Alright, we've all seen topics where you're asked to state which games you'd like to be remade, but I wanna do something a little different. This is a place for you to put forth what games you'd like to see improved to their perfect state, gameplay-wise. You can talk about story and graphics and such, but what I'm really looking for here is gameplay improvements. What would it take to make it the perfect version? I really want some thinking here. What type of engine should it have? What developer would be perfect for it? What moves and features could turn this game into a killer app? Be thorough, this is the ultimate gameplay remake of your favorite games. I'll start.

Advent Rising
Best concept done incorrectly ever. The story is actually ok, it just needs some TLC. Real-time lighting and motion blur would give the abilities some kick. Add in an actual melee combat system with launchers, takedowns and power-based versions of each attack. Get some animators to really go to town on Gideon, giving him fluid, physics-based movement. Turn Gideon into an unstoppable force, and increase the difficulty by upping the numbers of enemies, rather than their specific abilities(Gideon vs. 100 seekers). Wallruns, long jumps and a precise locomotion engine to allow you to improvise. Give it to Force Unleashed guys with a ton of money and all the time in the world and watch the magic.

Dead or Alive
Still the best hand-to-hand fighting engine out there. A real fighting engine that emulates kung-fu movies. Blocking should be on a button, and should elicit a parry everytime it's tapped. Make the parries super easy to do and easy to transfer into an attack so you get that quick back and forth you see in martial arts movies. Perfect timing would result in a takedown. Also, allow parrying from laying on the ground or in the air. A hold button could be used to grab the arm and perform throws. SoulCalibur level graphics and a better 3D movement system with wallruns and aerial combos. Leave it with Team Ninja, and bring Itagaki-san back.

Driver
All vehicles, no filler. Just pure gameplay. Let Criterion go super-realistic this time, with a precise handling engine, full-body vehicle deformation (wrap your car around a pole, or tear it in two) and high-quality speed effects (think Split/Second). And go the Paradise route with a few full featured cities, not to mention the in-depth replay editor from the first with more options.

Spiderman
This should have happened already but, real-time physics-based animation, free-form acrobatics, rope physics for webs, and a focus on stopping crime and saving citizens. Allow the player to fire weblines below (like when soaring over a building), and let them web-zip in any direction. Just your friendly neighborhood Spider.

You get the idea. So, let's hear it, what is your ultimate gameplay remake?

I like Reach because of the strategy involved. Coupled with the emergent gameplay, this is like the ultimate version of chess. Anyone not having fun with this needs to crank it up to legendary difficulty and participate in the strategic, iterative gameplay on display here. If you still don't like the game, then this isn't the game for you because this is what Halo's all about. Grinding through battle after battle, learning the nuances of the game engine, and getting better and better and better. Once on the higher levels, you can't get away with 'spamming' or 'exploiting' anything, which is why this series gets so many accolades.

Combat, evolved. That's why I love Halo:Reach.

Gaming as a whole is a mainstream industry in this day an age. It's like music - most of the popular stuff is seen as 'garbage' to those who enjoy the underground (or underrated) songs that come out. And the quality of such songs are purely subjective, much like the value of a game is. What's quality to you doesn't mean that it will be quality to anyone else. Even someone who prefers obscure games over the mainstream may not agree with your opinion of 'quality'. But then again, (in most cases) something may become popular because it's GOOD. You can't look at MW2 and compare it to a competitive shooter, because it isn't. And there are far more people who enjoy the 'twitch fest' than the competitive scene. And there really isn't anything you can do about it.

We also can't forget - the gaming industry is a business. People want to target the masses rather than those who complain about the quality of gaming being directly affected by mainstream games. (which it isn't.)

MadVybz

Funny thing is, I thought this post was going to be about how PS3 software is finally coming into it's own. Still I agree, it IS time for a PS3. I think it will be the vanguard for hardcore gaming. Infamous, Heavenly Sword, Uncharted, Killzone 2, the Ninja Gaiden Sigma series, all examples of hardcore gaming at it's finest. Plus, with about 5+ years worth of technology to tap from the Cell processor I say again, it IS time for a PS3. :)