Due to hardware limitations, the gameplay was somewhat unique for the series, exploring in a top-down perspective and fighting done in first-person. It’ll never happen, but if Capcom did decide to remake this gem, or keep the budget low and just slap it on as an extra to the next mainline game, they could retain the gameplay in its original form and lean into the campiness a bit, or just add a few extra mechanics to make things interesting.
Most likely, they would simply take the story, setting, and characters, wipe the rest of it, and use the successful movement and combat methods that have worked so well for them these past few remakes.
I’d honestly be excited to receive either of those versions, as long as they keep the cliffhanger ending. And I would even be okay with Gaiden canonically being a dream Leon was having in the car at the beginning of RE4.
