Top 10 Video Game Reboots Redux
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VOICE OVER: Daniel Paradis
WRITTEN BY: Ty Richardson
Script Written by Ty Richardson
These games and franchises managed to totally reinvent themselves while keeping all the hallmarks of what made their original titles so engaging. From the new God of War to the Wolfenstein series, we take a look at the titles that elevated games from good, to great!
To have your ideas turned into a WatchMojo or MojoPlays video, head over to http://WatchMojo.comsuggest and get to it!
These games and franchises managed to totally reinvent themselves while keeping all the hallmarks of what made their original titles so engaging. From the new God of War to the Wolfenstein series, we take a look at the titles that elevated games from good, to great!
To have your ideas turned into a WatchMojo or MojoPlays video, head over to http://WatchMojo.comsuggest and get to it!
Top 10 Video Game Reboots REDUX
Not all series can reinvent themselves, but these reboots certainly defied our expectations. Welcome to WatchMojo.com, and today, we’re counting down our picks for the Top 10 Video Game Reboots!
For this list, we’re looking at some of the best reboots in our favorite franchises. Keep in mind that we’re looking at reboots, which means the game must have changed gameplay styles or started their entire story over. This means no remasters and no remakes! We are counting “soft reboots”, though, as they still manage to change formulas while continuing the same story.
In the mid to late 2000’s, “Mortal Kombat” was going through a rough patch with its lackluster gameplay and oversaturated roster. What better way to bring a series back to its glory days than with a reboot? “Mortal Kombat” retcons almost the entire timeline, with the story taking place during the first three games. On top of a brand new story, “Mortal Kombat” takes the series back to its old arcade days, with its classic rosters and 2D fighting gameplay. It also adds a new mechanic, “X-ray moves”, which can allow you to deal a massive amount of damage to your opponent, as well as cringe at the sound of cracking bones. Uuugghh!
Lara Croft will always be one of our favorite badass women in gaming. Needless to say, her original appearance kind of needed an update. While the same linear adventure gameplay was kept intact, Lara went through some significant changes of her own. “Tomb Raider” 2013 focused more on Lara’s early years as she learned how to survive and defend herself. With a compelling narrative and stellar graphics, “Tomb Raider” 2013 helped reintroduce Lara to gamers old and new, finding massive success for the franchise with a third game on the way.
After Activision had failed to continue the “Wolfenstein” reboot with the 2009 sequel, Machine Games and Bethesda Softworks took a crack at making a new “Wolfenstein” game. It may not have been perfect, but it was still pretty dam good. “Wolfenstein: The New Order” brought the series back to its frenetic, over-the-top action while keeping modern FPS gameplay. The story took a drastic turn, too, taking place in a future where the Nazis won World War II. Additionally, series protagonist B.J. Blazkowicz wasn’t just another muscled white guy, giving the Wolfenstein franchise a new dimension that we didn’t necessarily ask for but certainly appreciated.
Yes, this game is a prequel to the franchise, but according to developer Eidos Montreal, “Human Revolution” is a reboot of the “Deus Ex” franchise. We can’t really argue with that because “Human Revolution” does have somewhat deeper gameplay than its predecessors, and somewhat shallower in certain point..anyway! The way each level is designed allows players to come up with different strategies to take out their enemies, which might not seem like a novelty now, but is definitely paying homage to the original games. Additionally, the narrative is almost completely new, and it simultaneously makes allusions to prior entries. While It may not have the best AI, “Human Revolution” is an overall fantastic experience.
“Metroid” is one of the best 2D platformer/shooters you could play. Heck, the franchise is part of the reason why we have the “Metroidvania” sub-genre, well it’s the metroid part, right? “Metroid Prime”, on the other hand, brought the franchise into FPS territory, and it did so almost flawlessly. The exceptional soundtrack was able to immerse players into the eerie atmosphere, and the game featured some of the most detailed graphics to ever grace the GameCube. Today, it’s considered one of the consoles best titles, and we’re excited to see “Metroid Prime 4” debut on the Switch sometime in the near future.
