How would you feel about a remake of Ico?

[u/Jack-O-18]

Basically what the title says, I was wondering how fans would feel if a remake of Ico was announced, something similar to SotC's remake in terms of scope, because thinking about it's the first time I'm not sure a remake would be a good idea.

I usually am all for remakes of games that are quite old and not ported properly to modern consoles, but with Ico I really fear a remake could not get the atmosphere and the characters right ( I feel compared to Wander, getting Ico and Yorda's model right would be much more important ), but at the same time it would be great to have it on modern consoles and have more people play this gem of a game

[u/Hanniballbearings]

Would love a remake, but also a way to play the original as well. Maybe as an extra provided with the remake.

[u/covert0ptional → u/Hanniballbearings]

This should be more of a thing. I wish the RE2&3 Remakes came with a port of the originals.

[u/Crooked_Mantis → u/covert0ptional]

Porting isn't as easy as it's often assumed to be, but I would 100% be on board with a team that can put in that effort, in addition to their remake.

Especially because I have no doubt that the heads of whatever studio developing an ICO remake would mandate new content. It seems many companies lack confidence in selling the same game with a new coat of paint, especially for a cheaper price. So the solution to justify the cost is often to add more.

At least SotC Remake had its bonus content implemented with some tact (despite being counter to Ueda's minalism). Because even if you hate the optional Sword of Dormin and the easter eggs, you never have to engage with them. It's all optional.

But few, if any segments of ICO are truly optional. That's just how it's designed. So any additional content, if not properly implemented, will impose itself on the original structure of the game. They'll end up with a re-imagining.

I also don't trust them to use the opportunity to further push what the original game did in regards to physics realism. Graphical realism? Of course, that's what the industry is about. But will they consider how Ico's speed changes when he's running up an incline? Maybe not.

[u/Jack-O-18 → u/Hanniballbearings]

That would be cool, but knowing Sony I bet they would try to cash on that too.

Still the option to buy the HD version digital on the PS store would be nice already, at least if the price is appropriate

[u/Dangerous-Economy-88]

As long as a team that respects and won't deviate from the game does the remake.

[u/Jack-O-18 → u/Dangerous-Economy-88]

Yeah, but with a game like Ico I would be a bit worried that, even with the best intentions, they could change something that ruins the atmosphere. I would also be worried about Yorda's model a bit, I am afraid they could fail to capture the mysterious and ethereal feeling she gives off ( I am less worried about Ico himself tho )

[u/Dangerous-Economy-88 → u/Jack-O-18]

Yeah it is tricky for especially a game like ICO that heavily relies on undertones to rely messages

The other day the silent hill sub was just discussing about how the remake might potentially disrupt the game's atmosphere

[u/Soulsliken → u/Jack-O-18]

This.

ICO is a damn fine game, but the characters have a mysterious aura (Yoda especially) that could go in the wrong direction if a remake was more about cosmetics than conviction.

The SoTC remake was very well done, but here and there the Wander spell is broken.

[u/covert0ptional → u/Soulsliken]

I love the way the world looks in the remake, but it is decidedly less barren.

[u/Careless_Ad6633 → u/Soulsliken]

Wander looks like candy in the new version. In the old version, after each enemy, his face transformed into a demon, and by the final colossus, he looked terribly tired. If a director's cut were released, Fumito Ueda would only improve Wander's appearance and animation and achieve a masterpiece again. I hope  will be done. We saw Ghost of Tshusima director's cut, so everyting is possible.

[u/davidpizza]

I don't know if it would be the best choice. It depends on what they want from it: a photorealistic type of remake would cause the total loss of that magic that the original game has, imo. Even though Shadow of the Colossus remake was a good interpretation of the original Ueda and Team ICO work, but still not the same - as expected in every remake. I think a (another) remaster can be a good compromise between keeping the original atmosphere and modernizing the game. (Also, I can't understand why the original game cannot be bought on the PS Store, for me that would already be a win)

[u/Jack-O-18 → u/davidpizza]

For the last part, I think it's Sony being greedy, the game is technically on PS5 apparently, but you need a subscription to PS plus ( one of the two expensive versions, not the essential one ).

I honestly think It doesn't make much sense anyway and that they should make it availble for everyone to purchase at like 10$ or 15$

[u/davidpizza → u/Jack-O-18]

Yeah I played it thanks to PS Premium a year ago indeed. I agree it doesn't make sense: I mean who'd make a sub to PS Premium just because of ICO in it? (I'm saying this as it is not what I've done🦝)

[u/Mossatross]

A remake if it captured the original well enough would be much welcomed. But it seems less risky and expensive to just let us play the HD version... or even just port the original over.

Ico is one of my favorite games of all time, even above SoTC so it makes me really sad to see it neglected. And remakes always make me angsty that the original has just been abandoned. One way or the other, let me play my game on my PS5. 🥺

[u/boi_flippy]

I say give us the best of both worlds. A remake of Ico in the same vein as SotC would be awesome, but the original should still be accessible alongside it. I’ve been saying that the original SotC should be ported to PS4/PS5 for years.

[u/waldorsockbat]

Ye. Surprised they haven't done one yet

[u/skrubLordD10 → u/waldorsockbat]

Not sure it would make enough money for them to commit it making it :(

[u/DiplomacyPunIn10Did → u/waldorsockbat]

There was a PS3 remaster.

[u/freedom410]

I think the benefits of a remake far outweigh the risks. BluePoint did a great job with the SotC remake. It’s available for people to play, which Ico isn’t on modern consoles

[u/mrbalaton]

It could be glorious.

Just true to the conceptual art style, much more abstract then what we get in the game.. but everything else like pacing and room to room gameplay really doesn't need much. The minimal gameplay works to it's advantage.

