Nightdive Studios has made quite a name for itself. Over the years, this studio has focused on remastering classic games to see them released on modern hardware. They have worked on a wide range of IPs like Turok, Doom, and Quake and are still pushing forward with exciting new releases. For instance, we know that they are working on a new release for the PC 1995 classic I Have No Mouth, And I Must Scream.
However, it looks like Nightdive Studios is looking to broaden the type of games they’ll work on. Speaking with VGC, Nightdive Studios’ head Stephen Kick, and director of business development Larry Kuperman, the topic of a new generation of games came up. Specifically, the topic was about bringing games back into modern hardware that are still stuck on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 platforms.
It was noted that a few areas would potentially help the remastering of these games. A big help would be if a PC version had already been released. From there, you have a checklist of whether there’s a source code, its quality, and assets. That would save a lot of games that could be lost for a new generation of gamers.
Was it Xbox 360 exclusive, or was there a PC version out too? Because that also changes things, the little preservation that’s available. Do we have source code? If so, what’s the quality of the source code? How about the assets? Those are the kinds of considerations that we have there. That being said, there were some really good games that came out in that era that shouldn’t be lost. – Larry Kuperman
To your point, though, with a game like Haze – let’s say hypothetically we had access to that, and that was our big title for 2028, right? – We would go to the original designers, and we would say: ‘It didn’t do as well as you had hoped, I’m sure you’ve had a lot of time to ruminate and to think about what you would have done differently. – Stephen Kick
They duo went on to say that there were other areas that would help a game see a new potential lease on life. Speaking with the original developers would help out as they have years now to look back and determine what they would have done differently. Haze was an example of a game that could benefit on a new release.
While that game didn’t have the success developers had hoped for, modern hardware could make a big difference. Things like frame rate, refresh rate, texture resolution, and more would be an improvement simply because of the hardware the game will be running on. Then, again, you have original developers chiming in to help. So, with all that added, you might see some games flourish today.
Then there’s also the obstacle of PlayStation 3 games, a system known for being tough on developers. Despite that, there is still optimism that they could deliver something that would appeal to veteran fans and newcomers alike.