The “UFO” and “XCOM” series probably wouldn’t survive without this reboot. See, the franchise came from a different time, where turn-based strategy games were known to be slow, utilizing more menus than a fast-food restaurant. But today, users aren’t use to waiting their turn. But this is still the case with “XCOM: Enemy Unknown”, which we have to admit is probably less heavy than its predecessors, allowing players to focus more on the tense action. Additionally, it manages to retain the infamy the “XCOM” games were known for with its unforgiving difficulty.
In its early years, the “Fallout” franchise was an isometric RPG. However, in the middle of “Fallout 3’s” development, Black Isle Studios was shutdown, and Interplay Entertainment sold the whole franchise to Bethesda Softworks. Bethesda ended up evolving the franchise into a first-person shooter with some pretty deep RPG mechanics under the hood. With a reworked V.A.T.S. system and dozens of quests to complete, “Fallout 3” kept players busy for some time, and it launched a franchise that still sells millions of copies to this day.
While this is a continuation of the “God of War” story, the game can be considered a “soft reboot”. Not only does the game take place in an entirely different setting, but the gameplay is significantly different than previous “God of War” titles. Instead of another hack-&-slash adventure, we’re given a semi-open world experience that is filled to the brim with side quests, hidden areas to explore, and many collectibles based around Norse mythology. “God of War” 2018 has gamers invested in Kratos’s story again, and it’ll be interesting to see what the future holds for the franchise.
Not every retro game can transition well into a new generation. Had “Prince of Persia” kept its same old puzzle-platformer gameplay, the series would have never exploded in popularity the way it did in 2003. “Sands of Time” successfully adapted the series into a bigger action-adventure game. Yes, there were still platforming sections and puzzles, but their was a much bigger focus on sweet parkour action as well as narrative and combat. Besides, this is what inspired the equally impressive 2008 reboot. To this day, we’re still longing for the Prince’s return.
Before we reveal our top pick, here are a few honorbale mentions
“Doom” was not only one of the best games to come out of 2016, but it became one of the best first-person shooters of all-time. There were plenty of reason to be skeptical before release; the game had spent fifteen years in development hell, even going through a complete restart in development. After all that time, “Doom” reintroduced itself with a reboot that featured the fast-paced action we’d come to love though. It captured the feeling of the original “Doom” games while reinventing itself in refreshing ways, with the noteworthy “Glory Kills” mechanic coming to mind immediately. And players could enjoy the experience in sixty frames per second with one of the most kickass soundtracks in gaming!
Not all series can reinvent themselves, but these reboots certainly defied our expectations. Welcome to WatchMojo.com, and today, we’re counting down our picks for the Top 10 Video Game Reboots!
For this list, we’re looking at some of the best reboots in our favorite franchises. Keep in mind that we’re looking at reboots, which means the game must have changed gameplay styles or started their entire story over. This means no remasters and no remakes! We are counting “soft reboots”, though, as they still manage to change formulas while continuing the same story.
#10: “Mortal Kombat” (2011)
In the mid to late 2000’s, “Mortal Kombat” was going through a rough patch with its lackluster gameplay and oversaturated roster. What better way to bring a series back to its glory days than with a reboot? “Mortal Kombat” retcons almost the entire timeline, with the story taking place during the first three games. On top of a brand new story, “Mortal Kombat” takes the series back to its old arcade days, with its classic rosters and 2D fighting gameplay. It also adds a new mechanic, “X-ray moves”, which can allow you to deal a massive amount of damage to your opponent, as well as cringe at the sound of cracking bones. Uuugghh!
#9: “Tomb Raider” (2013)
Lara Croft will always be one of our favorite badass women in gaming. Needless to say, her original appearance kind of needed an update. While the same linear adventure gameplay was kept intact, Lara went through some significant changes of her own. “Tomb Raider” 2013 focused more on Lara’s early years as she learned how to survive and defend herself. With a compelling narrative and stellar graphics, “Tomb Raider” 2013 helped reintroduce Lara to gamers old and new, finding massive success for the franchise with a third game on the way.
#8: “Wolfenstein: The New Order” (2014)
After Activision had failed to continue the “Wolfenstein” reboot with the 2009 sequel, Machine Games and Bethesda Softworks took a crack at making a new “Wolfenstein” game. It may not have been perfect, but it was still pretty dam good. “Wolfenstein: The New Order” brought the series back to its frenetic, over-the-top action while keeping modern FPS gameplay. The story took a drastic turn, too, taking place in a future where the Nazis won World War II. Additionally, series protagonist B.J. Blazkowicz wasn’t just another muscled white guy, giving the Wolfenstein franchise a new dimension that we didn’t necessarily ask for but certainly appreciated.
