Why Do Remakes Appeal to You?

I’ve talked a lot about Zelda remakes, in two separate videos about Operation Moonfall, and more recently in a video about whether we should have an A Link to the Past or Majora’s Mask remake. I’ve made it abundantly clear that I don’t personally enjoy the prospect of having a Zelda remake at all, and this extends further into my general distaste for remakes. When a remake pops up in a game series I’m not as involved in, I don’t make as big a deal out of it, but for the most part I do not enjoy remakes as a whole unless there’s an explicit reason why one should exist. Things like the original game being flawed, for example, or modern technology allowing for a refreshing revisit of the original game’s ideas. But this post isn’t intended as another criticism of remakes.

But I do know that a lot of fans like the idea of a Zelda remake, so while I might not agree with it, I’m still curious. Even extending the discussion past remakes, I’m not much a fan of revisiting old works at all. When I write something, I don’t usually enjoy modifying it and fixing it up to be as good as possible; I feel that improvement is generally something that should come in future endeavors, and I don’t think people should spend their time revising old works and instead just take what they learned and use it to make the next thing better.

But I’ve seen a lot of people who do the opposite. They really tweak old works, modifying them based on criticisms, etc., and making a single old piece of their work as good as it can be. So obviously my way of thinking isn’t the only way.

My question to you is… if you like the idea of Zelda remakes, why? I’m legitimately curious to hear and understand the reasons why. Obviously I mean Zelda remakes specifically, but this extends a bit to the remake concept overall, so you can comment on that too. Feel free to state any disapproval you may have with remakes too, though I’m particularly interested in why the remakes are liked this time, not disliked.

Let me know in the comments!