Remakes are not uncommon in the world of video games. From smaller leaps in quality, like New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe to fantastical overhauls likeFinal Fantasy 7 Remake, if you’ve played video games long enough chances are pretty good that you’re not only aware of remakes but you own a couple of them, too. But what actually qualifies a game as a remake? What is thebare minimum that a game needs to classify itself as different from its source material? It’s probably not something that you’ve stopped to think about, and it wasn’t something that I had ever thought about before, either. That all changed, however, when I played Princess Maker 2 Regeneration—a game that truly challenges the notion of what it means to be a remake.
A Child is a Gift from God
All in a day’s work!
Setting the stage in a strangely familiar way,Princess Maker 2 Regeneration begins its tale with a country embroiled in conflict as it attempts to fight off a demon invasion. Though things seemingly look grim, a wandering swordsman (hey, that’s you!) shows up and declares battle with Lucifon, the leader of the demons, and soundly defeats him. As a reward, the swordsman is given a place in the kingdom by the country’s grateful ruler. Soon thereafter, the swordsman is visited by a diety from above Grateful for driving off Lucifon and his army, the deity bestows upon them a heavenly child for them to raise and promptly leaves. …You did want to be a parent, right?
ApproachingPrincess Maker 2 Regeneration‘s storytelling is a little difficult. Most of this stems from the fact that there essentially isn’t any story outside of the game’s beginning and ending(s). Given that this game originally came out in ’93, that isn’t a huge issue. I’m going to say something that might be a bit contentious, though—I think Regeneration should have fleshed out the script a bit, or perhaps added “modern” and “classic” story modes. Technically speaking, Regeneration does stand out in that it’s been re-translated. Given that this doesn’t necessarily add anything to the game per se this is a moot point as additional content goes.
The Perils of Parenting
Your daughter can’t be good at everything, so be sure to make your decisions carefully!
Princess Maker 2 Regeneration is one of the most deceptively complex games I’ve played in a while. Despite looking like a simple “numbers go up” game (which, I mean, it is), there is a lot of planning to be done. As a father of a… uh… newborn 10-year-old, it’s your job to meticulously plan her life until she turns 18 and ventures out on her own. This means deciding which classes she attends, what jobs she works, when she rests, when she goes on adventures—or if you’d rather not have her participate in certain activities at all. All of this planning eventually culminates in the player reaching one of 74 different endings based on your parenting decisions.
Let me be the first to say that a game with 74 different endings is almost unheard of, even by today’s standards, and I applaudPrincess Maker 2 Regenerationfor doing something so impressive. Unfortunately, making a game with that many endings, especially back in 1993, creates some problems. As I’ve already mentioned, this game is deceptively complex—and I didn’t necessarily mean that as a compliment.
As you can probably guess, this game revolves almostentirely around skill checks. But there exists a major flaw inPrincess Maker 2 Regeneration—the game is rarely entirely clear about anything. Most activities require proficiencies in multiple stats—such as Masonry, a Stamina-based activity, also requiring proficiency in Artistry. The game willnever make this clear, however, which will most likely result in you constantly failing the activity or miraculously getting lucky and succeeding but not knowing why. The game is also very particular about most of its endings, making it very easy for players to get locked into certain endings—particularly those revolving around housework and artistry.
Regeneration Refined
I’m not going to argue against an ending gallery. That always should’ve been there.
Now that we’ve gotten all of the gameplay out of the way, it’s finally time to look at the most important question—why doesPrincess Maker 2 Regenerationexist? I’m not saying thatPrincess Maker 2 shouldn’t have come to the Switch, I just don’t get why they didn’t portPrincess Maker 2 Refine instead. As far as remakes (if you can even call it that) go,Regeneration offers almost nothing. We’ve got an ending gallery (which is actually pretty nice, I’ll admit), an animated intro, and a re-translated dialogue. Does that really merit selling this game for twice the price as Princess Maker 2 Refine? No. No, it doesn’t.
I’m going to be blunt. If you’re selling a new version ofPrincess Maker for twice the price of the previous version, I expect more than just a few bells and whistles. The base game is incrediblycryptic, and I have no issue saying that I resorted to using the Princess MakerWiki after my first playthrough. There is so much going on in the background of this game, and you’re never going to figure it out on your own. Having an overhauled version of this game that allowed for more mechanical clarity (without making it easier) would have absolutely increased the value of Regeneration. If you want to make the game more expensive, that’s fine. But you’ve got to make it worth that increased price.Regeneration‘s offerings just don’t do that.
Further Growth Required
As one of the games directly responsible for helping to kickstart the (admittedly niche) “raising simulator” genre, Princess Maker 2 Regenerationprovides an amazing opportunity for players to experience a piece of gaming history that has deviated very little from its source material since its initial 1993 release. Unfortunately, this dedication also acts as a double-edged sword, leavingRegenerationas a game that offers very little in the way of new content and, due to its early ’90s origins, isn’t good at explaining the mechanics that are already there.
Because of this, it’s best to know what you’re getting into before you approach this game. Those going into Princess Maker 2 Regeneration expecting to experience be whisked away back into the world of 90s PC gaming will enjoy their time with the game. Those looking for a more contemporary gaming experience, however, will undoubtedly be disappointed, as the game barely differentiates itself fromPrincess Maker 2 Refine.
Final Verdict: 3/5
Available on: Nintendo Switch (Reviewed), PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, PC; Publisher: Bliss Brain; Developer: Bliss Brain; Players: 1; Released: July 11, 2024; ESRB: E10+ for Everyone Ages 10+; MSRP: $39.99
Full disclosure: This review is based on a copy of Princess Maker 2 Regeneration provided by the publisher.
