Remake Time: D/Generation HD Out Now

It’s been a long time coming — over two years, in fact — and honestly, I had started to believe the project had been quietly cancelled. But here we are: D/Generation HD finally launched on PS4 just a week ago! Interestingly, it seems the PC and Xbox One versions were released a few weeks earlier.

The original D/Generation first hit the scene back in 1991 on PC, with the Amiga versions following shortly after in 1992/1993.

D/Generation was a highly regarded action-puzzler back in the day, frequently earning a spot in various “Top 40/50/100 Amiga Games of All Time” lists — and for good reason. The game introduced a wealth of fresh ideas while delivering a tight and polished gameplay experience.

Visually, it may not have turned many heads — even at the time of its release, the graphics were considered modest. But that hardly mattered, because what D/Generation lacked in visual flair, it more than made up for in sheer gameplay brilliance and fun.

The game was released on PC, Atari ST,  Amiga 500, Amiga 1200 and on Amiga CD32; all versions were mostly identical except for the graphics, music and some other tidbits.

The team from the original game has nothing to do with this reboot other than that they licensed the IP directly to West Coast Software, which is responsible for this remake. How the original team have managed to secure the IP back from Mindscape, i don’t know, but this might be an opener for future remakes/HD upgrades of other Mindscape titles from the 80s and 90s (Mindscape sits on some back catalogue of 150-200 games across many formats).

Edit: After publishing this article, Mark “TDK” Knight kindly reached out via Facebook to clarify a few things. He was, in fact, the composer for the A1200 and CD32 versions of D/Generation, while Martin Walker handled the music for the Amiga 500 and Atari ST editions. To add to the mix, Sean Gugler composed the original title and ending tracks — most likely for the PC version.

So, as it turns out, some of the original team members are involved in the remake after all. How cool is that?

The remake appears to be done the right way — no trendy faux-retro “2, 4, 8, 16-bit” indie gimmicks here.

D/Generation HD features sleek, modern visuals while keeping the iconic isometric perspective fully intact. They could’ve easily gone down the tired route of turning it into a first- or third-person game like so many other reboots, but thankfully, they stayed true to the original vision.

It’s clear the developers made a real effort to preserve the spirit of the classic, and as a long-time fan, I genuinely appreciate that.

The more I examine the game, the more I think this is how it could have looked back in the day. The style is preserved but with a much higher resolution. At first glance, it even seems like it could’ve been achievable on the classic Amiga. Just imagine D/Generation HD running at 320×256 on the Amiga — now that would have been a dream!

The game now boasts a fully rendered intro, a far cry from the old 2D slideshow intros. This time, it also includes sound effects, adding to the experience. The intro looks great and exceeded my expectations, especially when compared to the Flashback/Another World remakes from a couple of years ago, which, while visually similar to the originals, felt a bit off.

West Coast Software secured the complete source code and assets from the original game, so here’s hoping that the level designs and core elements remain true to the original.

The music has also been updated, and it’s composed by Mark “TDK” Knight, a highly talented musician with over 20 years of experience creating music for video games.

A quick look at the trailer and some videos on YouTube indicates that the game features the same game mechanics and level design as the original 1991 game. It is impossible for me to do a full check at the moment, but i really want to do one eventually.

I plan to review the game at some point, but for now, you’ll have to make do with the two trailers/teasers above.

It’s always exciting to see the Amiga name pop up in descriptions on the PlayStation store, and it’s even more fun to hear all the Amiga talk in videos and forums following a release like this (whether it’s a reboot, remake, or whatever you want to call it).

Did you enjoy the original game? Then you can grab it now on the PlayStation Store for an introductory price of just $12.99 USD/EUR.

Thanks for reading!

Note: Some parts of this article have been updated based on new information from Mark “TDK” Knight.

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