It’s recently been estimated that no less than 57 films based on video games are currently in some stage of development.
While some of these may be more likely than others to see the light of day, there’s no doubt the world of gaming continues to provide a rich source of inspiration for Hollywood moviemakers.
It’s not hard to see why. Video games have all the qualities that generally go down well in a moneymaking cinematic blockbuster. Action, adventure and imaginative set pieces are top of the list, and there’s always conflict and drama aplenty. As games themselves become more cinematic they’re also investing more heavily in characterisation, storyline and emotional depth. Video games also explore a wide range of popular genres, including horror, science fiction, fantasy, warfare and comedy. Younger audiences can enjoy ‘funny animal’ movies based on the likes of Sly Cooper, Angry Birds and Sonic The Hedgehog, while the Resident Evil series provides thrills and chills for slightly older viewers.
Perhaps just as importantly, video games provide a recognisable brand, with characters and settings that have already proved they can win the affection and loyalty of a broad audience. They’re tailor-made for merchandising tie-ins, and they generally take good money at the box office whatever the critics think of them. So never mind the fact that it’s hard to think of one really good movie that was based on a video game from the past twenty years: while games aspire to be more like films, films based on games show no sign of disappearing just yet.
Resident Evil
First up this year is likely to be Resident Evil: Vendetta. Sony’s follow-up to Resident Evil: Damnation (2012) and Resident Evil: Degeneration (2008) is the latest in the Japanese 3D animated series, as distinct from the live-action Resident Evil series starring Milla Jovovitch, which concluded last year with Resident Evil: The Final Chapter. Unlike those films, the animated Evils are set in the same universe as the videogame, and Vendetta reputedly takes place between the events of Resident Evil 6 and 7 in the gaming world. Matt Mercer stars as Leon S Kennedy, alongside Kevin Dorman as Chris Redfield and Erin Cahill as Rebecca Chambers in a biopunk thriller dealing with the deadly “trigger virus”.
Meanwhile the live action Resident Evil franchise may be officially over, but it’s interesting to note that The Final Chapter was the best received instalment since the first, way back in 2002, and the biggest grossing worldwide (although the weakest performing in North American theatres). So it remains to be seen whether cast and crew can be tempted back for another go-round, or whether a reboot will be coming up a few years down the line.
Tomb Raider
The most anticipated reboot of a game-based movie has to be Roar Uthuag’s take on Tomb Raider, set for a 2018 release and starring Alicia Vikander as the young Lara Croft. The film is based on the 2013 game, which itself was a reboot of the franchise that began in 1996, providing an origin story of sorts for Lara as she searches for her missing father, explorer Lord Richard Croft (played by Dominic West in the forthcoming film). There are hints too that the new Tomb Raider may be part of a games-based cinematic universe also incorporating a Brad Peyton directed adaptation of shooting & driving action adventure game Just Cause, a new take on Hitman (which can’t be worse than the last two attempts, in 2007 and 2015 respectively) and adaptations of Deus Ex and Thief.
Casino games
The world of casino gaming has long fascinated Hollywood, and while it may not be possible to make a straight film adaptation of a table game, the world of gambling, high rollers and Vegas at least has a better track record for quality than most videogame adaptations, and has thrown up quite a few stone cold cinema classics. Think of Scorsese’s Casino, Nicolas Cage in Leaving Las Vegas, Paul Newman in The Sting and The Hustler, or the Ocean’s Eleven series.
Serious students of the form would probably nominate Rounders or 21 for their close studies of the science of poker and blackjack respectively, while gaming provides a colourful backdrop for Daniel Craig’s James Bond in Casino Royale and Johnny Depp’s Hunter S Thompson in Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas. The forthcoming Will Ferrell comedy The House, about a couple who start an illegal casino in their basement, looks set to continue the trend, and fans can experience the thrill of casino gaming themselves with a wide selection of casino sites UK being available. They give them all the fun and excitement of the real thing from the comfort of their own homes.
Animal crackers
Cute animal characters proliferate in videogames and they provide natural source material for the ongoing trend in high-quality animated films that shows no signs of slowing down. Perhaps the most anticipated is the Sonic The Hedgehog movie, directed by Jeff Fowler and scheduled for a 2018 release. If things go well it’s intended to be the first in a franchise. Last year’s The Angry Birds Movie grossed over $349m at the box office, so it’s no surprise that Angry Birds 2 is currently in the works. Sadly, however the Sly Cooper animated film, originally scheduled for 2016, currently has no definite release date. Word is the movie was put on hold after the failure of the Ratchet And Clank adaptation from the same company (Blockade Entertainment). So right now, the comic adventures of the titular racoon hero-thief and his friends can only be glimpsed in a 2014 teaser trailer.
The animals in Rampage (scheduled for an April 2018 release) may not be so cute, but the film looks like being a worthy if late addition to the current round of old-school monster movies. Based on the 1980s Japanese arcade game series of the same name, the film is set to star Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson and Naomie Harris facing off against a giant mutated gorilla, lizard and wolf destroying large swathes of prime real estate.
It does seem that while the best videogames aspire to the status of art, Hollywood still looks to them as a ready-made source of basic action fodder. In some ways, the games remain superior, but who knows: maybe the classic game-to-film movie adaptation is still to come.