Don't Film These Games!

[RobfromtheGulag]

I could contend that games and movies run sort of parallel to each other. Swerving into the others' lane is generally a bad idea because your moniker is far better than you'll ever be.

Sure Prince of Persia's doing alright in the box office. But given time are people going to remember the game series or Gyllenhaal's rendition?

You essentially have 2 kinds of games. The Plot Heavy games and the Plot Light games. Halo and Modern Warfare are Light in that they sell games based on gameplay, not story. Making a movie would require writing a decent story and just tossing in elements from the game to let us know it's legit. Making a movie of a Plot Heavy game is going to end badly either way too; whether you try to retell the story in a different light, or if you just copy the story verbatim.

 

[Quiet Stranger]

How was that mortal kombat doohicky a saw knockoff?

Maybe that's just bob being an idiot, cause that's what it sounds like, it's not even Saw ANYTHING at all, I think Bob's feeling sick or something

 

[BlueInkAlchemist]

Christina Hendricks in a Power Girl uniform.

Do. Want.

OT: Pretty much agreed on most of Bob's thoughts, here.

 

[Traun]

One thing you can never make a movie out of - Mario. The thing is pretty much governed by dream logic and any attempt of cinematic representation is doomed to fail. In order for the movie to succeed you don't only have to butcher the story, but also the characters and the setting.

One thing you can make a movie out of is Legacy of Kain, since the game relies heavily on cinematic story telling and is linear as hell(then again it may be impossible to cramp the story within 120 minute movie). RPG's are a bad idea.

Is there really any need to complain about Bob hate towards Halo? I have already came in terms with the fact that the dude is having some illogical bias and feels the need to bash it, so I just let it slide.

 

[sunpop]

Don't forget heavy rain the game that's already more movie then game yet some company bought the rights to make it a movie..

 

[WhizEd]

I agree pretty much with everything Bob said there. Uncharted is cool, but Nathan Drake is a jerk. And I, personally, am sick of jerky protagonists in movies anyway.
I'm also a massive Halo fan. Massive. I bought the games ONLY for the campaign, and for multiplayer LAN parties (still played the multiplayer). Movie Bob has it down pat; my friends and I discuss it often; a Halo movie would only work with the Chief in a highly reduced role, or gone altogether. And any proper fan of the story (IMO) would realise that. Anyone whingeing about it obviously doesn't understand the first thing about character and plot in movies. The best thing a Halo movie could do (IMO) would be to either try and grasp the sense of scale from the games and short films (like in the "Believe" campaign), or to make it a much more human story, like "Homecoming" in Halo: Legends.
The best thing the game has going for it in terms of movie-adaptability is that the universe Bungie created for it is sooooo big, you can do pretty much anything with it. It can also be a disadvantage, possibly leading to a cheapening of the brand, but if used with respect, it could be really great.

 

[Fappy]

Hey cool, didn't know you were a Danny Rand fan Bob. Anyway I agree with the games that you listed and to be completely honest... its hard to think of a game that could actually translate well into a video game. News on Mass Effect being adapted has me horribly worried, but I suppose if any game has a chance Mass Effect might be one of them.

 

[Haukur Isleifsson]

That Sim's idea actually sounds fucking hilarious.

Now, I know a game that would make a great movie...no...a great TV show: X-Com UFO Defense.

Think about it. a team of multi-national secret agents fighting a constant war against a fucking alien empire that is invading the planet Earth with mysterious UFOs. You have so many character choices: The general commanding it all, the smarmy politicians who X-Com has to deal with it keep their funding, the squad that goes on the missions and the scientists who try to study the alien technology that the team captures, to turn it against the alien menace.

There is betrayal, as some nations secretly sign treaties with the aliens!

There are scary scenes, when the team first runs into fucking crysilids and their fucking goddamn zombies.

And finally, there is the fucking awesome climax, with the team taking on the alien base on mars, fighting desperately through hordes of aliens to set blow up the reactor and zoom home in a spaceship made from alien materials and good old fashioned human know how.


BAM! Awesome. Lets shoot it and make money.

