We like new games.  I get it.  Sometimes, it's awesome to replay an old game with updated graphics and mechanics.  I get that, too.  I'm an advocate of playing games over again ( http://gamrconnect.vgchartz.com/thread.php?id=72470 ), be it in the form of backwards compatability, game of the year editions, ports or what have you.  Some people disagree.  It seems that some games get a free pass for their rerelease while others get slammed.

I could go into a rant but then, what would there be to talk about?  Instead, I'll ask when is a game just a port?  When is a game a remaster?  When is a game a remake?  Here are your examples:

Metal Gear Solid:  The Twin Snakes:  New mechanics, new graphics, new audio

Resident Evil (Gamecube):  New graphics, new sound, new mechanics, new areas to discover

Halo Anniversary: New graphics, better sound, same gameplay, same areas

The Legend Of Zelda: The Wind Waker:  Same graphics, better effects, better resolution, new gameplay enhancements and items

Tomb Raider Definitive Edition: All DLC Content, redrawn characters, better effects, minor control tweaks

The Last of Us Remastered:  All DLC Content, better frame rate, better resolution, better textures

So what qualifies as what?  When is a game not just a port?  What would you classify the upcoming Uncharted collection and Gears of War games?  And, most importantly, why do some get a free pass while others are just considered "cash grabs"?  Discuss.

Absolutely remake.

Port : port to another platform, little/no new content
Remaster : add stuff
Remake : add, change and/or remove stuff

A Remake is when the game is remade from scratch: FF7, Twin snakes, Wild Arms Alter code F

A Remaster is a touch up to a old game: DMC3/4, Wind Waker, Uncharted

A Port "may" have a few new features but otherwise completely untouche: Valkyrie Profile PSP, Chrono Trigger DS

I noticed people have problems distinguishing between these.

This is a subject that I feel people are really wrong about a lot of the time. Mostly they think remasters are remakes. But it's only a remake if they literally built the game from the ground up (which, I'm sorry, is just plain not the case with Wind Waker--if it were, the game wouldn't look nearly identical).

They can take a movie and remaster it in HD, change scenes around, add CG effects, and all sorts of other stuff and it's still not a remake. It's only a remake if they reshoot the whole thing.

Reimaging - A retelling of events that holds to the same "concepts" but new liberties

One more:  Super Mario All-Stars: Exact same gameplay, glitches, etc.  Different graphics and sound.  What is it?

Oh, one thing I didn't mention in the OP:  Every game in this thread so far is a game I actually owned and still own (both versions) right now at this very moment.

What about a game like DMC (Devil May Cry).  It's a reboot but would it be considered a remake as well?  It's REALLY made from scratch!!  I'm just playing devil's advocate, mind you.....

Reboots/reimaginings are their own things: They are retellings that stick to "defining concepts" but take liberties with it.

Remaster isnt a thing. Thats a fancy term they came up with to sell you the game. A remaster is a port. Like, no one was calling the DC version of MK4 and Soul Reaver "remasters" even though they were clearly superior to the PS1 counterparts.

A remake is a rebuilding of the same game from scratch. Can have added stuff or not. But everything is rebuilt from the ground up.

Reboot/Re-imagining is using the blueprint idea of the original and make something completely different and original.