Night Slashers: Remake Interview – Combat, Co-op, Improvements, and More

1993’s beat ’em up classic Night Slashers has a special place in the hearts of genre fans for its unique aesthetic and setting, and more than three decades on from its launch, Forever Entertainment and developer Storm Trident are bringing it back for modern audiences with a ground-up remake. On top of promising the campy horror setting and delightfully gory action of the original game, Night Slashers: Remake is also touting a number of key improvements, from redone visuals and music to the inclusion of 4-player co-op and to an expanded roster of playable characters and more, which means there’s every reason for fans of the original and the genre to be excited.

To learn more about how Night Slashers: Remake and how it is toeing the line between recreating a classic and modernizing it for a new audience, we recently reached out to its developers with some of our most burning questions about the game. Below, you can read our interview with Storm Triden CEO Sebastian Kijaczko and QA tester Paweł Naruszewicz.

Three decades on from its launch, what motivated the decision to bring Night Slashers back for modern audiences?

Bringing Night Slashers back for modern audience is a nod to nostalgia and a celebration of the original game’s impact on gaming history. The decision was motivated by a desire to introduce a new generation of players to the thrills and excitement of the classic beat ’em ups, while also giving some old school fans an opportunity to relive their cherished memories. On top of that, we still don’t have a lot of horror themed beat ‘em ups and Night Slashers was a perfect fit to fill that gap.

Beat ’em ups have enjoyed something of a resurgence of late. Given the steps the genre has taken forward with several notable releases, what are the biggest changes you are making to Night Slashers to bring it up to modern standards?

We are enhancing the gameplay mechanics to offer a more fluid and responsive combat system, providing players with a greater sense of control and mastery over their character’s actions. This also includes refining and optimizing enemy AI for more dynamic and challenging encounters.

We are also updating the visuals to take advantage of modern hardware, delivering high-definition graphics with detailed character models, effects and immersive environment. With that we were also able to add more color palette swaps to both main characters and enemies.

Biggest change in the game is the addition of a 4th character (which is yet to be revealed) and possibility to play as 4 players instead of 3, which was the case in the original game.

Given Night Slashers’ reputation for gruesome action, as well as its horror trappings, how much emphasis is being placed on using technology that wasn’t available at the time of the original’s development to make the remake an even more visceral experience?

While staying true to the essence of the original, we’re leveraging modern graphics, sound design, and gameplay mechanics to intensify the horror atmosphere and deliver a truly gripping experience.

Overall, our goal is to honor the legacy of Night Slashers while embracing the advancements of modern gaming. One of the visual upgrades we are happy to add is interactable water, that can be tainted with blood in real time, or leaving bloody footsteps while getting out of blood splats.

Have Night Slashers: Remake’s controls been redesigned from the ground-up? What are the biggest ways the combat will benefit from the improved controls?

The controls for Night Slashers: Remake have indeed been updated, but not really redesigned from the ground up. Game will still provide players with a smoother and more intuitive combat experience with improved controls through enhanced responsiveness and precision.

Can you talk to us about the process of re-recording Night Slashers’ OST for the remake? What kind of balance did you strike between modernizing the music and retaining its original qualities?

Re-recording the OST for Night Slashers: Remake was an exciting journey that required striking a delicate balance between modernization and honoring the original’s iconic qualities. While we remained faithful to the essence of the original tracks, we also took creative liberties to enhance their impact. We had a few takes for each of the tracks to find the perfect one.

How many new characters will you add to the roster in Night Slashers: Remake? What can you tell us about the design process for the new heroes?

While I can’t disclose any specific information on this subject, I can assure you that the design process for the new hero was the result of brainstorming concepts and ideas that would complement the game’s universe, drawing inspiration from various sources. There were a lot of ideas on new characters for the game, so it was not easy to choose the best one.

Moving beyond the new content, what are the biggest changes and enhancements that players should expect from the remake in terms of the content that it’s bringing forward from the original game?

As stated before – the ability to play as 4 players. New character in the roster. General UI overhaul including completely new character select screen. There will also be achievements/trophies. Having the game on every major platform is definitely a plus. We will have more info to share about the game’s changes and upgrades very soon.

What has the process of implementing four-player multiplayer support been like? Did you find that you had to make any drastic changes to the game’s core design or mechanics to ensure that it could accommodate co-op?

One of the main challenges we faced was balancing the difficulty and pacing of the game to account for the presence of four players. With four players on screen simultaneously, encounters needed to be carefully tuned to provide a suitable challenge without feeling overwhelming or unfair. This involved tweaking enemy AI, adjusting spawn rates, and fine-tuning the distribution of items throughout the levels.