#Remake vs Remaster

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odd grove
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I’m sure this conversation has happened a million times, but I do wonder if the of guidelines surrounding what constitutes a ‘remake’ vs a ‘remaster’ need tightening in the future?

For example, I feel that the ‘Remake’ definition absolutely applies to Metroid Prime Remastered and ‘Remaster’ to The Last of Us Part I; however they are the other way around (presumably because of an intuition to categorise a game with ‘Remastered’ in the title as a Remaster).

But I personally feel that the definitions should be detached from how the games are marketed and should more concern the level of differences from the original game — I think both Metroid Prime Remastered and The Last of Us Part I are remasters in that they are fundamentally enhanced presentations of the same game, whereas the same cannot be said for Resident Evil 2/3, Final Fantasy VII Remake or Metroid Zero Mission, for example (probably because these lean more toward being reinterpretations of the original gameplay/setting).

The line gets blurrier with games like Link’s Awakening, Dead Space (2023) and the Crash Bandicoot Trilogy, so I think some arbitrary line needs to be drawn between the two definitions (I would personally say where there are significant graphical recreations such as 2D -> 3D, this favours ‘remake’ more than updated assets).

What are everyone’s thoughts? Is there a chance these change in future?

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runic cedar
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The two things that make it messy for me are (and this isn't unique to IGDB):

  • Remakes including 2 types, 'New' (Resident Evil 2, Final Fantasy VII) and 'Faithful' (Link's Awakening, THPS1+2). The difference between a 'Faithful' Remake and a Remaster can be blurry. Also could a 'New' Remake be different enough to be considered its own game(?)
  • Whether a port of a game from e.g. PS3 -> PS4 or PS4 -> PS5 could technically fall under the definition of a Remaster. Or could a Remaster of a game to a new platform just be a port(?)

My stab at updated definitions:

Remake: A Remake is when a game is rebuilt, typically with a new engine. It will retain the majority of the plot, characters and settings from the original game but the structure and gameplay mechanics might deviate from the original. Therefore a Remake is usually not a 1:1 recreation of the original game but in some cases it will be very close.

Remaster: A Remaster is an updated presentation of a game that builds upon the existing game with added enhancements. These enhancements are typically for graphics (resolution, framerate, textures, effects) but could also include audio (surround sound, fidelity, re-recordings). A Remaster may include some differences to the original game such as newer control schemes or DLC/updates not found in the original release.

So just a bit more emphasis on "rebuilt vs builds upon" and leaves it a little vague to apply nuance when needed. Tricky one for sure though. Having said that, I think IGDB is already pretty correct with what is labelled as what.

I will be interested to hear what others think also, this is definitely a hot topic among some gaming forums 😂