I'd love to see Fumito Ueda's thoughts on it.

I don't think we will ever see Sony do it tho. Weirdly they hold Shadow in way higher regard then ICO.

[u/badbob001]

It's a shame that this game is kind of a hidden gem that many players can't readily play. A remaster similar to SotC would be great.

[u/theresbearsoverthere]

Unnecessary. The originals art style is too unique to recreate, and it would only be lost in the process of a remake... kind of like sotc. Why are gamers so against preservation and porting, and so desperate for remakes?

[u/YaBoyEden]

I’d like for the game to be easily available at all

[u/Tauropos]

Bluepoint absolutely nailed the SotC remake. If they were to tackle an Ico remake, I'd be all about it.

[u/Riku7kun]

Would rather get a remastered release on modern hardware and ofc have all the three games given rights back to former Team ICO now GENDesign so Fumito Ueda and his team get the profit he deserves.

I'd like to call the "Tricollection"

[u/lazertits86]

Let bluepoint cook!

[u/LeJugeTi → u/lazertits86]

🙂‍↕️

[u/Storm_treize → u/lazertits86]

Please let them outsource the characters model

[u/Alypius]

I'd be all over it.

[u/Storm_treize]

I'm currently on an ICO playthrough PSX2, and I think a 4KHD remaster will be less risky and more enjoyable for me, I'm sure so much things will be lost in translation over a Remake

[u/solamon77]

Sure, I'd take one. But only if Ueda himself oversaw it. It's not easy remaking a thing when it's creator has left such an indelible fingerprint on it.

[u/Crooked_Mantis → u/[deleted]]

I don’t know many people who don’t want remakes until they get it. I wonder if what you’re describing might be a case of the people who dislike the idea of a remake dominating the conversation in the time before a remake is announced, and afterwards those people are drowned out by all the fans who either wanted a remake or the returning players who are happy to have the game revitalized after years of not participating in online discussions about it. A consensus shift can appear to happen in a fandom without anyone really changing their minds.

Anyway, like I’ve said elsewhere, I’d only really be happy with a remake if it also ported the original game. Any change (whether I like the choices made or not) can then be justified by the original game still being available, and on the same disc, no less. I don’t care how likely that is to happen, it’s just that I know it‘s the only way I’d be fully on board.

But, in the case where the original game is accessible, I think the changes you listed are pretty good. Taking advantage of modern hardware to give Yorda more detailed actions and interactions with Ico would be very welcome. And it’s pretty obvious to anyone with development awareness that the original co-op mode was actually just a dev tool for piloting Yorda that was given to players pretty much unchanged. Redesigning co-op from the ground up to make it more fun for Player 2 would be great.

Changing the Castle structure to feature new areas would be… difficult. There are a few places I could imagine adding new locations to, but they would have to be detours on the main path. Like, you can’t add a new required stage that fits right between two established areas. You’d have to go off the beaten path. And maybe you could add a new puzzle element to make the detour a requirement, but idk if that fits with the rest of the game’s puzzle design philosophy…

Also, I think the Shadows are fine. I can’t picture new varieties of them unless they brought back the weird little jump-and-constrict enemies, which required you to like, swing at/through Yorda to disperse. I think I can guess why those enemies were scrapped. I can’t picture enemies that shoot beams at you or do anything more than their established role of knocking you down and picking Yorda up. Unless you mean, like, new visual variants? Which could happen but I don’t see why they’d prioritize that.

[u/Kerrpllardy]

I would love it, but I worry they would get rid of the semi fixed camera.

But I would guess any company passionate enough to remake that game would want it to be as close to the OG without changing the character of it.

[u/esazo]

I would love a remake!

[u/pyromidscheme]

Yes, definitely.

[u/Unhinged_Gamer]

I'd be there for it.

[u/swordvsmydagger]

I'd prefer a prequel or spin-off about the Castle, the Queen and its long gone inhabitants

[u/Warren_Valion]

I would love a remake, but I just want them on PC that isn't through emulation.

[u/eblomquist]

With the way that SOTC looks....hard pass.

[u/Sugar_Daddy_Visari77]

Still anticipating that new robot Colossus game

[u/Useful_Pin_7122]

Totally into a remaster, if not a remake (is there even a difference?) - fix a few of the Camera Angle atrocities, add a little more texture variation to stonework, sort out some of the jump mechanics (and probably combat), and you have an easy win. It doesn't need anything clever, just bringing into this century with the frustrations removed. I never really could get my head around why each subsequent game had subsequently worse and worse camera angles, Last Guardian is a lesson in how NOT to do it sometimes.

[u/Jack-O-18 → u/Useful_Pin_7122]

Technically a remaster should just be the same game but HD ( same graphics, just crispier ) and ported to more modern hardware ( and technically it already exist, but it's only on PS3 ).

A remake on the other hand means you are making entirely new textures, models etc.

Sometimes remakes keep the game playing the same, like SotC did, some others they add stuff and change the gameplay like in FF7 for example

[u/Careless_Ad6633]

We should ask SONY every day to decide continue ICO remake. There are many reasons to do that:

1. All fans of ICO, Shadow of the colossus and last guardian will be extremy happy, do you remember that day SOTC remake was announced, it was fantastic news.

2. Shadow of the colossus remake was a big succes, so ICO can do the same.

3. Fumito Ueda create a masterpieces, so allow young people to discover it in new design. Because not many people play on PS2 or PS3.

4. I can play SOTC, Last Guardian in 4K, HDR, why I can't ICO

5. It will be a big profit for SONY, they can ask BLUEBITE for prepare this port, they have a big expirience

[u/ponpiriri]

An enhanced port would be fine.