#7: “Deus Ex: Human Revolution” (2011)
Yes, this game is a prequel to the franchise, but according to developer Eidos Montreal, “Human Revolution” is a reboot of the “Deus Ex” franchise. We can’t really argue with that because “Human Revolution” does have somewhat deeper gameplay than its predecessors, and somewhat shallower in certain point..anyway! The way each level is designed allows players to come up with different strategies to take out their enemies, which might not seem like a novelty now, but is definitely paying homage to the original games. Additionally, the narrative is almost completely new, and it simultaneously makes allusions to prior entries. While It may not have the best AI, “Human Revolution” is an overall fantastic experience.
#6: “Metroid Prime” (2002)
“Metroid” is one of the best 2D platformer/shooters you could play. Heck, the franchise is part of the reason why we have the “Metroidvania” sub-genre, well it’s the metroid part, right? “Metroid Prime”, on the other hand, brought the franchise into FPS territory, and it did so almost flawlessly. The exceptional soundtrack was able to immerse players into the eerie atmosphere, and the game featured some of the most detailed graphics to ever grace the GameCube. Today, it’s considered one of the consoles best titles, and we’re excited to see “Metroid Prime 4” debut on the Switch sometime in the near future.
#5: “XCOM: Enemy Unknown” (2012)
The “UFO” and “XCOM” series probably wouldn’t survive without this reboot. See, the franchise came from a different time, where turn-based strategy games were known to be slow, utilizing more menus than a fast-food restaurant. But today, users aren’t use to waiting their turn. But this is still the case with “XCOM: Enemy Unknown”, which we have to admit is probably less heavy than its predecessors, allowing players to focus more on the tense action. Additionally, it manages to retain the infamy the “XCOM” games were known for with its unforgiving difficulty.
#4: “Fallout 3” (2008)
In its early years, the “Fallout” franchise was an isometric RPG. However, in the middle of “Fallout 3’s” development, Black Isle Studios was shutdown, and Interplay Entertainment sold the whole franchise to Bethesda Softworks. Bethesda ended up evolving the franchise into a first-person shooter with some pretty deep RPG mechanics under the hood. With a reworked V.A.T.S. system and dozens of quests to complete, “Fallout 3” kept players busy for some time, and it launched a franchise that still sells millions of copies to this day.
#3: “God of War” (2018)
While this is a continuation of the “God of War” story, the game can be considered a “soft reboot”. Not only does the game take place in an entirely different setting, but the gameplay is significantly different than previous “God of War” titles. Instead of another hack-&-slash adventure, we’re given a semi-open world experience that is filled to the brim with side quests, hidden areas to explore, and many collectibles based around Norse mythology. “God of War” 2018 has gamers invested in Kratos’s story again, and it’ll be interesting to see what the future holds for the franchise.
#2: “Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time” (2003)
Not every retro game can transition well into a new generation. Had “Prince of Persia” kept its same old puzzle-platformer gameplay, the series would have never exploded in popularity the way it did in 2003. “Sands of Time” successfully adapted the series into a bigger action-adventure game. Yes, there were still platforming sections and puzzles, but their was a much bigger focus on sweet parkour action as well as narrative and combat. Besides, this is what inspired the equally impressive 2008 reboot. To this day, we’re still longing for the Prince’s return.
Before we reveal our top pick, here are a few honorbale mentions
#1: “Doom” (2016)
“Doom” was not only one of the best games to come out of 2016, but it became one of the best first-person shooters of all-time. There were plenty of reason to be skeptical before release; the game had spent fifteen years in development hell, even going through a complete restart in development. After all that time, “Doom” reintroduced itself with a reboot that featured the fast-paced action we’d come to love though. It captured the feeling of the original “Doom” games while reinventing itself in refreshing ways, with the noteworthy “Glory Kills” mechanic coming to mind immediately. And players could enjoy the experience in sixty frames per second with one of the most kickass soundtracks in gaming!
