Remakes have always existed in gaming, but they’re more abundant now than ever. Virtually every genre sees remakes coming out.This includes horror, adventure, stealth, action, and platformers. Platformers are actually the first genre to get heavily used for remakes, often in handheld versions.
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While these standout remakes are debatably not the definitive versions, they’re still worth checking out in their own right. For an entry to count, it has to be in some way built from the ground up. There won’t be any simple upscaled emulated version, as that’s a remaster, not a remake.
10Super Mario All-Stars
The SNES had one notable missing feature that many disliked at the time: backward compatibility. NES games stayed on that console, so it made sense for all classicMariogames to be rereleased on the new 16-bit system.
Super Mario All-Stars featured Mario 1 through 3, plus the Japanese Mario 2 called The Lost Levels. All the graphics and music now have a 16-bit flair, and it’s great. In some ways, it’s an improvement, like with the poison mushroom in The Lost Levels.
The original game’spoison mushroom was a clear trap, looking nothing out of the ordinary. However, the All-Stars version looks much more evil, clearly signifying that it’s not an item you should pick up.
9Super Mario 64 DS
Super Mario 64 DSis one of the most underrated Mario games. It’s often dismissed largely because you use the D-pad to move, even though Mario 64 needed an analog stick to make that game so good to control.
It is unfortunate, but once you look past that, the game’s amazing. There’s so much extra content put in here, including new bosses, new levels, and new playable characters.
All four of them are fun to play around with, and the DS minigames are a fun diversion too. You’ll have a blast with this remake, especially if you want to spice up the experience if you played the classic game so many times.
8Kirby Super Star Ultra
This game is the closest to being an enhanced port, but it adds so much content and retools various aspects that it earns the status of a remake.Kirby Super Star Ultrais a DS remake of the SNES Kirby Super Star.
All the original game modes return with four new ones, making the title quite content-rich. The updated sprites are fantastic looking, outclassing the original in every way.
HAL made the final few game modes much more challenging, which is great for both newcomers and veterans who played the original SNES game. Super Star Ultra is the game’s definitive version, and it’s a shame it’s stuck to DS platforms.
7Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy
The modern-day equivalent to Mario All-Stars would be theCrash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy. It’s essentially the same three original games but with modern graphics and online leaderboard functionality.
You can never go wrong with online leaderboards, as it’s fun trying to climb to the top or simply beat your friends.
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Vicarious Visions retained the original’s challenging gameplay, a wise move, as they could have easily dumbed it down.
This is a great remake and makes these beloved titles available to a whole new generation. It was so good it actually revitalized the whole franchise.
6Spyro Reignited Trilogy
Since the N. Sane Trilogy did so well, it only made sense to do the same thing for another PlayStation platform icon inSpyro the Dragon. The Spyro Reignited Trilogy remakes the original PS1 Spyro trilogy, and it’s very faithful.
These titles still hold up for the most part in the collectathon 3D platformer genre.
Their noBanjo-Kazooie, but still worth checking out for platform fans. The trilogy did have some technical issues at launch, but that’s heavily minimized if you’re playing this on an Xbox Series X or PS5.
5Super Money Ball: Banana Mania
Some of the best GameCube games ever released areSuper Monkey Ball1 and 2. Its tight controls, amount of content,and challenging difficultymade the titles truly special.
A remake of the first two games plus the additional levels in Monkey Ball Deluxe was made intoSuper Monkey Ball: Banana Mania.
The game features a completely different physics system. In the original, the ball was far more heavy, while Banana Mania’s is more lightweight.
This allows you to do more awesome skips since bouncing off objects is easier to do. They also removed the lives system, which encourages more experimentation.
All of this is a great way to retool the title to make it even better.
4Trials Evolution: Gold Edition
On the surface, Trials Evolution: Gold Edition might seem like a normal port of the Xbox 360 version of the game onto the PC. In reality, Gold Edition is two games in one.
You get the base game of Trials Evolution but also the base game of Trials HD. Trials HD never got a PC version, so this was a nice addition, but this ain’t no simple port.
They actually remade all the Trials HD tracks in the new physics engine of Trials Evolution. This is a massive change, especially when speedrunning.
The 360 version of HD notoriously had a rather sturdy head on the rider that you could actually bounce off of in tracks, and that’s now removed. If you’re familiar with the 360 versions, it’s worthwhile to check out Gold Edition for these remade tracks.
3Conker: Live & Reloaded
A standout remake coming from the original Xbox is Conker: Live & Reloaded. It features a massive visual overhaul being one of the best-looking games on the system.
The new third-person view when readying your bat, rebalanced difficulty, and clearer voices are all welcome additions.
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Going back to the N64 version, the poor sound quality is a little distracting since dialogue is so prevalent in this game. Xbox Live multiplayer was also great when it was active back then.
Unfortunately, Live & Reloaded lacks the cartoony aesthetic of the original and has more censorship. This makes the two versions about on par, but both are worth checking out.
2Mega Man Powered Up
The PSP was a great handheld console for its time, although its library was notable for its sure amount of remakes. A lot of them were great, though, andMega Man Powered Upis one of the best.
A remake of Mega Man 1, but with loads of added content and even two new bosses, the game’s adefinite PSP hidden gem. The chibi art style fits excellently into the series, but don’t let the looks fool you because this game is hard as nails.
Looking at the covers of the two PSP Mega Man games, you would assume Maverick Hunter X is the more challenging, but you would be dead wrong. Powered Up is an all-around fantastic PSP exclusive and would be a great choice to add to the collection of PSP games in PlayStation Plus.
1Bionic Commando Rearmed
One of Capcom’s more underrated series is Bionic Commando. It’s a platformer, yet most of the games don’t allow you to jump.
That quirk made these games stand out, including the NES original and its remake Bionic Commando Rearmed. Rearmed stays incredibly faithful to the NES version while still having plenty of awesome additions.
Its remixed soundtrack by Simon Viklund is top-tier, and with loads of replay value, Rearmed is a must-buy for any platform fan. Playing it today can be an issue, though.
The Steam version doesn’t work out of the box, requiring some tinkering, and Rearmed 1 isn’t backward compatible with Xbox Series X/S. The second Rearmed is, but not the first one, meaning you’ll still need a 360 to play it.
