We’ve all seen movies recently, based on games, that really never should have been movies. Resident Evil had a shot at being good, but pretty much blew it. Dungeons and Dragons is universally bad. Tomb Raider is surprsingly flat (ha-ha).
So, what are some games out there that you think could be great films?
The one I’ve been thinking seriously about lately is Thief: The Dark Project. It has the structure of a movie, and the plot to support one. It could pick up around the third mission, and go to the end, cutting out very little. I think it could be a really strong thriller, even a character piece, and it would actually make a good movie.
Homeworld might also make a good movie, but you’d have to make it a little more character-driven. The game itself is already very cinematic, but it would need real characters to keep it interesting.
The House of the Dead had GREAT potential. Too bad the guy actually making the movie is an utter jackass. Same to be said for Resident Evil (why is it people who don’t understand horror movies keep wanting to make zombie films?)
If done right, I’m sure Diablo could be really cool.
Metal Gear Solid might work. I mean, half the game was a movie anyway…
Skies of Arcadia would be a fun one.
Shit, most fantasy games could make really cool movies (again, falling under the “If done right” category). Zelda, Final Fantasy, Shining Force, the list goes on.
Take a game of chess played between two masters. Write down every move and why the moves were made.
Create roles for each of the pieces. Write a plotline that details why each of the characters moved the way they did, why they attacked, killed, threatened, or defended.
Not a single one. There has never been anything more than a mediocre film made from a game; there is no reason to expect any game could make a good movie, let along a great one.
I agree that Thief: The Dark Project has considerable potential, if it were handled properly. The key would be following the plot of the game, rather than trying to directly transpose the missions into the screenplay. Important settings and key events would remain, but the transitions would have to be developed. There would obviously be a lot more dialogue in the movie…which leads me to a key concern: How would you handle Garrett’s internal commentary? It’s an important part of the atmosphere of the game, and is pretty key to understanding the character. It would seem really strange without it.
I was thinking about that… I think the internal dialogues should be kept as narration, for the most part. They’d help to move the story along, and give youmore insight to the character.
In fact, taking that idea a little farther, it’d be interesting to try and do much of the film from Garrett’s point of view. Not necessarly “first-person” like the game, but often using camera angles that allow the audience to see what he hees.
I agree that most of the gameplay elements should be cut out, but some kept to give the flavor of the story and the character.
I agree that Legend of Zelda could be done well, but they would have to do a movie that couldn’t follow a game exactly, because no one wants to watch Link go through nine dungeons, getting a new item in each one just so he can finish the next one. Make it a fantasy epic, and make God damn sure that Navi is either NOT annoying, and a likeable character, or leave her out of the movie, because I could foresee her being another Jar Jar.
Any of the Gabriel Knight games could make a movie, they all have good plots and storylines, and even some of the dialogue is good.
Personally I thought Resident Evil was pretty good, and the most faithful to the source material of any vg-to-movie. But then again, I liked Mortal Kombat, too. Both by Paul Anderson.
I’d still love to see a Half-Life movie.
And I could sit for hours and watch a movie based on naked Twister.
Mildly-obscure choice: Oni, by Bungie/GOD Games, right before Microsoft swallowed 'em up. The game itself is a first-person shooter/fighter mix (think Tomb Raider but with more hand-to-hand combat), and the backstory/plot is an *anime-*style “character with mysterious past fights both sides in a dark and gritty future”.
Granted, it’s not the most original idea out there, but I think it could be adapted as a movie fairly faithfully.
I’d love to see a Final Fantasy movie actually based on any one of the games. I had high hopes for the one they released, but was seriously disappointed, as the story was nothing like anything ever. I think that the plots of the games themselves are so engrossing that it is pure stupidity to try and make up a story from scratch.
Heck, i’d probably pay to go see a splicing of all of the cutscenes from FFX into one long cinematic. or FFVII played out with sock puppets- the plot was that good.
I’ll also second a Zelda movie, and add Starcraft, Warcraft, Bloodrayne, Devil may Cry, Kingdom Hearts, and Metroid.
Halo. The best imaginable plot for a shoot-em-up game…how could it fail?
Diablo and Fallout would definitely have potential, and I had never concieved of an RPG movie being feasable. Fallout could end up being a really shitty Road Warrior/Waterworld crossbreed though. And, man oh man, would that be bad.
I vaguely remember a game from 5-7 years ago called Dark Colony, IIRC. Sort of like Starcraft, takes place on Mars…that could be pretty cool.
