It is 2024, and films and series about video games are on a dramatic rise. Iconic Sonic the Hedgehog character Knuckles the Echidna is getting a series on Paramount+, the triple A title Fallout has a series on Amazon Prime, the future-survival title Borderlands is getting a live action movie adaptation, and there have been rumors of the iconic Indie horror game Five Nights at Freddy’s to get a sequel coming in 2025. Among other series and movies. With all that said, this is a brief overview of Video Game adaptations, then, now, and potentially.
The first few Video Game adaptations came from the golden age of society: the 1980s. The Super Mario Super Show, Captain N: The Game Master, and the original 1980s Pac-Man show were such examples. Though mixed in initial and modern standards, it still held a close place in longtime gamers’ hearts. For example, older Mario fans would remember the phrase, “Do the Mario!” and a Brooklyn accent for the Italian plumber being synonymous with his identity. Moving forward to the 90s and 2000s, society was given movies like Mortal Kombat, Tomb Raider, Silent Hill, and the long standing Resident Evil franchise. Once again, another mixed bag of adaptations, as even with popular actors playing title roles, the franchises failed in racking the dough or liking for popularity. Mid 2010s also saw video game movies, such as Pixels and Slenderman, but they were one-shot flicks at best in the grand scheme of things.
Now, as in the last five years to now, successful franchises have started for video games. This trend started with the Sonic Hedgehog movie and Detective Pikachu, both of which had popular actors play the title roles without it feeling like a cash grab. Afterwards, many video game franchises had their respective adaptations. Halo received a series on Paramount+, which is getting a second season as of now, Cuphead, League of Legends, and Cyberpunk got their Netflix series, and The Last of Us became a series on HBOMax. For movies, Mortal Kombat got its adaptation, as well as Uncharted, Super Mario, Gran Turismo, and even Tetris (which was a documentary). While Sonic the Hedgehog and Angry Birds have direct sequels to their first.
Even though these films(s) are a mainstream sample of what happened between 2019 and 2024, one can’t ignore the certain highs and lows of these series. For example, as mentioned previously, the Borderlands movie was speculated by many hardcore fans to flop due to the “cast being a choice one,” and the plot not following the original game. While series like Halo have done a poor job of portraying the title character Master Chief.
What to expect for 2024 and beyond? Well, rumors are rumors at best, and can only be right if proven, well right and true. However, some video games are on the drawing board for movies and series respectively. For example, Radar Pictures is collaborating with Joey Drew Studios to make the Bendy and the Ink Machine movie, though a date for it is undetermined. Another one that’s been on the drawing board was SCP: BREACH the Netflix series, where the short film SCP-096 will air as its pilot episode, though the series never happened as of now. There’s also news of an Among Us series coming soon to CBS. Sadly, that’s it for now, as more suggestions would be guesswork at most.