That really reminds me of Stargate.

 

[Lazarus Long]

There are some good points here, in the article, and the comments. I have a couple of additions to make, though.
First, zombies are never over. There will always be an audience for it, no matter how shitty or sublime the product actually is. It's like Halo that way.
Second, I like the idea of video game movies as side stories, rather than direct adaptations. A Half-Life movie that is not about Gordon Freeman. If he's in it, it's a brief cameo with no dialogue. It's the story of either a side character like Alyx or Barney, or a new character altogether dealing with the same invasion.
An Assassin's Creed movie that does what I think the comic is going to do - focus on a new descendant of Altair and add its own wrinkles to the metaplot.
I can also see a Halo movie working if it's about some interesting grunts fighting the alien horde rather than MarySue Chief. But then, I can just watch Aliens for that.

 

[unacomn]

Correction POTC is a MI wannabe.

 

[yakapoe]

I totally agree on the whole MK trailer remake looking like crud. I think the problem is that it their attempt to make MK look feasible and gritty kind of falls on its face. Also, I've seen way too many cruddy MK movies. It's an ok videogame and makes for a worse movie.

 

[Sebenko]

That Sim's idea actually sounds fucking hilarious.

Now, I know a game that would make a great movie...no...a great TV show: X-Com UFO Defense.

Think about it. a team of multi-national secret agents fighting a constant war against a fucking alien empire that is invading the planet Earth with mysterious UFOs. You have so many character choices: The general commanding it all, the smarmy politicians who X-Com has to deal with it keep their funding, the squad that goes on the missions and the scientists who try to study the alien technology that the team captures, to turn it against the alien menace.

There is betrayal, as some nations secretly sign treaties with the aliens!

There are scary scenes, when the team first runs into fucking crysilids and their fucking goddamn zombies.

And finally, there is the fucking awesome climax, with the team taking on the alien base on mars, fighting desperately through hordes of aliens to set blow up the reactor and zoom home in a spaceship made from alien materials and good old fashioned human know how.


BAM! Awesome. Lets shoot it and make money.

That really reminds me of Stargate.

Reminds me more of Captain Scarlet.

 

[pigmy wurm]

I have also written an article about why a Halo movie would be a bad idea (and I actually like the series) which basically can be boiled down to, Master Chief creates no tension as a main character, he is a faceless, near silent protagonist, who is too powerful for the audience to worry about him.

But do you know what would make a good movie, the plot to halo 2. Think about it: An alien general has just been disgraced by a huge military loss and is sent on a suicide mission to clear his honor. During the mission he finds out that if his leaders are to succeed in their goals all life in the universe might be destroyed. Unable to convince them he must rally his men against his former leaders and team up with the very people who caused his disgrace in the first place.

That sounds like a good plot for a movie. But, hardcore Halo fans have never seemed to like the arbiter very much (how dare you have a character with depth) so I can see it getting some backlash from the fanbase making him the main character of the movie. And their is the fact that you would either have to make a Halo 1 movie prior to it, or summarize it in the first 10 minutes of the movie.

 

[Callate]

Sad fact: Prince of Persia cost $200 million to make.
Sad fact 2: It has made about $60 million in box office so far.
Sad fact 3: PoP will be lucky to make back its production budget on domestic and international box office combined.

So... Yeah. Probably not the model for video-game-based-movies to come, that.

 

[MailOrderClone]

There are some games that I feel would make interesting films, with the right people behind them and a bit of TLC put in, naturally.

Shadow of the Colossus's predecessor, ICO, is one that immediately jumps to mind. It's the simplest story ever. The main character is a young boy with horns who is locked away in a seemingly abandoned fortress, only to discover that there is an evil plot afoot centered around a girl named Yorda, who is being held captive. Ico then spends the remainder of the tale trying to find a way to get he and Yorda out of there. It all sounds like a great film, if minimalist just like it's source material was. Problem being, it doesn't have nearly the same mass appeal as the sort of film adaptations that Bob is talking about.

