Home / Software & Gaming / EA isn’t interested in HD remakes for the time being

EA isn’t interested in HD remakes for the time being

A lot of game companies seem to be pumping out ‘HD remakes' at the moment and while some titles could definitely do with the update, there have been a few questionable releases, the most recent example being the Prototype collection from Activision. However, EA has yet to jump on the HD remake bandwagon and according to COO Peter Moore, it has no interest in doing so either.

Speaking with IGN, Peter Moore said that the company doesn't necessarily view HD re-releases in a positive light, with Moore saying that “it feels like pushing stuff out because you've run out of ideas”.

ZOE-610x343
Image source.

While some remakes are made with very little effort put in, to put out a good one actually takes quite a bit of effort and EA doesn't want to waste time going over its back catalogue when it can be making new games instead: “Remakes, because of who we are, and this broad portfolio of intellectual property…you add all that together, I don't know where we find the time to do remakes. We're a company that just likes to push forward.”

So maybe those Mass Effect HD trilogy rumours are a little off the mark, though I would still love to see that happen if it meant that the PC versions of the game finally got controller support.

KitGuru Says: EA has some pretty great titles under its belt, though I get why it appears to be averse to HD remakes, particularly when you have the resources to push out new games. What do you guys think of HD re-releases? Are there any games in particular you would like to see spruced up?

Become a Patron!

Check Also

Horizon multiplayer spin-off coming 2025, job listing suggests

The long-awaited Horizon Zero Dawn multiplayer spin-off could finally launch in 2025. Job listings suggest the studio is in the final stages of development.

23 comments

  1. Battlefield 1942: HD REMAKE (Snicker)

  2. PayByPixel

  3. Gary 'Gazza' Keen

    I think they’ve got the right idea. HD remakes bring a new light to an old game but at the end of the day the vast majority of remakes are just remodels/retextures and whether it is just that or not you’re still paying full price for a game you already own and have played probably 10 times before.

    Make one or two for some huge past titles? sure, maybe, but if that’s all you’re doing you’ve got a problem

  4. EA isn’t interested in making games that function properly when released either. I wonder if their time spent at work is high-fiving each other on their awesome IP portfolio they keep talking about.

  5. Trouble with HD remakes is that you kind of need side by side comparison screenshots half the time because the way how you recall a game is a lot different to how it actually is.

    The better remakes have proper support for modern hardware so it doesn’t crash and have multiplayer support. (stronghold to name a few).

    TBH, I can imagine anything more soul destroying than working on an HD remake.

    I would buy mass effect trilogy again if it was an all-in-one remake. Same gameplay mechanics as ME3 and controller support. (Pro casual)

  6. If they take out the Mako Missions in ME1, standardizing the franchise around ME3, is it really a remake?

  7. I wouldn’t mind a Need for Speed Underground Collection re-release. Maybe redone in Frostbite, but keep the same controls and cars.

  8. EA ran out of ideas long ago. They just push their next yearly upates of big franchises till the market does collapse. Easy and fast money not matter what the customers want. Too bad EA, some of the old pearls would definitely deserve a Remake in the same art style.

    Command & Conquer Series | Dungeon Keeper 1+2 | Alone in the Dark | Burnout 3: Takedown | KKND | Lands of Lore | Nox | Populus: The Beginning | Ultima IX: Ascension | Wing Commander IV |

    I am sure I forgot some, but this is a list of Games people would buy again in upped graphics. On the other hand EA is also a hypocrite. We all know that!

  9. Maybe “remake” is the wrong word. I don’t know what is…”Ultimate story edition MLG IGN 8/8″

  10. So…HD remake more creative than sequel? even if it is not much of a leap.

  11. Sequels have often been lacklaster and missed the charm of the original. Many gamers would like to play the old classics with modern graphics in the same art style. Some of the old games are very deep and extensive in content. A single one of them had up to hundrets of hours of gameplay. Ultima IX: Ascension as an example is bigger than several Battlefield-Campaigns together.

    The reason EA does not do this is simple: They couldn’t sell their sub-par games any more for expensive money. They rather sell a few lackluster games for the quick buck than to release a single good one.

  12. Would love to see the DOS XCom done up, with controls that actually work.

  13. Come on, Driving the Mako was fun. But the overall graphic and gameplay change fromt he first to second ME was great. If they could remake the 1st one with the gameplay and graphics of at least the second one, that would be great.

  14. Shooting planets with probes just didn’t measure up to driving on them. ME1 was the best game in the series.

  15. Most people would actually not buy those games, only sentimental gamers, and they wouldn’t actually play all those games, because these are older people with jobs and lives (such as me).

    Besides, I really can do without the HD graphics. I love me some retro gaming on occasion. Theme Hospital, Little Big Adventure, Rise of Nations, Command & Conquer: all great games that I can still enjoy and that really do not need new graphics. Most would probably be ruined by remakes, because no HD update can conserve the nostalgic feeling that the current versions give.

  16. I think the real reason EA doesn’t want to do HD remakes is because they
    closed all the studios that made their games in the first place.

  17. But if they re-released Mass Effect they’d have to include the DLC with it and how would they continue to scam people with Bioware points that never goes on sale to buy overpriced DLC that never goes on sale?

  18. They already did, it’s called Battlefield 1943 and was released on XBOX360 and PS3. For some reason it never released on PC.

  19. Hated Zone of the Enders: HD Collection… Ruined the game for me. The original ZOE was majestic and fluid in battle it what made it unique, the HD collection was so choppy it was unplayable. I’ll stick with my 12 year old SD Copy.

  20. Take that back sir! ME2 is clearly, by far the best one in the series. ME3 a close second (i was fortunate enough to have completed after patch)

  21. Maybe it was the best, but I enjoyed 1 more. Less brooding, fewer convoluted missions that have to be done a certain way lest your characters bite the dust out of your control, better “away missions”…

  22. Here is something extremely interesting that is worth to pay attention , a superb opportunity for work for those who want to utilise their free time to make some extra money using their computers… I have been working on this for last two and half years and I am earning 50-80 dollar/ hour … In the past week I have earned 13,245 dollars for almost 20 hours sitting ….

    Any special kind of skills or qualification is not required for this, just normal typing and a reliable internet connection ….

    Time limitations are not here to start work … You may work on this any time when you get some time ….

    Check it out how I’ve been doing this….view WebsiteIink on my` profile` to know how I use to work on this`

    *re

  23. it’s not a remake. It’s a completely different game.