Video Game Stories That Would Also Have Made Great Movies
Gone Home
Gone Home is a touching tale about a young girl, Katie, returning home to find that her family isn’t there. As players progress throughout this first-person exploration title, they find notes and stories left throughout the house, revealing multiple segmented narratives and one main story.
While Fullbright does a fantastic job conveying these stories through recordings, narrations, and artwork, a movie adaptation surrounding her 17-year-old sister Samantha’s LGBT journey would be interesting. The main reason for this is that the objects that piece together the story can be found in any order.
In movie form, Gone Home could use each interaction as a flashback, instead of conveying the account via narration or through art. The ending would still have the same impact as well, as the attic always leads to the same thought-provoking finale.
Video Game Stories That Would Also Have Made Great Movies
Heavy Rain
David Cage games are notorious for looking and playing more like a movie than an interactive video game. And while Fahrenheit: Indigo Prophecy is a fan favorite of many gamers as far as Quantic Dream goes, Heavy Rain undoubtedly would play out even better on the silver screen.
Alongside a riveting plot, the ambiance of Heavy Rain would do wonders as a movie. Just the thought of hearing the constant downpour of rain and the mystery of the Origami Killer makes me wish David Fincher or Denis Villeneuve had a crack at adapting a screenplay.
While choice creates multiple different endings for Heavy Rain as a video game, the through-line plot of the Origami Killer is a premise that works best with the good ending to the game, where all characters survive. Using this main plot in movie form would create an interesting, less gratuitous version of the original Saw.
Video Game Stories That Would Also Have Made Great Movies
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
The Metal Gear franchise is filled with a lot of intriguing, sometimes confusing, stories. Throughout the series, Hideo Kojima weaves a tapestry of mystery around figures like Solid Snake, the Patriots, and a long list of others that inhabit this weird, militaristic world.
Of all the Metal Gear games, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots would be my vote for the one that should be turned into a movie. Alongside a grizzled Snake, the game’s story features many twists and turns that even non-Metal Gear fans could appreciate.
Considering the fact that most cutscenes lasted about 20-40 minutes on average, it would seem like Kojima set out with the goal of making this game as close to a movie as physically possible.
Video Game Stories That Would Also Have Made Great Movies
The Wolf Among Us
Telltale Games do a masterful job at adapting other mediums into video games. But while The Wolf Among Us is a tremendous telling of the Fables’ comics, the series begs for an animated movie.
The many characters and stories Bigby Wolf comes upon throughout The Wolf Among Us are layered with moral gray. Many fables simply do their best to survive in the world of humans, while characters like The Crooked Man and Bloody Mary do whatever they want, whether it is for the sake of money or simply to satisfy a need for chaos.
QTEs and dialogue choices provided varied interaction and conversations throughout Bigby’s stories, but the game’s tone, design, and characters are what made the plot so superb. Transitioning those elements into a movie wouldn’t be a stretch, with the linearity of things actually serving to help the narrative’s direction even more.
Video Game Stories That Would Also Have Made Great Movies
The Order: 1886
A little over three years after its release, PlayStation fans are now looking back fondly over The Order: 1886. This wasn’t the case originally, as the title was highly criticized at the time due to its short single-player length.
Once you overlook the fact that The Order: 1886 was frustratingly short though, you’ll see that this Sony exclusive had a lot of potential thanks to its fascinating world. A world that would have made a solid backdrop for a fantasy flick.
This alternate history setting is one in which not only did King Arthur exist, but also led a battle against “half-breed” vampires and werewolves. The Order is formed to fight these creatures, tasked with killing them and discovering how to put an end to the Blackwater, a magical potion that extends lifespans.
Vampires and werewolf movies have been in demand for a while, but rarely are they able to build a unique and interesting world. The Order: 1886’s alternative history setting is one like no other and would stand out considerably among the cash grab titles that tend to make up the fantasy movie genre.
Video Game Stories That Would Also Have Made Great Movies
BioShock
When it comes to the world of BioShock, there are few things that 2K Games failed to capture when it comes to crafting the game’s beautiful narrative.
Each character and element of BioShock play off each other and create a vivid environment. Lighthouses, Big Daddies, Splicers, and Atoms each play a small role in developing the story and setting, making Rapture feel alive as a result.
In a literal sense, Rapture’s style and design are so unique and wonderful that it would be a dream to see it brought to real life. The potential to incorporate personalities like Frank Fontaine, Andrew Ryan, and the many other lunatics that make up the game is just as alluring.
So would you kindly make a BioShock movie already?
Video Game Stories That Would Also Have Made Great Movies
GTA IV
The Grand Theft Auto series will always be associated with the freedom that comes with causing mayhem throughout the cities in each game. But while shooting and running over citizens may delight many gaming maniacs, almost every GTA game contains semblances of beautiful, highly underrated stories.
No GTA story is more compelling, yet tragic than that of Nico Bellic in Grand Theft Auto IV.
An Eastern European immigrant, the title’s main protagonist arrives in Liberty City with the hopes of leaving his past behind him to pursue the American dream. With the help of his cousin, Roman, Nico does his best to turn his life in the right direction.
Regardless of the choices made throughout GTA IV though, Nico can’t outrun the demons of his past, no matter how far away he travels. His is a tale of failed redemption, heartbreak, and loss, the likes of which could make even the staunchest mobsters shed a tear.