Grim Fandango is another interesting prospect. The aztec afterlife blended with film noir elements seemingly borrowed wholesale from films of the genre. This is a film that could work wonderfully with some stop-motion animation, and in particular the people who made The Fantastic Mr. Fox seem uniquely suited to this sort of material.

I could picture a Mario film working really well, believe it or not. They could even give a sort-of abridged origin story for Mario, being one-half of Mario Brothers Pluming in a highly-caricaturized version of New York City and getting himself sucked down an odd green sewer pipe. An instant later, he tumbles out in a magical mushroom kingdom occupied by mushroom people and odd turtle people and a princess who has been kidnapped by a giant lizard who wants to rule the land. Great little adventure story waiting to be made right there; one that should have sort-of a Wallace & Gromit feel at the outset, a few short scenes to make us care about the character presented, make us like the guy, and that slowly becomes more Up-like in it's action beats once in the mushroom kingdom.

 

[ZeroMachine]

I have also written an article about why a Halo movie would be a bad idea (and I actually like the series) which basically can be boiled down to, Master Chief creates no tension as a main character, he is a faceless, near silent protagonist, who is too powerful for the audience to worry about him.

But do you know what would make a good movie, the plot to halo 2. Think about it: An alien general has just been disgraced by a huge military loss and is sent on a suicide mission to clear his honor. During the mission he finds out that if his leaders are to succeed in their goals all life in the universe might be destroyed. Unable to convince them he must rally his men against his former leaders and team up with the very people who caused his disgrace in the first place.

That sounds like a good plot for a movie. But, hardcore Halo fans have never seemed to like the arbiter very much (how dare you have a character with depth) so I can see it getting some backlash from the fanbase making him the main character of the movie. And their is the fact that you would either have to make a Halo 1 movie prior to it, or summarize it in the first 10 minutes of the movie.

Hardcore fans of the Halo story love the Arbiter, actually.

And read the books. John-117 is a much deeper character then what you see in the games, as previously stated in the thread.

 

[Cabisco]

Well the evidence seems pretty compelling, people think a halo movie (about ODSTs i'm guessing) would work, it's not like the universe revolves around MS, look at halo:ODST for an example of that. The franchise has enough in the way of backstory to create something from this, though most will freely admit that it would have to change some of the canon to get onto the silver screen. But interestingly enough, most halo fans seem okay with that so long as it's for a greater good, look at the new game Halo:Reach, I've heard thats changing some of the novel canon, again for the greater good.

Perhaps Movie bob should have an article going into more detail on why a halo movie would'nt work, as I think fans of the franchise are feeling quite dismissed, and frankly bored of more halo bashing. I will admit, we are an over protective bunch due to the multiple years of halo bashing, you know the whole "halo is shit" "why" "people who play it are shit" "so why is halo shit" "because only kids play it" "but, then why is the game shit..?" etc

 

[Tarakos]

Looking forward to next week's "Games Bob Wants to See." I bet money that Mass Effect will make that list. As for the Halo wars (see what I did there?) going on here: if only the games actually tapped into the rich backstory of the novels and such and had more depth (and had an enemy NOT staffed by comic relief), then the games would be so much better. I saw Halo had all these novels before I played Halo 3 and thought that I was in for a deep game full of rich characters. I was disappointed. There's a lot of missed potential in the Halo games' story.

 

[Yoshi-Pop]

I think a Prototype movie might work kinda well. I think Christian Bale would make a pretty damn decent Alex Mercer, they'd have to make the characters drive the plot more and not the memory's of the people Alex eats, and probably establish a more "villainy" villain, but with a decent script treatment, I see that as a something that really could work.

 

[LightspeedJack]

I disagree about Shadow of the Collosus. The Road proved that a movie can be mostly about atmosphere whilst still being compelling, entertaining and moving. Oh wait...he didn't like the Road did he...

Also Final Fantasy could work as an anime, live action might be hard to do as the visual style is so abstract.

"Buy this game and we'll garauntee lots and lots of turn-based progression through a mist of new-agey techno-fantasy gobbledygook."

Wha...?
Yes that is the mood and gameplay, they also have kick ass stories and characters.