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Why remakes have inferior graphics compared to the original?

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tomimt - 19 October 2019 06:32 AM

There is also a huge technical difference in how pixels are drawn on LCD and CRT monitors. Chunky pixels of the old games tend to look better on CRT screens.

Here’s a good example of the same pixel art shown on CRT and modern HD LCD screen:

Now realized why pixel art used to look way better,pixel developers need crt filters
more than anything nowadays.

     

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Gabe - 26 October 2019 04:59 AM

Now realized why pixel art used to look way better,pixel developers need crt filters
more than anything nowadays.

I think development is similar no matter how the output will be watched. If you as an end-user prefer to have CRT look, you can buy an old monitor, or turn on some filters which are available in many third party applications.

I already posted the link to ScummVM filters, you can also try DOSBox filters:

http://www.dosbox.com/wiki/Scaler

Now the problem is of course with newer games which are not compatible with these applications, but in that case you can try some other tool which might create the desired effect. Like this:

http://b005t3r.github.io/UltimateCRT

http://piratehearts.itch.io/supercrt

     
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Are the 2 versions in this picture (above) supposed to be exactly the same? (crt vs lcd).
Honestly I have doubts. Even with a scanline/crt filter on the pixel characters who are on the right, I don’t think we would obtain the same result than the ones on the left (the symbol in the shield of the skeletton is not exactly the same in the 2 versions). And the result of the “new” version is less detailed than the original (but could look more “clean” for some people?)
I prefer the old ones in general.
In this example it’s hard to tell because there are too many differences between the 2 screenshots: scanlines, red/blue edge effect, color depth, etc.

Regarding the question of this thread, Why remakes have inferior graphics compared to the original?
There are many games where I prefer the original version too (nostalgia) but I tend to disagree if you say that the new versions are most often inferior. I find that most remakes bring better graphics and gameplay. There are exceptions and examples that show the contrary unfortunately, but most examples that come to my mind show that remakes are better. It’s more a matter of perception and feeling.

Also don’t confuse a remake with a remastered.

The example above is probably not a remake, it should be called a remastered… If they sold it as a remake, it’s a commercial abuse.
Grim Fandango Remastered is a good example of what a Remastered is supposed to be, and what a remake is not. They didn’t cheat on the word, and didn’t try to fool the fans of the original: it’s the exact same game, based on the same engine and graphics, with just a few improvements (OS compatibility, smoothed graphics, minor gameplay changes). That’s a remastered.

On the contrary a Remake is supposed to bring a lot of changes and make the new experience different (and better).
Some remakes have failed, mainly when they tried to bring good 2d games into 3d, but I can find many examples of good remakes in the world of video games. They are not adventure games however, but they show well what a good remake is supposed to be. Upcoming Final Fantasy VII Remake is a good example compared to the original. That’s what a remake is.

     
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Simon_ASA - 26 October 2019 05:48 AM

Also don’t confuse a remake with a remastered.

The example above is probably not a remake, it should be called a remastered… If they sold it as a remake, it’s a commercial abuse.
Grim Fandango Remastered is a good example of what a Remastered is supposed to be, and what a remake is not. They didn’t cheat on the word, and didn’t try to fool the fans of the original: it’s the exact same game, based on the same engine and graphics, with just a few improvements (OS compatibility, smoothed graphics, minor gameplay changes). That’s a remastered.

I hate to be “that guy”, but DoubleFine is the worst example of a developer using those words wrongly. Now in Grim Fandango they actually used a lot of original assets, so it can be debated both ways, but what about Full Throttle Remastered and Day of the Tentacle Remastered?

They changed the graphics from pixel arts to vector-based, and the game engine is completely different, the only asset that actually comes from the original game is the audio. Unless “remastered” refers to audio only, then those games are remakes, not remastered versions.

Broken Sword Director’s Cut/Remastered versions on the other hand are clearly remasters, as they have almost all the original assets in the game, with some unnecessary new stuffing.

