10 Weird Versions Of Iconic Games You Didn't Know Existed
Looking for a different way to play a classic?
Once a game is out in the wild, has made its impact and is written into gaming history books, it often takes an immutable shape. The way it looks and plays is burned into the minds of gamers and is unshakeable... so it's easy for most people to forget alternative takes on a classic that get lost the shadow of it's reputation.
Because video game hardware can vary so drastically, games might change considerably across one version to the next. That might facilitate a reinvention of concepts to make them work on this new format, especially if the respective system is less powerful.
However, in some cases, bringing a title to a different console allows it to grow, flourish and transform by adding new ideas.
These oddities are always a joy to behold regardless of their quality; to see overlooked spins on games we thought we all knew.
The titles on this list are ports that stand out in some way, ranging from odd changes to being entirely different prospects to the original. They might not all be good but they're certainly all interesting gems in the history of storied franchises and iconic gaming names.
10. BioShock On IOS
2K Games’ BioShock was an immersive 2007 FPS that unified Xbox, PlayStation, PC and Mac players with their praise for it. It also seriously impressed those with iPhones in 2014 with a surprising mobile port.
BioShock on iOS doesn’t really need any alternative features or modes, it’s sheer existence is novelty in itself. Whilst various video game IPs made their way to mobile platforms in the 2010s, BioShock stood out because it was just a straight-up port of an Xbox 360 and PS3 game.
Naturally, it wasn’t as pretty but the sacrifice in visual quality doesn’t harm the game’s powerful atmosphere. The controls were now all touch-screen which could be a touch finicky but really the quibbles with this port’s gameplay were minor.
The real issues came twofold. First of all, as a AAA game coming to mobile it was a tad more expensive than your standard fare, coming in at $15. This still isn’t bad for a big, story-driven experience but it was the support that annoyed fans. Gamers who dropped cash for it found themselves unable to play over time as Apple rolled out iOS updates and, by 2017, the game was officially announced as dead.
Which is a damn shame because it was an impressive step on the long road of mobile gaming, now lost forever.