Games and Movies – Bridging the gap

Why do movie adaptations of games suck so much? (And on that note, why do game adaptations of movies also tend to suck for the same reason?) You probably think you know the answer. Agency, right? Fundamental differences between films and games means cross-pollinating the two doesn’t work in most cases because we get a completely different experience. Something along those lines…

Or maybe its just bad filmmaking. Why should game adaptations be so much worse than adaptations of other texts like books or graphic novels? Like books, games are often reviewed and grouped in lists like ‘Most Popular’ or ‘New Releases’. Like books, games can be educational or entertaining. And yet, the best directors tend to steer away from adapting video games, leaving that job for someone else to butcher. It makes me wonder if you got a competent guy like Christopher Nolan (he did the Batman movies which was based on a comic book) whether you would get a better result?

Even if there is a fundamental difference in the investment people will place on characters in a two-hour movie in comparison to characters in a game played across a much larger time-frame, it doesn’t mean the movie has to suck. Maybe you can’t replicate the effects of player agency in a film, but something you can replicate is affect – that feeling of dread in horror films; that thrill when the camera is in first-person perspective and the character jumps from a great height. Those are the same emotions that someone can get when they are immersed in a video game.

Even more important is nailing the narrative (in terms of audience expectations), which is arguably the biggest criteria in terms of whether an adaptation is considered a success or not. Many adaptations fail when they drastically change the premise or direction of the film in comparison to the game, and the real challenge is to satisfy the general audience unfamiliar with the source work as well as satisfying the zealous fans of the original text – a bridge which usually crashes and burns a lot of the time.

What needs to happen:

· More talented people need to make game adaptations to change the perception that they always suck. Ideally, people in charge of making game adaptations should actually play the game themselves before they are let anywhere near a camera (you wouldn’t make a book adaptation without reading the book first would you?)

· The way these films are marketed needs to be done properly. Expectations should not be built up only to be let down. Presumably, the target audience should be the same as the game, and then expand from there.

· Narrative should be as close to the source material as possible (within reason). The more detailed, the better.

· Game adaptations should first accept the fact that they are primarily films rather than games. The story comes first.