When it comes to the overlap between video game fans and fans of cinema, there is one particular genre that is a clear intersection: action movies. Action films are easily the most comparable to the unique, dynamic kind of experience that video games deliver to fans. As such, it makes sense that over the years some of the most iconic action franchises of the silver screen would get adapted into the video game medium. This is happening frequently again, with titles such as Aliens: Fireteam making headlines.
Although video game movies are more often than not poorly received, movie video games can be a real treat for fans. Admittedly in the past, the notion of the "tie-in movie game" could elicit groans of agony from fans. However, a new, interesting trend has begun to emerge where companies are licensing classic movie series to create new big-budget games. Even film franchises that have failed to wow fans and critics recently, like Alien, still receive blockbuster adventures. This trend of adapting film properties into games is one that needs to continue and be capitalized on by big developers.
In the past few months alone, big announcements have come with the reveal that not only was Cold Iron Studios delivering the afformentioned Aliens: Fireteam, but also that Bethesda and Wolfenstein developer MachineGames were working on an Indiana Jones title. This trend of video game studios utilizing an iconic movie series and creating an original standalone game is an incredible opportunity for fans and for the industry as a whole to bring incredible film worlds back to life.
In fact, the Alien franchise is a proven, successful example of developers capitalizing on a movie license to create great games while its film series continues to languish. While Alien: Covenant might not have resurrected the troubled series in the film world, Creative Assembly's excellent 2014 survival horror adaptation Alien: Isolation wowed fans with its tense gameplay and detailed recreation of the late 70s future technology of the iconic horror film. And with the upcoming release of Aliens: Fireteam, a cooperative shooter that leans more into James Cameron's classic action-horror sequel Aliens, fans of the franchise are more excited than ever for Alien video games.
Additionally, the announcement that massive publisher Bethesda (recently bought by Microsoft for $7.5 billion) was tasking MachineGames with delivering a licensed Indiana Jones game, the first in over a decade, shocked fans of the films and games alike. Although real-life actor Harrison Ford is still reprising the iconic role for a new upcoming film, the prospect that the character can continue on in another standalone, big-budget adventure is a great boon to fans. The new Indiana Jones game will see the series come full circle.
Indiana Jones was in part the inspiration for hugely successful action-adventure series like Tomb Raider and Uncharted, and a new Indiana Jones game can build off of those series' successes. MachineGames' new release can be informed by each series' strengths and weaknesses. As Uncharted and Tomb Raider are series that are still wildly popular with fans and critics alike, it is time for a certain globe-trotting archaeologist to dust off his signature fedora and return to the world of video games.
Furthermore, when video game developers succeed in delivering an interesting licensed game, this alone can drive interest in the franchise itself and allow fans to see a side of the series that the films might not capitalize on. Developer Teyon did just this with its 2019 release of Terminator: Resistance. This game is a solid first-person shooter set in the dystopian future world that is only seen for a moment in the first two Terminator films.
Players get to experience the war not as famed warrior John Connor, but a lowly Resistance member, fighting for his life against the robot infiltrators. Teyon even went on to add a new mode to the game as well for the recently updated Terminator: Resistance Enhanced edition that allows players to play as a T-800 Terminator model, hunting down the Resistance, a first for the franchise.
There are so many more iconic film properties that are just waiting for the right developer with a passion for the franchise and a great idea to come along and surprise fans. Characters like RoboCop and Judge Dredd, whose planned film sequels have been trapped in development purgatory for years, could translate beautifully to the world of licensed video games. In the case of Judge Dredd in particular, the franchise itself is owned outright by Sniper Elite developer Rebellion Studios already, further opening up the possibility of a new Judge Dredd game one day.
Ultimately if Aliens: Fireteam and the new Indiana Jones game can succeed with fans and critics, this paves the way for so many other great film characters to appear in licensed video games. Hopefully in the future, more development studios will be allowed to deliver new perspectives on classic movies, both continuing the legacy of iconic films and giving fans an interactive outlet for so many incredible worlds and characters.
0 Comments