10 BEST Demakes of Nintendo Games
“Metroid Dread” GBC
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While a “Metroid” game did release for the original Game Boy, the series skipped the handheld’s colorful follow-up. This demake sees what the franchise could have looked like on the Game Boy Color, specifically the latest release “Metroid Dread.” The demake was created by Elvies for a game jam hosted on Itch.io in late 2021. As the game jam only ran for a month, meaning not a lot of time to develop, the demake only covers the opening minutes of “Dread” before the first E.M.M.I. encounter. Still, it’s definitely worth checking out for any “Metroid” fan. It makes us wish we could return to the older handheld “Metroids,” if only they weren’t so hard to find.
“Super Mario 2Dyssey”
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Another product of an Itch.io Demake game jam, this creation from SimpleTeam explores what “Super Mario Odyssey” would look like on the Super Nintendo. While it only covers the first two levels of the game, the Cap and Cascade Kingdoms, you can tell there was a ton of effort put into it. Everything from the sprites to the music is delightful. But it isn’t just those two levels with “Super Mario World”-style gameplay. In addition to the new mechanic of throwing Cappy, Mario can ground pound and long jump just like he can in 3D games. Honestly, we’d give anything to be able to play a full version of this.
“Luigi’s Mansion 2D: Eternal Night”
To be fair, this isn’t necessarily a demake as it follows an original story. But as it places “Luigi’s Mansion” gameplay into a 2D setting, and does it very impressively I might add, it more than deserves a shout out. The fan game actually began development way back in 2012 with a Mario Fan Game creator named Shadow Kami. A few years after its cancelation, Itch.io user TheHappyFaceKing revived it and has been posting updates ever since. There are a couple of demos players can currently try out, which place Luigi in a side-scrolling Metroidvania. It’s great seeing the enemies and bosses from the original GameCube release in 16-bit, but not nearly as great as sucking them up with a vacuum.
“Princess Rescue” (2013)
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Most demakes on our list don’t take you past the NES, but “Princess Rescue” goes a little bit further. Developed by Chris Spry and released by Atari Age in 2013, this demake shows what the original “Super Mario Bros.” may have looked like had it launched on the Atari 2600. While the game is only 16 levels long, it plays remarkably similarly to the groundbreaking NES original. Had it actually been released for the 2600, it would’ve blown everyone’s minds even more so. Atari Age also produced an actual cartridge for the system, which you can still purchase online today. “Super Mario Bros.” and the Atari 2600 are two important elements of 1980s gaming, so it was really cool to see them come together.
“Ocarina of Time” 2D
Since “Ocarina of Time” is one of the most vital games Nintendo has ever released, it has received multiple fan demakes and remakes. But the one we’re talking about began its life in 2014, having been started by CheerfulSage and GodsTurf. The project placed the events of “Ocarina of Time” within the style of “A Link to the Past.” And it is frankly gorgeous. Unfortunately, but not unexpectedly, the creators seemingly abandoned the project in 2016 after being contacted by Nintendo. At the time development stopped, the project was around 20% completed. While it’s a bummer we only ever got one fifth of this game, what’s here is an accomplishment that should be celebrated.
“Rockman 7 Famicom” (2008)
“Mega Man 7” was the only game in the original series to be released on the Super Nintendo, or Super Famicom. But this demake places it alongside its predecessors with 8-bit graphics, sound effects, and music. The game was first made available in March of 2007 and finished development in July of 2008, ironically wrapping up months before Capcom itself would bring the blue bomber back to 8-bit with “Mega Man 9.” Although the demake did have to make some changes to put it more in line with the NES games, it’s a pretty fantastic recreation. The team responsible also did the same for “Mega Man 8.” But that’s a PlayStation game so…moving on.
Prime 2D
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We love the “Metroid Prime” series, but there’s just something about 2D “Metroid” that hits differently. This project from Team SCU imagines how the first game in the trilogy would have looked in 2D. Its graphics are a bit crisper than those of the Super Nintendo or Game Boy Advance entries, and it is genuinely stunning. We would kill to have this on our Switches, but this story doesn’t have a happy ending. The project’s demo was released in April of 2021 and, after garnering some much deserved attention, was hit with a cease and desist by Nintendo. We shouldn’t be surprised, but we’re allowed to be immeasurably disappointed.
“Super Smash Land” (2011)
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Calling back to how Mario and Donkey Kong’s Game Boy adventures would tack “Land” onto the end of the title, “Super Smash Land” looks at the N64 fighter through a green lens. Created by Dan Fornace in 2011, this fan project is surprisingly still available to download on PC, as is its chiptune soundtrack. So if you’ve ever wanted a more retro style for beating up Mario, Kirby, Pikachu, or any of the other characters from the first game, you can have it. There’s something beautiful in its simplicity. It’s such a charming recreation, we can’t help but wish we had it for our Game Boys when we were kids. Ah, simpler times…
“Breath of the NES” (2017)
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When Nintendo was working on “Breath of the Wild,” it created an NES-style prototype to develop the game’s physics. We would’ve jumped at the opportunity to play the prototype, and it seems we’re far from the only ones. Developed by Itch user WinterDrake, this demake had features of “Breath of the Wild,” like interactable environments and a day and night cycle, just in 8-bit. Naturally, WinterDrake was hit with a cease and desist almost immediately. But the footage that remains from the project is still highly impressive. Since then, we’ve seen others make attempts at bringing “Breath of the Wild” into a retro style, like Ohana Studio’s trailer for a GBC demake that looks just like the “Oracle” games.
“Super Mario Odyssey 64” (2020)
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It was great seeing “Super Mario Odyssey” in 2D, but this is on another level. This 2020 demake was created by modder Kaze Emanuar, who has made multiple mods for “Super Mario 64.” It’s understandably much smaller with 80 moons to collect, as opposed to the 999 in the original game. Everything from hearing the game’s music as N64 tracks to exploring the much larger worlds of “Odyssey” with the chunky graphics of early 3D makes a wide grin spread across our faces. Of course, this comes with certain limitations. “Super Mario 64’s” camera certainly hasn’t aged well. But that hardly matters for a demake with this much love and care put into it.
