For those of you who don’t know, Interplay has recently revealed that it will be remaking ClayFighter . This old fighting game that everyone played but apparently no one liked, if you trust reviews, is a great example of a bad game from the past. It was completely broken in every way, and had absolutely no intricate systems or redeeming qualities to speak of. It was just simple, barebones, linear fighting game gameplay, and it faded to the back of our minds as nothing more than a nostalgia trigger and a cool thing to break out during random mystery game tournaments.
Yet somehow ClayFighter is getting a remake, one that no one ever asked for. Interplay is looking to make the game as good as they can, of course. They have stated that they will be updating the game’s systems to reflect modern day fighting games. That means things like combos, cancels, juggles, air dashes, different hit states, supers and a super meter, and much much more. If they get a couple competent fighting game designers on the project, this could very well be a decent addition to our fighting game lineup.
Not only that, but Interplay is aware that no one really liked the game. In their latest trailer they made it seem as if they were bringing back Earthworm Jim , a game everyone actually DOES want to see again, only to disappoint viewers and themselves with the announcement of ClayFighter . They are totally aware that this is nothing more than an obscure game that can be made again because enough time has passed since anyone played the last installment.
This brings up an interesting question. Should any bad game be a candidate for resurrection?
For very bad games, it seems like the answer is yes. After all, very bad games hold a place in our hearts as much as very good games do. Hell, we have entire Youtube channels devoted to reviewing horrible pieces of crap. I’m looking at you, James Rolfe.
So if someone came along and made a new version of E.T. for the Atari 2600 with updated graphics, I admit I would probably pay 5 dollars for it. But what if they went further? What if they got Spielberg in in it? What if they tried to make the E.T. that we should have gotten, rather than the game we did get? I’m not sure what sort of game it would be. Maybe it would be a cinematic game. Maybe it would be a platformer. Maybe it would be an open world mission-based game. Either way, it would be a sincere attempt to make the game good.
It’s not totally unheard of to make movie adaptations long after the movie has been out of theaters. They did that with The Godfather , and while those games were not masterpieces by any means, they were certainly competent and fun to play.
Can extend this to any number of bad games? Superman 64 ? Sure, let’s try it again. Barbie Horse Adventures ? Riding a horse has been fun in Zelda . Sonic Boom ? Maybe if you take out everything but the running sections.
What do you think? Do bad games deserve to be remade? Let us know in the comments.