Remastered graphics are an upgrade for the originals' realism tentatives (while being a downgrade for more intentional art styles)
after playing I-V Remastered, I came to the conclusion that, whenever the original games were going for a realistic style (from lush jungles to the urban environments seen a lot in 2, 3 and 5), the Remastered graphics are generally an unquestionable upgrade over the originals (the pixelated rocky, grassy or stelly textures finally come to life without any hardware limitations)
however, when we are looking at the more surreal, artsy and intentional colorful palletes used in temples and tombs (more seen on 1 and 4), the realistic upgrades are not always an improvement. especially on 1 and 4, it feels like the devs knew about the limitations and worked in a very intentional manner to create an art style that made the most within those constraints. the Remastered graphics come and offer a realistic "pasteurized" overdo that doesn't always translate those original intentions. the "color blockiness" of the originals are way more iconic than anything realism can bring.
it's wonderful to be able to switch between both versions at will, but overall, my preferences assessment is:
- original
- remastered
- remastered
- original
- remastered