Welcome to The Dan Cave! Is that a new haircut? An old wig? It doesn’t matter because you look amazing.
Lately, everywhere you turn it seems like another video game is being optioned and turned into a feature film. Case in point: Assassin’s Creed, Metal Gear Solid, Uncharted, Ratchet and Clank, Agent 47 (Hitman), Far Cry, Splinter Cell, Warcraft, and many more are all actively in development, currently shooting, or in post-production. That’s an awful lot of video games to cram into cineplexes. And once I stopped to think about it, I could’t help but wonder why so many were overlooking what many, including myself, to be one of the pinnacles of creativity right now: television.
Given the way video games are designed, many of them seem like they would lend themselves better to a serialized television series rather than a one-and-done movie. Sure, something like Uncharted makes sense as a movie because you can truncate a lot of the plot and frustrating time wasted after you miss a crucial jump to an adjoining ledge, but many other games seem like they are ready to make the leap to the small screen. So today on The Dan Cave, I am breaking down which games would be best suited to make the transition from Input 1 to Input 2 on your television sets. And, to sweeten the pot, I enlisted our resident video game expert, Nerdist: Play host Malik Forte, to give us a bonus pick. Trust me, you’re going to want to stick around to hear what he has to say because I never saw it coming.
Obviously, there are tons of other video games that deserve to be turned into TV shows. So, tell me — what game would you most like to see on TV? Let me know in the comments below or whisper it to me gently on Twitter (@Osteoferocious) using the hashtag #TheDanCave.
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Want even more The Dan Cave? Check out last week’s episode in which I break down the real life cyberterrorist attack that inspired Michael Mann’s Blackhat!
Fallout
Please- please stop emulating that early youtube jump cut style of editing. Shit is played out. If you didn’t actually have to stop and edit that portion of the segment to join two takes don’t add that effect on purpose.At this point it has all the charm of wearing your pants backwards.
I’ve always wanted a Boy and his Blob show. That might work better as a movie that a TV show, but a boy that has an alien friend that changes into different things depending on what jelly bean you give him. That sounds SUPER RAD and offers plenty of options for longevity.
The Longest Journey !!
Nerdist.com doesn’t have a thumbs up button, but it should. And only a thumbs-up button, no thumbs down.
Games like Alan Wake or Heavy Rain would translate very well to cinema i think
Tough ask.
I will admit to be willing to give anything Homeworld a try. Imagine it, just after planetfall on Hiigara, there’s plenty to be done and said. The politics of everything that is going on, the kiiths. Flashbacks to the trip, battle scenes. Add in some pirates, some rogues and an occasional touch of interstellar politics.
I would also admit to a fondness of the Ground Control universe as well. While not the same, the ideas of fundamentalism, the search for answers, the conflict on Krig 7B. Powered armour, political intrigue, deals under the table and plenty of space for sympathetic characters.
Also, space ships and space combat. That should pull in the BSG fans.
I’d even say Perfect Dark, the N64 game rather than anything else. There’s something to be said for its world, playing up the spy/espionage side of it. Woman in the lead and a smart one at that. Bring up the real espionage, the megacorps. Add in some of that Dark Angel vibe, play up the technology of Almost Human. This would be a bitch to make, but I’d love to see who gets cast as Jo Dark.
There’s a part of me that would love to see a BattleTech TV series as well. I mean, big mechs, combat, make it about the Grey Death Legion. All of the hijinxs they got up to, different worlds, different opponents. A lot of ‘they didn’t do…. no shite, really?’ moments.
On the same thing themes as pretty much, all of the above. Battlezone 1, the first of the series on the PC, in the 90’s. Different moons, planets. There’s so much you could do with it. Cold war tensions, the intense boredom around combat, the outright terror when in combat. Especially when one rip separates you from a very nasty and painful death.
That would have to be it from me, otherwise I might keep on going.
Mass Effect and Bioshock
Hmm. In my honest opinion, Video games do not translate to Film well at all. part of what makes the narrative of games are their interactivity and mechanics, and you just don’t get that with film.
Chrono trigger. game of thrones with time travel
I’m not the only one that remembers Tomba? Respect earned, Mr. Casey, respect earned. And yes! L.A. Noire, I feel, didn’t get the respect it deserves. Yes, it wasn’t GTA LA 1940s, now buzz off and let me enjoy the story! Can you say, “Rockstar…TV???” I do like the idea. Oh sweet, RDR definitely! Conker is a great choice, Malik.
Getting long-winded here so my pick for a TV show is: hmmm… Maybe a prequel to Fallout a la Caprica, featuring Vault-Tec and perhaps origins of characters or ancestors of people from the Fallout 3/New Vegas timeline. Maybe even anthology style like AHS too. Set in the different centuries.