     
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Simon_ASA - 26 October 2019 05:48 AM

Are the 2 versions in this picture (above) supposed to be exactly the same? (crt vs lcd).
Honestly I have doubts. Even with a scanline/crt filter on the pixel characters who are on the right, I don’t think we would obtain the same result than the ones on the left (the symbol in the shield of the skeletton is not exactly the same in the 2 versions). And the result of the “new” version is less detailed than the original (but could look more “clean” for some people?)
I prefer the old ones in general.
In this example it’s hard to tell because there are too many differences between the 2 screenshots: scanlines, red/blue edge effect, color depth, etc.

Yes, according to the article I linked, it is the same pixel art shown on both LCD and CRT screens. The pixels come from an old Wizardry game. The article states that pixel art was originally designed for CRT screen and the way the tech renders graphics on the screen. On LCD the results are quite different, as it handles the rendering in a different manner. In short, with LCD, you have to actually draw in all the detail you want, with CRT you can use the limitations of the technology as an advantage.

 

 

     
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GateKeeper - 26 October 2019 05:28 AM

Now the problem is of course with newer games which are not compatible with these applications, but in that case you can try some other tool which might create the desired effect. Like this:

http://b005t3r.github.io/UltimateCRT

http://piratehearts.itch.io/supercrt


Examples you give just adding blur and color fade filters but lack of shading depth and colorization of real crt vision.

     

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GateKeeper - 26 October 2019 06:23 AM

They changed the graphics from pixel arts to vector-based, and the game engine is completely different, the only asset that actually comes from the original game is the audio. Unless “remastered” refers to audio only, then those games are remakes, not remastered versions.

If I am not mistaken, they took the same base of graphics (the original pixels) and used scripts to create the vector-based rendering of them. I don’t think the new visuals have been entirely recreated from scratch by new artists… So that’s certainly not a remake. In the game you can even switch to the old graphics (at least in Grim you can, so the old game is still here behind). As a result it’s not a remake: the whole content of the game is the same, looks the same, smells the same. If you, as an original fan of the game, prefer the original game, I can understand that and respect it, but most people probably prefer to play the new version, and they probably have an experience which is quite close to what you had in the past. Remaster doesn’t mean they kept the exact same graphics, but that the new version is based on the old one, and tries to respect it. Just an improvement (or attempt of improvement) at a lower cost.
It’s always a matter of cost when we talk of recreating a game based on an existing one. A Remastered is very less expensive than a Remake, which is less expensive than a Reboot, which is less expensive than an Original creation.

tomimt - 26 October 2019 07:47 AM

Yes, according to the article I linked, it is the same pixel art shown on both LCD and CRT screens.

Ok, that’s very interesting. Many pixel games of nowadays would look really cool then on a CRT. To be honnest I miss a little bit the days of the CRT screens. I remember when I was playing Super Famicom it was looking amazing. Games like Donkey Kong Country were very realistic. Nowadays when I play an emulated version of the same game it looks very pixelated and terrible. That would explain all.

I like the comparisons offered in the links of Gabe!

     
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I have emulators for playing the classic Super Nintendo/Sega console games as well as Mame for arcade game emulation. The scanline filters definitely help to mimic the CRT feel of the old days.

     

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I never liked these filters a lot (I mean in emulators. The links provided above by Gabe look more convincing - or is it just me?), most often I don’t get the same feeling with emulated graphics than on the good old crt tv in the past… But maybe it’s been improved since I last tried 10 years ago? lol

Anyway if filters and emulators work for you, it’s good! I really don’t want to complain, lcd is nice too, I wouldn’t go back to crt to work, or to play most modern games Smile
I was interested in this thread because I always liked 2d old-school graphics, as you probably know Sir Wink

I’m just a little surprised if the pics from before (crt vs lcd / with the skeleton) show a remake on the right side. There’s really no improvement compared to the original, they could have at least added details to the pixel art. Or is it not just an emulation, or something from scumm? If not, if they really sold it as a remake, it’s scam. This is not the definition of a remake… It looks flat, there’s no more volume, the colors are terrible.

     
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tomimt - 19 October 2019 06:32 AM

Here’s a good example of the same pixel art shown on CRT and modern HD LCD screen:

It comes from this article showing how art was designed back in the day: https://vgdensetsu.tumblr.com/post/179656817318/designing-2d-graphics-in-the-japanese-industry

This has to be some extreme example? It looks like the old burnt out ‘TV/CRT’ that was in the pizza shop 1982 Donkey Kong down the street, not like a monitor crt?

     

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