Retro Re-release Roundup, week of August 28, 2025
Snake Reheater.
I would be remiss in not at least acknowledging a certain legacy revival game that dropped a few days ago: Shinobi: Art of Vengeance, a brand new side-scrolling Shinobi game from the art team behind Streets of Rage 4, and the second game in the ninja-revival double-header with the also-recent Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound. Unfortunately, they also share a commonality in being no-gos on Switch, but it's 2025 and something's gotta give.
ARCADE ARCHIVES / ARCADE ARCHIVES 2
Scrambled Egg
- Platform: Nintendo Switch 2, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series S/X (worldwide, ACA2) / Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 (worldwide, ACA)
- Price: $9.99 / €8.99 / £7.39 (ACA2), $7.99 / €6.99 / £6.29 (ACA), $2.99 / €2.99 / £2.49 (ACA-to-ACA2 upgrade)
- Publisher: Hamster / technos Japan
What's this? An overhead single-screen maze game themed around hatching and liberating baby chicks, originally developed and distributed in arcades by Technos in 1983 and redistributed, with a makeover, by Universal under the title Eggs; in addition to dodging enemies or stunning them with your throwable eyeballs, players are tasked with repeatedly kicking open the eggs in each stage in order to then kick the baby chicks out of the stage, while also keeping an eye out for the red chick which can be turned into a helpful ally hen that will crack eggs and harass enemies of its own accord.
Why should I care? It's not quite a dot eater and not quite a Pengo-like, but there is a degree of complexity to this game that belies its presentation (not that the goofy enemies like TUNA HEAD and SUKIYAKI BROTHERS are detrimental to the experience, mind).
Helpfup tip: Hamster's wider pursuit of ACA2 releases comes in tandem with a renovation to the standard ACA wrapper, which now includes some additional functionality originally deemed exclusive to ACA2, including rewind.
EGG CONSOLE (MAYBE)
- Platform: Nintendo Switch (worldwide)
- Price: $7.19 / ¥990
- Publisher: D4 Enterprise / Compile / Sega
What's this? A reissue of the PC-98 port of Compile's classic-in-Japan competitive falling-block puzzle game Puyo Puyo, originally developed for arcades in 1992 and ported or adapted for roughly eight thousand different platforms then and since; the most obvious difference between this port and others is that the character portraits, between-stage sprites and other assets were redrawn to take advantage of the PC-98's "high-resolution" 640x400 display mode.
Why should I care? You don't already own the Sega Ages reissue of the authentic arcade version, or have access to the Japanese Mega Drive version, or the Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine Genesis reskin, or the Kirby's Avalance SNES reskin — all of which are available via Nintendo Switch Online — or even the Game Gear version of Mean Bean tucked away in Sonic Origins Plus, or maybe you just want the version with the secret drunk Arle ending (not that I'm entirely sure it's still accessible in this reissue).
"Maybe"? This game was pulled from the Japanese Switch eShop at the last second, as part of a series of EGG Console PC-98 delistings that include the recent Fray and Brandish Renewal: D4's been light on details, but the current inference is that their emulator includes an OS that they're not legally cleared to commercialize, and while these games are still accessible on global eShops as of this writing (either browser or on-system store, depending on country/console), one shouldn't count on them remaining available indefinitely.
OTHER
- Platform: PlayStation 5, Xbox, PC via Steam (worldwide)
- Price: $39.99 or equivalent each
- Publisher: Microsoft / The Coalition et al
What's this? A current-gen remaster of Epic Games and Microsoft's genre-defining 2006 Xbox 360/PC cover-shooter Gears of War — or, more specifically, a touch-up of 2015's Xbox/PC remaster, Gears of War: Ultimate, which redid the visuals in the latest version of Unreal Engine and added support for higher framerates, additional campaign stages, back-ported multiplayer functionality from more recent series entries, etc. Aside from framerate bumps on consoles (60FPS single-player, 120FPS multiplayer; both uncapped on PC, I believe), the inclusion of previously-released DLC and other tweaks, Reloaded is essentially identical to Ultimate, to the point that pre-existing Ultimate owners can upgrade for free.
Why should I care? Look, you had the chance to turn Mindjack into a global phenomenon a decade ago and you flubbed it, take your rehashed also-ran and ask for seconds, because it seems they're coming whether you need 'em or not.
Microsoft boycott check-in: They're currently at the "collaborate with the FBI to track and punish dissenting employees" stage of their pro-genocide agenda, so fuck 'em.
