Oftentimes remasters can feel like a bit of a cash-grab, as though the developer found an old game lurking at the back of their desk drawers, blew off the dust, and slapped a fresh price tag on it. But Biomenace Remastered is of the sort that puts a big smile on my face. It’s the tale of two ardent fans working to bring the classic 1993 shooter, originally from Rise of the Triad and Duke Nukem studio Apogee, back to life. Impressing the game’s creator, the pair secured the rights and have now completed their near two-year task to bring Biomenace back to the big time for a second run.
Biomenace Remastered began life in early 2024 when Rigel Gameworks developer Niko, known as ‘lethal_guitar,’ started working on a “fan-made, enhanced modern engine” for the 2D platform game. He then shared it with close friend Bart, or ‘Dosgamert,’ and the pair decided it was worth pitching to Apogee (previously part of what is now 3D Realms) as an official remaster. Ultimately, the studio determined it was too busy to offer any additional help, but agreed the project was a good idea – providing Niko and Bart could secure the rights from its original developer, James Norwood.
Ultimately, Norwood signed a licensing deal with Rigel that would allow the remaster to come to life as a commercial product. Now, eight months after that initial reveal, Biomenace Remastered is out and playable on Steam. Unless you’re really craving the nostalgia of the era, it’s unquestionably the definitive way to play, offering fully remastered graphics with widescreen support, improved gameplay with pixel-perfect collision, and rebalanced difficulty.
Things start out as they always did: top-secret CIA specialist Snake Logan is called in to deal with a rapidly escalating situation in Metro City, where thousands of “monster-like creatures” are swarming through the streets. The government declared a state of martial law, and then all communications were lost – with a chilling warning from a man called Dr. Mangle that a similar fate would spread across the world unless all governments complied with his wishes.
What initially begins as a recon soon forces Logan down to ground level, where he must battle through the hordes, rescue any survivors, find the root cause of the chaos, and put a stop to Dr. Mangle’s plans. There’s more on the table for the remaster, however. Once you’ve made it through the original three episodes (spanning 36 levels), there’s a new fourth chapter “set a few years after” with a further 15 stages, fresh NPCs, and two extra boss battles.
On top of that, a built-in editor means you’re free to create additional missions of your own. You can swap between the new and classic look on the fly, and there’s a quick-save feature to ensure you can step away at any time. Rigel has implemented Steam achievements and leaderboards, and it’s all Steam Deck verified.
Biomenace Remastered is out now on Steam, priced at $11.99 / £10.23 until Thursday December 25 thanks to a launch discount, or $14.99 / £12.79 after the sale ends. There’s also a free demo you can download if you want to try it out first and see what you think of this loving modern update to a cult classic.