Reboots... and the new Spyro look

[Ekit]

I recently saw the new design for Spyro in the upcoming Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure and thought it looked awful.

Being relatively new to gaming I get the impression that rebooting older franchises and ruining them happen quite often.
(I don't know if the new Spyro game is bad, obviously, but this picture isn't exactly making a good first impression)

So my questions are:

Do you know any examples of good or bad reboots?
And what do you think is the key to making a good reboot?

EDIT: Official trailer for Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure:

 

[Irridium]

My response to the picture:


Examples of good reboots? I don't know actually. I'm sure they're out there.

Whats the key to making a good reboot? Making the story understandable. This is why I think Resident Evil needs a reboot. Or perhaps Metal Gear Solid. The stories are so convoluted and complex its ridiculous.

 

[Harlemura]

Who the heck decided Spyro needs to look like a gremlin?

Anyway...
I haven't actually played it, but apparently the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time was one of the best reboots ever.
EDIT:
Wait, that's a remake, not a reboot...
Okay, I got nothin' for good reboots.

Can't think of any proper bad ones off the top of my head though. Is it cheating for me to just say any Spyro game that wasn't made by Insomniac?

 

[baddude1337]

I thought Tomb Raider: Legend was a good reboot of the TR series in the hands of the new developers.

 

[Zaik]

I don't know of any good reboots at all.


However, i think making a good reboot would be kind of simple.

Step 1: Change as little as possible.
Step 2: Add appropriate stuff mid-way through and near the end.
Step 3: Profit.

The closest thing I think i could compare it to is when they re-released the PS1 versions of Star Ocean 1 and 2 on the PSP. For the most part, the exact same game with no noticeable changes to mechanics or story. I'm fairly sure that they added a party member to each that anyone with free party space could get with no particularly difficult requirements and was a fairly competent addition, humorous, but not overpowered. Also added an additional end game dungeon to each, I think.

Obviously a reboot needs more altered to it than that to be an actual reboot, if I'm thinking of the word properly, however only a really good game is going to get one to begin with, so going and redoing the whole thing is just wasting effort.

 

[teqrevisited]

Is that really the new design? Looks awful. When did he get hit in the face by a shovel?

Aaaanyway, I can't think of a single good reboot. I certainly don't have high hopes for Devil May Cry 5 either. That thing in the trailer is not Dante.

 

[Jack and Calumon]

If only I had a camera for my reaction to that fucking HIDEOUS creature in the image. That looks like Quasimodo made love to a lizard and this is how it all turned out. JESUS CHRIST!

Spyro is now more dead than Sonic the Hedgehog could have ever dreamed of when he was being tortured, (He had a good run last year). Fuck you Activision. Seriously, couldn't you have let him die as the cute and lovable dragon we once knew? I know you're sore that we aren't buying Guitar Hero so much but we take it out on our Childhood?

I am very angry now!

Calumon: ...O.O It's... scary. I don't know what that is, but it's... it's scary.

Jack: Trying to stay ON Topic with reboots, I liked Tomb Raider: Legend. It was cool and refreshing and had great gameplay, it looked beautiful, even on it's PS2 port, and the story was pretty darn good too.

Shame Underworld was bad. Here's hoping for Tomb Raider 2011.

 

[newfoundsky]

Looks like the latest Race addition in WoW. . .

 

[SpaceGnome]

Humm i saw this before and hoped that it was a bad peace of concept art
...
As for reboots... this dose not look like a good one.

 

[darth.pixie]

An example of bad reboot, DMC...now DMC: Origins or somesuch. Dante smokes, has black hair and is trapped somewhere. As if the other DMC didn't even matter.

I doubt any reboot is a good one.

 

[Ekit]

Looks like the latest Race addition in WoW. . .

http://www.skylandersgame.com/
Especially the character Stealth Elf (Bottom center)

Seriously. What the hell?

 

[Get_A_Grip_]

Well that picture of Spyro has ruined many childhood memories.

Erm, the best reboots of any franchise ever were the PS2/Xbox Prince of Persia games.
However, I do not know what makes a good reboot.

 

[TitanAtlas]

Thats... spyro?

what have they doned to it!? WHY DO THESE COMPANIES NOWDAYS, HAVE THE NEED TO CHANGE OUR HEROES THIS DASTRICLY!?

First it was banjoo, then crash now spyro.... are they trying to sabotage our heroes on purpose?

These kind of games if with a remake, should be true fans, not people who just want to cash in using a product that had sucess in the past....

its like movie remakes..... theyre all pieces of crap....

 

[The Rockerfly]

*cries* My childhood

[HEADING=1]YOU BASTARDS DESTROYED MY CHILDHOOD[/HEADING]

*sigh* there hasn't been a decent Spyro for so long, why do these video game companies feel they need to make everything more complicated and completely miss the point of these reboots?

Gah, I want a hug :'(

 

[chozo_hybrid]

Looks more cold blooded and lizard like to me, I think it's okay. Not the best, but they could do worse.

 

[Cowabungaa]

I never played Spyro games that much (a bit on a friend's PSX), but I always charmed by the little fellow. This thought just looks....awful. Absolutely terrible. It's like they smashed his face in or something.

Anyway, I think and hope that the Deus Ex reboot will be good. I never really managed to get in the original game. The terrible voice-acting and graphics just haven't aged very well and I just couldn't really get immersed in it as much as I hoped I would, which to me is the main thing I want from an RPG; immersion.

Other than that I can't think of many reboots. I heard about the Tomb Raider one that failed miserably.

 

[RedEyesBlackGamer]

Spyro, old friend, WHAT DID THEY DO TO YOU!?! KOOOOOOOOOOOTTTTTTTTTTIIIIIIIIICCCCCKKKKKKKKK!!!!
OP: I don't know of any good reboots.

 

[Neverhoodian]

Well, I consider Fallout 3 to be a partial reboot of the series, and it's a pretty darn good one in my opinion.

I think the trick to a successful reboot is to retain the more iconic aspects of a series while changing things that needed improvement or haven't stood up to the test of time. Generally speaking, visual changes should be subtle, while things like clunky and archaic gameplay mechanics can be done away with entirely or significantly modified.

EDIT: heh, forgot to comment on Spyro's new look:

Bleh. That is all.