For the youthful readers amongst you, I think that many 3D video games from the ‘90s and ‘00s appear quite quaint at greatest and downright unplayable at worst. It was a interval through which the medium was geting to grips with a totally new third dimension; couple this with the restricted graphical capabilities of the PlayStation and N64, and you could possibly argue that many titles haven’t aged properly.
Me, although? I completely love this period. I used to be six when the PS1 launched within the UK; the right age to begin having fun with classics like WipEout, Spyro the Dragon, and sure, video games that maybe weren’t appropriate for me but like Metallic Gear Strong and Resident Evil. So after I return and play titles from this period as we speak, I discover them moderately approachable because of an intimate familiarity with the interval. Even remasters of video games that I’ve not skilled earlier than really feel oddly comforting in a manner that I can’t fairly describe.
Nightdive Studios, based in 2012, specialises in revamping early 3D video games from the ‘90s and ‘00s for the fashionable age, enhancing the visuals, bettering the gameplay, and infrequently including a number of supplemental materials to offer context behind the unique titles’ improvement. It is loved some wonderful success tales through the years with the likes of Turok(s), Quake(s), and Doom 64 — alongside the disappointing Blade Runner: Enhanced Version — however 2024 has undoubtedly been the studio’s greatest, most prolific yr thus far.
Nightdive has put out a complete of 5 video games this yr. 5. And that’s not together with the console launch for the superb System Shock remake (which, earlier than you go looking for it, is not on Change). For a big firm like Nintendo, 5 video games in a single yr may sound fairly normal given its quite a few dev groups and accomplice studios, however Nightdive is a a lot smaller, singular workforce made up of round 40 staff (as of 2022). Granted, it’s now bought Atari behind it after the acquisition went via in 2023, however even the once-mighty Atari is an extremely lean operation in comparison with its heyday.
The corporate’s CEO, Stephen Kick, known as the studio’s output this yr “beautiful” and explored its fast development in a latest livestream of its ‘Deep Dive’ collection. “It is a large impediment,” he stated, “the place we’ve got plenty of corporations coming to us with plenty of tasks, and we simply haven’t got sufficient folks.” He’s, nevertheless, fast to make clear that it is a good drawback to have, noting that improvement prices stay conservative and that the corporate can function on a “lean and imply” stage with out essentially worrying about assembly lofty targets to take care of an enormous workers.
As for which video games it’s put out, you’ve bought Star Wars: Darkish Forces Remaster, PO’ed Definitive Version, the up to date DOOM + DOOM II (and the brand-new ‘Legacy of Rust’ marketing campaign), Killing Time: Resurrected, and The Factor: Remastered. Jeez Louise. Whereas there’s an apparent desire for the FPS style right here, Nightdive’s output however represents a scrumptious mixture of beloved recognized entities and long-forgotten curios. I had by no means heard of Killing Time earlier than Nightdive’s remaster, however after rinsing it earlier this yr, it’s grow to be considered one of my absolute favourites because of its completely weird narrative and outrageous enemy design.
The discharge of DOOM + DOOM II appears significantly noteworthy provided that each video games have been already accessible on Change courtesy of the now-defunct studio Nerve Software program. These variations had their points at launch, however have been patched to the purpose of being genuinely wonderful moveable variations of the unique classics. These are not purchasable, which means the brand new model, inbuilt Nightdive’s KEX engine, has utterly supplanted Nerve’s.
After all, Nightdive can’t get all the credit score; have been it not for builders like Studio 3DO and Laptop Artworks, there could be no originals to remaster. However the work that Nightdive places into these titles to not solely modernise and protect them, but additionally enhance upon near-enough each facet of the gameplay expertise is second to none. You’ve bought rock-solid 60fps efficiency on each sport with the flexibility to fine-tune the visuals as you see match. For these on PS5 and Xbox, in the meantime, you may max out the presentation at 4K/120FPS, and it’s merely divine. An indication of issues to return on Change 2?
For some, I’m certain that no quantity of polish would make a few of these video games appear even remotely interesting, and that’s high-quality. PO’ed Definitive Version continues to be a bizarre, typically irritating expertise no matter how good it seems to be now or how easily it runs. It’s cool if these kinds of video games aren’t your factor – though I used to be personally aghast when PO’ed was included in Metacritic’s ‘Worst Video games of 2024’ record. Come on now, let’s be wise!
What we can all wholeheartedly agree on, nevertheless, is that no matter a sport’s authentic high quality, the work Nightdive does in bringing it as much as fashionable requirements is exemplary. It’s straightforward to see why Atari wished to snap up the studio. With the one-two punch of Nightdive and Digital Eclipse (which additionally had an incredible 2024, by the way in which), Atari appears properly on its strategy to fulfilling its mission of turning into the ultimate phrase on retro gaming. Whereas Digital Eclipse is a real pioneer of the present wave of interactive gaming documentaries, Nightdive has the early 3D period all wrapped up. The workforce has completely killed it in what is well its greatest yr but, and I can’t wait to see what 2025 brings.
Have you ever performed any of Nightdive’s video games from 2024? What are you hoping to see from the studio within the new yr? Tell us with a remark within the common place.