Metal Gear Solid Triangle: Snake Eater
- Platform: PlayStation 5, Xbox, PC via Steam (worldwide)
- Price: $69.99 or equivalent each
- Publisher: Konami
What's this? A Virtuos co-developed Unreal Engine 5-powered remake of Konami's 2004 PlayStation 2 stealth-action hit Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, which was originally succeeded by an revision subtitled Subsistence, a slightly-tweaked 3DS port in 2012 and high-definition ports via 2012's Metal Gear Solid HD Collection and 2023's Metal Gear Solid Master Collection; in addition to completely recreating the visuals and adding modern accoutrements like real-time damage/scarring on Snake's character model, Triangle reinstitutes most of the content excised from later revisions and ports, including the Ape Escape-crossover "Snake vs. Monkey" side-game (replaced with "Snake vs. Bomberman" on Xbox) or the horror-tinged "Guy Savage" nightmare sequence, now recreated by PlatinumGames, as well as the choice between "legacy" controls/camera and a "new" setting with contemporary controls and third-person camera performance.
Why should I care? Putting aside all the usual concerns one might have with this particular strain of remake (their unshakeable conservatism, first and foremost), this project is being promoted as a changing of the guard, such as any "guard" still exists within Konami: their remaining MGS alum are using this remake as a means to train younger staff in the ways of the series and, ultimately, preserve as much of the series' DNA as possible so that a new generation can continue the series into the future. The consensus seems to be that Konami massaged a credible Silent Hill 2 remake out of a studio that wasn't thought to be up to the task, thereby insulating them against any negativity surrounding recent series excursions, so if nothing else, Triangle might make this team feel more confident in taking wilder swings from here on out.
Helpful tip: The developers announced an entirely new multiplayer mode as a substitute for Metal Gear Online, but it wasn't ready for launch, so you'll have to wait a little while until it's ready.
Story of Seasons: Grand Bazaar
- Platform: Nintendo Switch 2, Nintendo Switch, PC via Steam (worldwide)
- Price: $49.99 or equivalent (Switch/PC), $59.99 or equivalent (Switch 2), $9.99 or equivalent (Switch-to-Switch 2 upgrade)
- Publisher: Marvelous
What's this? A remake of the 2008 Bokujou Monogatari game subtitled youkozo! Kaze no Bazaar e, originally developed for the Nintendo DS and published globally in 2010/11 as Harvest Moon DS: Grand Bazaar; this version offers completely new graphics and a contemporary art style, voiced cutscenes, a significantly increased volume with regards to side-activities/collections like fishing and trophies, guest characters from other entries, additions to mobility including gliding on the wind and much more.
Why should I care? To many, the original Grand Bazaar signified this series' descent into "cookie-cutter farming plus a half-baked gimmick and little else" that left the franchise wide open to being usurped by the likes of Stardew Valley, and while these remake does seem to stay reasonably true to the rather basic farming of the original, it seems they've strengthed the bazaar conceit, as well as all the ancillary activities, in a manner that better showcases the unique personality of this particular entry, and the new graphics not only contemporize the game but help to better capture the hustle of a busy marketplace.
Helpful tips: Two tips for ya: firstly, the physical Switch 2 version contains the game on the card and is actually the OG Switch game plus the upgrade pack, meaning it'll function on an original Switch; and secondly, the Switch 2 version apparently runs quite poorly at the moment, so keep that in mind when choosing which version to play.
Telenet Shooting Collection II (Kiaidan 00, Final Zone II, Browning and Legion)
- Platform: Nintendo Switch (Japan)
- Price: ¥7480 (collection) / ¥1980 (individual game)
- Publisher: Edia
What's this? A second collection of shooting games from the vault of the ever-inconsistent Nihon Telenet, all four of which happened to be published for the PC Engine CD: the giant robo homage Kiaidan 00, the overhead run-and-gun Final Zone II, the side-scrolling hard mecha action game Browning and the sci-fi horizontal shooter Legion; as with previous Edia collections, these games are presented with save states, rewind, some basic screen settings and control options and galleries with scanned materials, music and more. (These games haven't been announced for global release and don't currently offer multi-language front-ends.)
Why should I care? This is the first compilation that Edia didn't attempt to crowdfund, and it's not hard to understand why: not only are these games of a lower-profile than those of the already-dubious Telenet Shooting Collection but a couple of them (Browning and Legion) rank as some of the absolute lowest-rated games on the PC Engine platform. Even so, there's an extreme earnestness to Kiaidan 00 and Final Zone II and the team's obvious overzealousness in using the CD for voice acting and vocal themes (with some big Japanese names, too) that helps elevate them beyond their perfunctory moment-to-moment gameplay.
Helpful tip: I may be wrong but as far as I can tell, the Turbografx-CD version of Final Zone II is not present here, so those of you who are solely interested in reliving that infamous dub once more should move on with your lives.
