Second Take: Remasters of popular video games are not worth the money

Dressed like a giant flying rodent, I prowled dark alleyways, dishing out punishment to Gotham’s criminal underbelly. I changed the video game disc and became a magical sword-wielding Nord, slaying dragons with ease.

Warner Bros. released “Batman: Return to Arkham” and Bethesda released “The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition” in October, adding two more titles to the list of last-generation video games re-released for next-generation consoles, which utilize the latest gaming technology and carry the newest games.

Modern video games craft expansive worlds that allow players to experience an immersive form of escapism. Through video games, players have experienced the infamous streets of Gotham City and explored original realms like the Bethesda’s fantasy world of Tamriel. As technology advances and consoles phase out, video game companies are taking advantage of gamers’ nostalgia to make more money off of popular franchises as opposed to developing new content or allowing gamers to play them for free on the new systems, as was possible in older generation consoles.

Although the originals were fan favorites and critical successes when they were first released, remastered versions of video games are simply shinier versions of the originals that offer no new content, making it hard to justify their purchase or creation. In short, for those who have played these games before, the remasters are a waste of money.

Both the “Batman” and “Skyrim” remasters include the full games and all expansion packs, however their biggest and only real selling point is updated graphics. This alone is not enough to justify a full $60 price tag.

“Batman: Arkham Asylum” and “Batman: Arkham City,” the two games included in the remaster, are the best superhero games ever released and two of the best games on the last generation of consoles. Unfortunately, their charm does not extend to the newer generation, with many of the games’ initial bugs and glitches still present. Similarly, the game’s aesthetic “upgrade” can hardly be called such, since side-by-side comparisons of the graphics reveal the newer graphics actually look worse.

The most noticeable change is the increased brightness of the remaster which doesn’t fit into the heavy atmosphere and dark mythos of the Batman universe. However, the bolder colors of the remaster create a greater sense of depth, such as when Batman looks out over Gotham. The crisper minor details like rain droplets against Batman’s cowl are definite improvements from the original. Unfortunately, the sharpness of the added details comes at the cost of a fuzzier, almost smudged look for other texture details like background wall art and characters’ faces.

The visual upgrade is much more significant and worthwhile in “Skyrim.” The immersive forest and mountain environments greatly benefit from the sharpness of the updated graphics. The heavier shadowing, improved textures, water effects and greater sense of depth greatly expand the world’s realism. Much of what made “Skyrim” fun to play was its beauty, and the gameplay and content have not been altered in the remaster beyond a decrease in load times, the removal of some bugs and limited modding. Although less waiting around and fewer rage quits over frozen screens are a definite plus, it is still not enough to warrant purchasing a new version of the game when the original still works just fine.

Nostalgia for high-quality games tends to run high among gamers, and remastering recent titles allows game companies to take advantage of that. The games could have been added to the list of backwards compatible titles (last-generation games that can be played on the newer consoles) on the Xbox One, thus allowing at least some players to enjoy them without repurchasing what they already have.

Some merit holds for remastering video games, especially when they are hard-to-find classics or anthologies; for example 2014’s “Halo: The Master Chief Collection,” collects four games that span over a decade and three generations of game systems. However, in instances like “Batman” and “Skyrim,” the games are too recent and do not provide enough improvement to justify their existence.

For gamers who have never played these games, the remasters provide a worthwhile investment and an opportunity to experience stories they might have otherwise missed on the new systems. However, for players who already own the games, it is hard to find a reason to drop $60 for something they already have.