Video game remakes and remasters have become very popular these days. While I’m not thrilled about this trend, it’s hard to ignore that a lot of fans want more remakes and remasters of games they loved. So it makes a twisted kind of sense that the guy in charge of the Sonic franchise at Sega had to explain to the community that despite calls for remakes, they want to make new games instead.
In a new interview with Automaton, Sonic the Hedgehog series producer Takashi Iizuka was asked about the lack of Sonic remakes and remasters. Sure, there are some, but compared to Resident Evil and other franchises, there aren’t nearly as many. According to the Sonic boss, that’s because they don’t have unlimited resources and prefer making new stuff, even if that might disappoint some fans.
“We hear all sorts of requests from the fan community for remakes and remasters, such as people asking us to port Sonic Unleashed,” said Iizuka. “But our resources are limited. Rather than using those limited resources to make remakes and remasters, we have a stronger desire to provide fans with new games and deliver new surprises.
“With remakes and remasters, you’re essentially providing the same experience again. But these days, remaking an old game requires about as many resources as creating a new title. You have to remake all the graphics, and you can’t simply release the gameplay as it was back then because many things are deemed rough by modern standards.”
Iizuka also agreed with the interviewer that remaking and remastering old games isn’t as simple as some might think, so instead he wishes to focus on creating fresh experiences with the time and money available.
“For now, I have a stronger desire to focus on new titles,” said Iizuka. “That said, we do hear players’ concerns about certain games being unplayable, so I’d like to ask you to please wait a little longer.”
I’m not asking for remasters or remakes, but I do hope more of the older Sonic catalog is made easily accessible on modern consoles in the future, as I think that’s a better way to keep a franchise’s past alive without burning resources on a remake or remaster. Regardless, if you were one of the sickos out there dreaming of a Sonic Unleashed remake, well, keep dreaming, I guess.