Developer Tower Five is remaking the panned remake of XIII, a project that was originally handled by developer PlayMagic in 2020. Now, a brand new trailer has been released showing it off on current-gen consoles.
PlayMagic’s initial remake of the 2003 cult classic was critically panned due to its bugs and performance issues. Back in June, Microids CEO Stephane Longeard issued a statement about the game’s issues, saying, “We are fully aware and terribly sorry that the initial launch of XIII Remake on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC did not reach players’ expected quality standards…We can’t wait for players to put their hands on this improved version of the game and (re)discover the classic adventures of Agent XIII, as soon as it’s released after the summer.”
The latest gameplay trailer presents a much better version of the game running on PlayStation 5 via backward compatibility. It boasts a new art direction, reworked AI, and other improvements and features — including the ability to run at 60 frames per second. The art style returns to the original’s charming cel-shaded comic-book-like graphics and appears to run stably without any noticeable performance hiccups.
Those who purchased the game on PS4, Xbox One, and PC will receive a free update to the new version of the game when it goes live on September 13. This new XIII remake will also launch on Nintendo Switch on the same day.
Last year, Fanbyte reported on the XIII remake’s tumultuous development over at PlayMagic, which involved poor project management, lack of staff, and crunch, as well as disputes with CEO and creative director Giuseppe Crugliano.
