This month, the PC gaming world was mildly shocked by the surprising news that Capcom was going to re-release the first three Ace Attorney games across several platforms, bundled together in a neat little trilogy package for both fans and newcomers alike. This was a shock to PC gamers, as you might be able to guess, because one of the announced platforms was everyone’s favorite home rig, with the PC headlining other modern consoles and platforms, including the expected Switch, Xbox One, and PS4 releases as well.
This will mark the first time that the series has made a true debut on the PC gaming platform--with a few notable excursions there in the past, though only in the form of demos and side games. Needless to say, the bevvy of PC gaming’s Ace Attorney elites (there are dozens of us!) have been badgering Capcom’s witness about a PC release for years now, as any fan would. It also probably goes without saying that they’re likely to be losing their minds about this release, which includes the original Ace Attorney as well as its sequels, Justice for All and Trials and Tribulations.
The release is notable, aside from being a standout first, for two main reasons. The first being that this is an older game from Japan, a company filled with amazing game studios that often underestimate the demand their unique titles would garner in the west--or in many cases, on various platforms. The second, somewhat similar reason being that this is Capcom, a company often known for just missing the mark on the wants and needs of its most dedicated fans. This time, however, they’ve knocked it out of the park, and picked a release that surely no one could Object! to.
With that said, there may be hope for the release of other, similarly aged and maybe somewhat forgotten titles to get new life on modern consoles as well as the PC. If Ace Attorney did it--and if Capcom did it--then why not some other great developers, bringing more goldmine games to PC?
While the newest Spider-Man game is still hot and fresh, maybe a little too fresh to dream of a PC port, the PlayStation’s history of games is loaded with titles both young and old that PC gamers can only dream of getting their hands on. From venerable titles like Metal Gear Solid 4 and Shadow of the Colossus to newer standouts like The Last of Us and the Uncharted series. Easy sales, to be honest. And that’s not counting gems like Demon’s Souls or Xenogears that an entire generation of gamers could have missed out on.
But if you’re going to be talking about old gems, there’s no sense not bringing up Nintendo. From its amazing first party titles to some of the best and most memorable in video game history, Nintendo’s lineage of platforms has no shortage of excellent choices to re-release, remake, or remaster. You’ve got everything from the holy trinity series of Mario, Zelda, and Metroid, entire suites of Pokémon games, and everything from GoldenEye and Perfect Dark to Super Smash Bros. Of course, Nintendo’s always been very, very selective with their seal and in-house brand names, but there’s still some measure of propriety in keeping these titles as just console exclusives. And the sales would be out of this world.
With classic characters like Crash and Spyro coming back, plus the fantastic A Hat in Time, there’s just no better time to hit on the old platformer nostalgia with games like Banjo and Kazooie, the classic Donkey Kong Country, and pretty much anything else Rare even looked at in the 90’s. And there’ll always be room for classic RPGs like Lost Odyssey, Legend of Dragoon, and the Suikoden series. Though, would it be too much to ask for Mother 3?
And of course, there’s no form of this list that doesn’t mention the somewhat recent masterpiece Red Dead Redemption. The game is getting a sequel this year, with pure mystery and an aura of hopelessness surrounding the idea of a PC release. But, as more and more titles like Bayonetta and some of the Yakuza titles finally coming to PC, it seems as if major developers and publishers are facing historically high pressure to put out new version's of old releases on the platform. Only time will tell if they listen.
