Recent RPS article on yet another System Shock 2 (first-level) remake reminded me how much I hate fan game remake projects, and how those efforts could be put to a much better use.
(NOTE: To clarify, I am not targeting the author of the referred level remake, nor discrediting his talents and efforts! Very nice job given it’s only his second Source map, keep on mapping my friend!)
If you are a fan of System Shock, you will know there have been countless, different, and unfinished attempts at remaking the two games on virtually every engine under the sun. Partly because the projects never get anywhere, partly because Electronic Arts, owner of the System Shock IP, is fast on those Cease & Desist letters. Many other fan remake projects have gone a similar path, such as the highly anticipated but never released Black Mesa: Source, suffering a bit from the ValveTime Syndrome.
Even when remakes are technically and legally feasible, I still have to stop and ask… but WHY?
I mean, the original games are still there and, with advent of emulators, DosBox and Good Old Games, increaingly more accessible even on your brand new Windows 7, SLIed out rig. Why spend thousands of manhours assembling a successful indie team together and keeping it on track for months (a difficult and commendable feat of its own) just to recreate something that is already there? Why not put all these awesome resources to make something new?
Thank GoG!
Now, if you love your classics and want to see more of them, then do that – make more of them, not mere replicas. Use them as inspiration. A new game based on tested mechanics of the old classics does not risk Cease & Desist Letters, pleases the fans of the oldies as well as new gamers, and still pays homage to the original developers. It’s a win all around; you have your cake and you eat it too!