Rare Replay

30 games. 30 years. One legendary collection.

Rare Replay is a 2015 compilation of 30 video games from the 30-year history of developers Rare and its predecessor, Ultimate Play the Game. The emulated games span multiple genres and consoles—from the ZX Spectrum in 1983 to the Xbox 360 in 2008—and retain the features and errors of their original releases with minimal edits. The compilation adds cheats to make the older games easier and a Snapshots mode of specific challenges culled from parts of the games. Player progress is rewarded with behind-the-scenes footage and interviews about Rare's major and unreleased games.

Quick Facts

Developer: Rare
Publisher: Microsoft Studios
Designer: Paul Collins
Composer: Robin Beanland
Platforms: Xbox One
Released: August 4, 2015
Modes: Single-player, multiplayer

Lore & Background

Rare Replay became Rare's first United Kingdom all-formats charts bestseller since Banjo-Kazooie in 1998.

Reader's Guide

The compilation includes 30 games. Players can toggle scanlines and rewind up to ten seconds in pre-Nintendo 64 games. Older games can be saved at will and autosave upon exit. An infinite lives cheat is available for some older games. Snapshots are small challenges, sometimes connected as playlists. The ZX Spectrum emulation retains original hardware idiosyncrasies. Nintendo 64 emulation upgrades polygon rendering and frame rate. Xbox 360 games install separately and require online activation. Banjo-Kazooie, Banjo-Tooie, and Perfect Dark use their Xbox 360 versions; Conker's Bad Fur Day is emulated from the Nintendo 64 original. Grabbed by the Ghoulies runs natively with upgraded resolution and frame rate. Multiplayer modes and downloadable content are retained. The 'Rare Revealed' bonus features are unlocked by collecting stamps through completing games and Snapshots.

Did You Know?

Rare Replay was one of several ideas Rare considered to celebrate its 30th anniversary.
The compilation was inspired by fans, upcoming Xbox One backward compatibility, and a desire to link Rare's past and future.
Rare sorted through 120 games to choose the 30 that best represented its oeuvre, prioritizing games with original characters and environments.
The compilation includes four hardware emulators and uses Microsoft's then-unannounced Xbox 360 emulation.
Rare Replay released worldwide as an Xbox One exclusive on August 4, 2015.