Upcoming game remakes & remasters: the returns worth watching

Gaming has rediscovered its own past. Alongside the wave of brand-new blockbusters — from GTA 6 to The Elder Scrolls VI — publishers are reaching deep into the back catalogue and rebuilding classics for modern hardware. Some are full remakes (rebuilt from scratch in a new engine); others are remasters (the original, cleaned up). Both can be wonderful when done with care.

This roundup is a calm, ranked tour of the returns most worth watching, led by the long-awaited Splinter Cell Remake and the rebooted Perfect Dark. As ever on this site, every date below is expected or rumored, not a fact — development plans shift constantly, so always confirm at the source before you pre-order or mark a calendar.

How we ranked these

There is no scientific formula here — this is an editorial ordering that weighs three things: how beloved the original is, how much the new version has actually been shown or confirmed, and how broadly anticipated the return is right now. A few entries are confirmed in name only, which is exactly why their windows stay so loosely hedged.

The remakes & remasters to watch

1. Splinter Cell Remake

Ubisoft has confirmed it is rebuilding the original Splinter Cell — the stealth classic that defined a genre of light, shadow and patience — from the ground up on a modern engine. For fans of slow, deliberate espionage it is the headline act of this whole list, promising the original's tension with contemporary visuals and systems. A launch is expected later rather than soon; treat any specific date as unconfirmed. See our full Splinter Cell Remake hub for the running detail.

2. Perfect Dark (reboot)

Not strictly a remake, the new Perfect Dark is a fresh first-person take on the cult spy series rather than a faithful rebuild — so we file it as a reboot. It is one of the most-watched revivals on Xbox precisely because the original is so revered. Development details and timing have shifted publicly, so the window here is genuinely open; our Perfect Dark reboot page tracks the current status.

3. Resident Evil — older-entry remakes

Capcom's modern Resident Evil remakes have become a benchmark for how to honour a horror classic while rebuilding it completely. With several beloved entries already redone, attention naturally turns to whichever older chapter is rebuilt next. Nothing here is dated until Capcom says so, but the studio's track record makes any newly announced remake an instant watch-list item — expect announcements before firm dates.

4. Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater

Konami's full remake of the third Metal Gear Solid rebuilds one of the most acclaimed stealth stories ever told with overhauled visuals while preserving the original design. For a generation that missed it the first time, it is one of the most anticipated ways back into the series. Timing has been signalled but should still be treated as a window, not a guarantee until confirmed on official channels.

5. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic — Remake

Few remakes carry as much goodwill — or as much uncertainty — as the long-rumoured rebuild of the genre-defining BioWare RPG. The project has been announced and has weathered well-documented development turbulence, which is exactly why we hedge hard here: it is real, it is wanted, and its timing remains very much unsettled. Verify status on official Star Wars and PlayStation channels before believing any date.

6. Max Payne 1 & 2 — Remake

Remedy is rebuilding the first two Max Payne games — the noir, bullet-time shooters that helped define a cinematic era of action — as a single modern package. It is a dream return for fans of the originals. As a project still in development, the launch window is expected later this period rather than imminent; confirm on Remedy's and the publisher's official sites.

7. The Legend of Zelda — classic re-releases & remasters

Nintendo has a long habit of bringing classic Zelda titles forward — through enhanced re-releases and remasters — to new hardware. While specific projects come and go, the broad expectation of more classic Zelda returns on current Nintendo systems is one of the safer bets on this list, even though exact titles and dates should always be checked on Nintendo's own site.

8. Tomb Raider — remasters & revivals

The Tomb Raider catalogue has seen remastered collections of its earliest adventures bring Lara Croft's origins to modern platforms, alongside an ongoing push toward a new mainline entry. Between the polished classics and the franchise's future, there is plenty here for both nostalgia and anticipation — with scope and timing varying by project and best confirmed at the source.

9. Silent Hill — remake projects

Konami's renewed interest in Silent Hill has put remake work back in the spotlight for one of horror's most influential series. For fans, the prospect of revisiting these foggy towns with modern fidelity is a major draw. Given the series' complicated recent history, however, individual projects should be treated as announced-but-fluid until dated officially.

10. Final Fantasy VII — the continuing remake project

Square Enix's multi-part reimagining of Final Fantasy VII is the most ambitious remake project in the medium — rebuilding a single classic across several full-sized games. With chapters already released, anticipation now centres on how and when the saga concludes. The remaining instalment(s) are expected over the coming years, with timing to be confirmed on Square Enix's official channels.

11. More to keep an eye on

Beyond the headliners, the back-catalogue revival touches many beloved names — from classic platformers and JRPGs to cult shooters and survival horror. Treat anything you see as a remake or remaster candidate as a possibility until officially announced. New reveals tend to arrive at the big summer and winter showcases, so those events are the place to watch.

Quick-reference table

A compact view of the headline returns. Every platform and window below is expected, rumored or signalled — not a confirmed fact. Confirm each on the publisher's site and the relevant store before acting.

Remake or remaster? Know the difference

The two words get used interchangeably, but they describe very different amounts of work. A remaster takes the original game and improves the presentation — higher resolution, sharper textures, better frame rates — while keeping the same underlying code and design. A remake rebuilds the game from scratch in a modern engine, often reworking controls, camera, visuals and sometimes whole sections of content. As a rough rule: a remaster polishes the original; a remake replaces it. Knowing which you are getting helps set fair expectations — and explains why remakes typically take far longer to arrive.

Trailers & video

Trailers and reveal footage are the best primary source for a remake's tone and scope — far more reliable than any second-hand summary. Because publishers release new media on their own schedule, the links below point to live, current results and a reputable channel rather than a single guessed clip that might go stale.

We deliberately link to a live search and an established channel rather than embedding a guessed video — that way nothing breaks if a trailer is updated, and you always land on genuine, current footage.

Where to follow these games

Official screenshots, key art and confirmed dates live on each publisher's website and on the platform stores. We deliberately do not host or embed copyrighted imagery here — the links below take you straight to the genuine sources, where store listings carry the only release dates you should trust.

A note on caution

Remakes and remasters are unusually prone to date drift. A project can be announced years before it ships, change scope mid-development, or slip quietly off a calendar. That is not a sign anything is wrong — it is simply how ambitious rebuilds work. The single safest habit is to ignore "leaked date" posts and confirm only what appears on the publisher's official site or the platform store listing. If it is not there, treat it as interesting-if-true.

Frequently asked questions