During one of my streams I got to talking about some of my fave “older” games–as I am want to do from time to time. While reminiscing about the good old days I realized that a lot of great games are tethered to outdated consoles and thus inaccessible to new players… and if you ask me that’s a TRAGEDY! There are some amazing games that I may never get to play again because there just isn’t a platform to play them on and that got me thinking about some of the older games I’d love to see get a re-release *cough* Switch port *cough*, heck I’d even settle for a PC port–anything just to get the chance to play them again. So, here’s that list… you’re welcome!
Also big thanks to wind_drops from the Discord server for coming up with the amazing title!
Hotel Dusk: Room 215 & Last Window
- Publisher: Cing
- Genre: Point-and-Click | Adventure | Detective
- Release Date: 2007 (Hotel Dusk) | 2010 (Last Window)
- Platform: Nintendo DS (Hotel Dusk Room 215) | Nintendo 3DS (Last Window)
The Hotel Dusk series follows former NYPD detective Kyle Hyde, now a moonlighting as a door to door salesman travels to a run down motel to find his former partner, Brian Bradley. While there he gets to know the hotel’s residents and staff and discovers that the hotel has mysteries of its own some of which are connected to Kyle’s past. I know that Cing filed for bankruptcy and is no longer in the business of making games, but the Hotel Dusk series was so good it is worth someone trying to save. Yes, I am aware that a lot of the members of the old Cing team worked on the series’s spiritual spin-off Chase: Cold Case Investigations – Distant Memories, it’s not the same.
Time Hollow
- Publisher: Konami
- Genre: Visual Novel | Adventure | Mystery
- Release Date: 2008
- Platform: Nintendo DS
Time Hollow was one of the first visual novels I played back in the day and it is criminally underrated! Mystery, suspense, interesting character drama, and time travel–this game has it all! Follow Ethan Kairos as he attempts to find his missing parents with the help of a mysterious pen that lets him create portals in time. Manipulate the past and navigate newly created parallel universes to uncover the truth behind the pen and its connection to a mysterious new girl named Kori who suddenly appears in Ethan’s life. There’s a lot going on in this game, but the interwoven, branching storylines and engaging characters make Time Hollow one of my favorite games and it’s a shame it hasn’t been re-released on any other platforms!
Sweet Fuse: At Your Side
- Publisher: Aksys Games
- Genre: Otome | Mystery | Adventure
- Release Date: 2013
- Platform: Playstation Portable (PSP)
Once again I am demanding that Aksys Games, hell Idea Factory International, please, PLEASE give us a re-release of Sweet Fuse: At Your Side! This is an otome game that is criminally underrated, not because it’s bad, but because no one can play it since it hasn’t been ported to any other platform after it’s initial PSP release. In the game a Saki and a group of guys get locked in a video game themed amusement park and have to survive a series of death games created by a deranged pig man. This game is wild, but oh so good and hilarious and deserves a re-release, I mean if Hakuoki can get an update every couple of years, Sweet Fuse can too!
Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective
- Publisher: Capcom
- Genre: Puzzle | Mystery | Adventure
- Release Date: 2011 (DS) | 2012 (iOS)
- Platform: Nintendo DS | iOS
Edit: Nintendo announced that this game is getting a Switch release in 2023!! (So there is hope for older games)
I’ve noticed that a few older Nintendo DS games have also gotten mobile releases as well, but as someone who is terrible at keeping up with mobile games that trend is largely lost on me–that’s what happened with Ghost Trick. Criminally overshadowed by it’s more popular cousin, the Ace Attorney series, Ghost Trick is another game that deserves more love than it gets. In the game you play as a recently deceased detective who must use his newly acquired ghost powers. Manipulate objects and possess people to solve various puzzles and piece together clues to uncover the truth behind his untimely demise and in the process save the life of another.
Apollo Justice
(Hell, the rest of the Ace Attorney series…please?)
