To celebrate the end of 2021, we are looking back at some of our best articles this year.
Originally published this past August:
Sin and Punishment was one of the last big games for the N64 but was left in Japan due to the impending release of the GameCube and discontinuation of the N54 in the west. Gamers knew of it though and wanted to play it and it became a top import title for a time. Later on, the game received an official western release when the Wii Virtual Console launched and included N64 games.
Sin and Punishment was developed by Treasure, a company that is known for its great games such as Radiant Silvergun and Gunstar Heroes, Sin and Punishment was a rail shooter that took influence from a variety of other action games and shooters of the time, but also managed to have some surprising twists in its story and gameplay. This included having a side-scrolling level reminiscent of Contra III, which was fitting since Treasure was involved in that game as well.
The game was a hit on the Virtual Console and Nintendo commissioned a sequel from Treasure, which was released as Sin and Punishment: Star Successor (also known as Sin and Punishment: Successor of the Skies in some regions). The sequel was a massive upgrade over the original title, upping the action with more characters, a deeper narrative, and full use of the various control schemes the Wii had to offer. This was one of the first Nintendo sequels commissioned based on the sales of a digital re-release and would impact company policies in many ways.
The on-rail shooting sections now involved flight elements, and the game took a bit of inspiration for this part from Sega’s Space Harrier games. There were also melee attacks that could also be used to deflect some attacks, as well as a dodge roll mechanic to avoid many attacks. Some of the levels took inspiration from shmups like the aforementioned Radiant Silvergun and Ikaruga, giving the game a bit of a different feel from the first game.
Sin and Punishment: Star Successor was later re-released on the Wii U virtual console along with the original Sin and Punishment, but there has been no word on the future of the series since then. Given the nature of the Switch, the game would work well on the hybrid system either using the joy-cons for motion controls or with a brand-new control scheme. The series would look amazing in HD, and online play could allow more players to join in for co-op as well in order to bring more players together, especially given the way boss battles work in the series, along with the potential for a versus mode.
While there is an issue with the fact that Treasure is no longer making games, there is another option. Nintendo recently invested heavily in Forever Entertainment, whose studio Megapixel developed the remake of Panzer Dragoon and the upcoming remake of House of the Dead. Megapixel would be the ideal choice to remake the two games in the series and possibly add new features as well like they did with Panzer Dragoon.
Megapixel and Forever Entertainment could be the ones to bring Sin and Punishment to a new audience and with the right touches and additions, Sin and Punishment could stand out. The series could be a true successor to classic Nintendo series like Star Fox and a worthy addition to the regular roster of Nintendo franchises receiving games. Sin and Punishment deserves to live again and the Switch is the system to bring it back on.