The team behind the cancelled Resident Evil 2 Reborn has just released a beautiful gameplay trailer of their new game Daymare:1998.

A Remake Reborn

Invader Studios had been working on their unofficial Resident Evil 2 remake until Capcom asked them to cease production. The Japanese company has an official remaster/remake in the works, although no gameplay has been released.

It looks like Invader Studios isn’t letting too much of their work go to waste as Daymare:1998 is quite similar to their original project.

Their video upload stated they had received enough positive feedback from journalists and fans that it was time to show gameplay.

The Italian-indie devs are also launching a Kickstarter Campaign starting in “the first months of 2017”, for those that would like to pitch in.

They describe the game as:

“Daymare: 1998 is a third person survival horror game currently in development at Invader Studios.
In the late 90s, a terrorist attack transforms the unaware citizens of a little community of northwest America into violent and deformed creatures.

The players are expected to survive to this waking nightmare that has its roots in a nostalgic mood. The narration is full of direct references to the pop culture of the 90’s and the modern gameplay mechanics fit perfectly with the old school survival horror atmosphere.”

The right way to “remake” a classic

It’s great to see this kind of passion for a classic game get a new chance at seeing the light of day. If we’ve learned anything from Stardew Valley and Undertale, it’s that developers should skip the unofficial remakes in lieu of their own creative vision. It’s a lot more lucrative that way too (1.8 and 2+ million sales respectively (both created by one person)).

Creating an unofficial remake of a corporation’s IP is a risky proposition. Most likely, the project will be shut down and countless hours of work could be lost. The best-case scenario is to release it for free to avoid legal consequences. It’s far better to take inspiration from what made the original so great and create your own take.

What do you think of Daymare:1998?