City Hunter’s long-lost 1990 game finally gets a global remaster — and it includes “Get Wild”

Why this City Hunter remaster actually matters to fans (and collectors)

This caught my attention because City Hunter’s original PC Engine game has been an obscure footnote for decades – a Japan-only tie-in lost to time. Clouded Leopard Entertainment and Red Art Games are doing what publishers love to promise: a “definitive” version that finally makes the 1990 title playable outside Japan, modernizes the controls and difficulty, and bundles a proper set of fan perks (including TM Network’s iconic “Get Wild”). For a niche anime-game relic, that’s a surprisingly complete package.

• Digital launch Feb 26 for Switch, Switch 2, PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC (Steam); physical editions land in Europe Sept 17.
• New Enhanced and Hard modes plus QoL features: save states, rewind, CRT filter, multiple aspect ratios and a music player.
• First-time localization to English, French, Italian, German and Spanish; original Japanese text included.
• Multiple physical editions (Standard, XYZ Collector’s, and a 500-copy Deluxe) aimed squarely at collectors.

Breaking down the remaster – what’s new (and what really matters)

At face value this is the classic retro-remaster playbook: keep the original game intact while adding modern conveniences so newcomers don’t throw their controllers at the wall. Enhanced Mode addresses responsiveness, lag, buggy projectiles and other quirks that made the PC Engine version feel rough. Hard Mode flips that script – it’s the “definitive” way to play, changing item placement, damage values, enemy behavior, hit boxes and even adding a new gameplay sequence for players who want the original’s teeth back with extra bite.

Quality of life features are the headline wins for most players: save states and rewind make a brutally old-school action game approachable, the CRT filter keeps the visual vibe intact for purists, and multiple aspect ratios plus 3D models of the original box and manual lean into collector nostalgia. The music player — including the anime’s ending theme “Get Wild” — is a neat, emotionally resonant touch. For fans of the show, hearing that track inside the game is more than nostalgia; it’s a connective tissue to the anime’s era.

Why now: 40th anniversary timing and the retro remaster cycle

The timing is no accident. This remaster is part of City Hunter’s 40th anniversary celebrations, which makes it an ideal moment to dust off the only official console adaptation and give it a global release. Retro remasters and deluxe physical runs are proving reliably lucrative — and Red Art Games knows how to handle physical collector culture, having shipped hundreds of physical titles and built a reputation for limited-run editions. The Deluxe Edition being capped at 500 copies per platform is exactly the kind of scarcity collectors will clamor for.

What this means for players

If you care about anime tie-ins, retro action games or collecting, this is a release to watch. New players get a more forgiving entry point with Enhanced Mode and QoL fixes; purists and speedrunners get Hard Mode and the option to chase trophy lists on modern platforms. Localization into five Western languages actually changes the audience — no more guessing story beats from pixel-scraped Japanese text. And the physical editions give collectors tangible value: steelcase, soundtrack CD, acrylic stands and the very on-brand 100t hammer keychain.

My skepticism? Remasters can’t fix a game’s fundamental design if it’s not fun in 2026. The pitch here is honest: they’ve fixed bugs, added content and modern conveniences, but the core action still originates in 1990. Expect charm and quirks in equal measure. Still, for preservation and accessibility, this is a clear win — and a far better fate than leaving the City Hunter game locked in import-bin obscurity.

Collector notes and timeline

Digital players can grab the game on Feb 26 across the major platforms. Physical editions (Switch and PS5) arrive in Europe on Sept 17: Standard, XYZ Collector’s and a strictly limited Deluxe Edition sold only through Red Art Games’ store (500 copies per platform). Pre-orders are reportedly live on Red Art’s site. No MSRP was announced in the initial brief, so watch for price tags before you click “buy.”

TL;DR

Clouded Leopard and Red Art’s City Hunter remaster isn’t a glamour rework — it’s a careful preservation with modern conveniences, new difficulty options, legit localization and collector-focused physical editions. If you’ve been curious about the franchise’s lone classic game or you collect anime tie-in releases, mark Feb 26 for digital and Sept 17 for the physical drop in Europe.