- Publisher: Capcom
- Genre: Adventure | Legal Drama | Visual Novel
- Release Date: 2007
- Platform: Nintendo DS/3DS | iOS | Android
GIVE US THE REST OF THE ACE ATTORNEY SERIES ON SWITCH, YOU COWARDS! I don’t want a mobile port, I wanna see hobo Phoenix on my big screen TV thank you very much! When the Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy was given a Nintendo Switch port in 2019, Ace Attorney fans rejoiced thinking this was just the beginning, but as the years passed there was no news on the rest of the series getting making it’s way to the console. I mean, there’s The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles–and that’s great–but, we want Apollo Justice, damnit!
Save an old game today, give it a re-release!
There are so many older games that are in danger of being lost to the sands of time! These are some of the games that I think are worth saving (especially Apollo Justice) with a re-release, and the Switch is the perfect home for these old gems! Of course this is just my list, I’d love to hear from you all–What are some older games that you think deserve a re-release?
I haven’t played any of these games…
While I would prefer a remake over a remaster, I really want to see Harvest Moon/Story of Seasons: A(nother) Wonderful Life on Switch and PC. It’s not necessarily my favorite game in the series, but a well handled remake would probably be my favorite in the series.
They’re all really good!
You know, I never played any of the Harvest Moon games (I don’t have the attention span for farming and management games lol). But, the characters are cute and I like that you can marry folks in game
Thank you for including Sweet Fuse! <3 More people need to know about this absolute blast of a game. And Apollo Justice, as well ^^
As a Seiken Densetsu/Mana fan I'd love to see Sword of/Children of Mana on modern-gen consoles… Though some ports of other games in the series have been botched in the past, so I'd be a tiny bit apprehensive. On a general note, there's a lot of stuff on the DS, mainly RPGs, that has a ton of charm, and that it pains me to think will fade away from memory.
Hey friend! Yes, Sweet Fuse lives rent free in my head! LOL I just kinda need all the AA games at this point!
I’ve never played those but they look like they’d be fun. Maybe one day…
Right, there are so many DS games that’ll get lost to time and I wish Nintendo would go back and rerelease some of them.
I would love to see all of the early Phoenix Wright games get a remake 🥺
Same, maybe one day Capcom will bless us with more AA games on Switch
Funny, I was just thinking about Sweet Fuse yesterday (and Norn9 since there’s been no news about the sequels) and theorized it will never be ported because of issue with the rights. I mean, it’s possible IF just doesn’t care about it anymore, but maybe Comcept washed their hands of it or is demanding a lot of money. Who knows, but I agree I’d love to see it be available on current consoles.
LOL really? Sweet Fuse is always there in the back of my head, it so good. Yeah I figured it had to be something like that or it’s just too old and not as marketable as a newer game.
Norn9 is another one that they seem to have given up on, which is a shame because it was an interesting concept
Time Hollow and Ghost Trick are both great games! It would be awesome if they got ported to the Switch so more people could check them out. I only played the first Hotel Dusk game, but I enjoyed it quite a bit, so I’d be excited to get a chance to play the sequel. Great picks!
The second game is good too (not as good as the first, but still an enjoyable play). We can only hope that one day someone will give us a revival of one or all of these games
Here here! I’d love to see these get sequels. 🙂
Heck yeah ghost trick! I would give all the money to have it be put on switch or somewhere where more people can play it. Such a good game!
SAME! This is one of those hidden gems and it’s such a shame that it’s only available on iOS now…
Ah, your list ignited major nostalgia from me. I’ve played all these games a decade or so ago and still many of them are my all-time favourites. Hotel Dusk and it’s sequel, Time Hollow, Ace Attorney (Apollo, my fav) and beloved Ghost Trick were the games I bonded with my partner when we first started dating. I occasionally see other people post about these games and get super glad that there are people experiencing them for the first time.
Still it’s a shame they are going to be harder and harder to play the further we go from the DS and PSP era.
Right, the only game systems I had growing up were the Nintendo handhelds, so I have so many fond memories of playing these all around the house. So it’s sad to think that they’ll be lost to the sands of time.
That is so sweet about you and your partner bonding over Ghost Trick! 💖 Hopefully one day, they’ll port some of them to the Switch… maybe…
I know it’s not a VN or Otome, but ‘Skies of Arcadia’ needs a remake SO BAD! It barely got the love and attention in deserved because it was on Dreamcast/GameCube. It was so good. Great story, characters, battle system… A JRPG Gem I want to see given the FFVIIR treatment.