Remaster Experts Nightdive Studios To Release Blade Runner: Enhanced Edition
Chances are, you didn’t even know there was a Blade Runner video game. Released in 1997 by Westwood Studios (yeah, the Command & Conquer people), the classic adventure game has fallen into obscurity despite the popularity of the film. It’s a common fate for a video game of that era. Adventure games were a dime a dozen back then. Even the exceptional Blade Runner is still eclipsed by the deluge of similar titles and the inevitable industry shift towards new genres.
Luckily, fans of classic adventure games will have the chance to experience Blade Runner again in all its glory. Helmed by Nightdrive Studios, the Blade Runner: Enhanced Edition will stay true to the original. Here’s more from the Official Press Release:
Once lost for years and only recently coming out of retirement, this seminal game will soon become widely available to a whole new generation of gamers around the world. Fans of the cult classic can expect a polished and premium restoration from Nightdive using their proprietary KEX game engine, which has been used to restore classic video games across all digital platforms including System Shock: Enhanced Edition, Turok, Turok 2: Seeds of Evil, Blood, and Forsaken Remastered. Nightdive has also sourced the original foreign-language translations, so fans can enjoy the game in German, French, Italian, and Chinese just as Westwood intended.
Blade Runner: Enhanced Edition will feature updated character models and animations, upscaled cutscenes using machine learning algorithms, widescreen resolution support, keyboard and controller customization, and much more. However, fans will be pleased to learn that the original look and feel of the game is being preserved.
“Blade Runner is still a jaw-dropping achievement on every level, so while we’re using KEX to upgrade the graphics and respectfully elevate the gaming experience in a way you’ve never seen before, we’re still preserving Westwood’s vision and gameplay in all its glory,” said Nightdive CEO Stephen Kick. “While you can enjoy the benefits of playing the game on modern hardware, the game should look and feel not as it was, but as glorious as you remember it being.”
If the name Nightdrive sounds familiar, it’s likely because they’re the studio behind the upcoming System Shock remake. With rumors still swirling about the cancellation of System Shock 3, this might be the only chance gamers have to play a new System Shock title. Luckily, with Nightdrive at the helm, these sci-fi classics won’t be a relic of the past. Blade Runner: Enhanced Edition is slated to release in 2020 for PC and Consoles.
