10 Immersive Video Game Movies Adaptations That Blur The Lines Between Games And Reality

One of the better video game adaptations in recent years, it’s hard to believe that Sonic the Hedgehog used to receive so much backlash before its box office debut, due to the hideous initial character design. As a result, Paramount had to delay the project for a while to do Sonic a complete overhaul, but the final product was worth the wait. While the story overall doesn’t stand out by any means, Sonic the Hedgehog is still a fun and speedy ride that manages to bring out the best aspects of Sega’s speedster.

The sequel, while lacking some of its predecessor’s charm, still entertains us viewers with the introduction of Idris Elba’s Knuckles.

Pokemon, both game and anime-wise, is a gigantic franchise where players have to spend hundreds of hours to catch them all. Therefore, there was a lot of skepticism about the 2019 live-action movie, which is only 104 minutes long. Luckily, the new direction that the film decided to take back then ultimately paid off, and the adorable designs of Pikachu and other iconic Pokemons were highly appreciated by the audience.

World of Warcraft is easily one of the most iconic MMORPG games of the 2000s, and attracts a huge fanbase and players even these days. Director Duncan Jones is one of them, and it’s only befitting for a die-hard fan of the franchise to take the helm of the live-action film in 2016. Follows the battle between the orcs and the human side in the peaceful realm of Azeroth. As the war escalates, the leaders from both sides, King Llane and Orc chieftain Durotan, face difficult decisions to protect their people and prevent the destruction of their respective civilizations.

Inspired by the critically acclaimed Naughty Dog's franchise, Uncharted follows the footsteps of the treasure hunter and archaeologist Nathan Drake and his mentor Sully on their quest to recover the Spaniard Ferdinand Magellan’s enormous fortune in the House of Moncada, fighting numerous fellow hunters and even mercenaries along the way. We can clearly see the film’s ambition, with a star-studded cast featuring the current biggest names in the industry, with Tom Holland as Drake, Mark Wahlberg as Sully, and Antonio Banderas as Santiago Moncada.

While the adaptation still retains the intense and gripping action sequences, Uncharted just simply fails to deliver the atmosphere that the games have brought to the players.

Mortal Kombat might be a fighting game, but the franchise’s extensive and extremely detailed lore makes it perfect for a movie adaptation. The 1995 titular film is Hollywood’s first attempt to bring the NetherRealm’s unique battleground to life, and while it didn’t gain favorable reviews from critics, it’s still good enough to attract a handful of cult followers. The vigorous actions and iconic skill moves from the game were successfully implemented into the live-action, and created a good foundation for later adaptations in the future. However, few Mortal Kombat movies can live up to the level of the 1995 version.

Unlike the other movies in the list, Wreck-It Ralph comprises not just one, but multiple classic 8-bit video games that we usually find in the arcades. The animated masterpiece tells the story of Ralph, who’s tired of being the bad guy in the Fix-It Felix game, and embarks on his own journey to find a place he belongs. His unique and adorable chemistry with Vanellope von Schweetz from the Sugar Rush franchise is easily one of the best aspects of the movie, along with tons of game references that only the hardcore fans would notice.

Like Uncharted, Alicia Vikander’s Tom Raider fails to capture the charm of the original franchise, but at least the actress herself portrayed the iconic Lara Croft pretty well. Traveling to a mythical island off the coast of Japan to find queen Himiko’s treasure, Lara must navigate treacherous landscapes, solve intricate puzzles, and confront a ruthless organization known as Trinity to reach her ultimate goal.

The latest addition to the list, The Super Mario Bros. Movie was a fun, wild yet confusing ride for casual viewers, but for lifelong Nintendo fans, it’s basically a dream comes true. The animated film revolves around the adventure of Mario and Luigi, along with Princess Peach, to fight against the sinister King Bowser from taking the Mushroom Kingdom. From the iconic Luigi Mansion theme to the epic track of Rainbow Road, the Hollywood adaptation features an enormous amount of references from every game in the franchise that fans simply cannot miss.

The 2016 adaptation was a rather extravagant attempt to reimagine the stealthy Ubisoft’s iconic series. And while it lacks that intensity from the gameplay, the movie itself wasn’t a terrible live-action by 20th Century Fox, which stays quite faithful to the original extensive lore and includes some great action sequences both inside and outside of the Animus, and Michael Fassbender didn’t do half-bad as Callum Lynch either. However, the movie overall wasn’t very welcomed by the audience, so a sequel is highly unlikely for now.

Instead of adapting any video games, the Adam Sandler movie gathers the most iconic arcade games from the 80s like Pac-Man, Donkey Kong, and Space Invaders, and makes them into nefarious alien forces that want to invade the Earth. Of course, since you fight games with gamers, Sam Brenner along with his childhood friends steps up to take on the challenge and save humanity. Packed with references, humorous moments, and exciting action, Pixels combines video game nostalgia with a lighthearted and entertaining adventure that would make hardcore old-school players shed a tear or two.

Which other video game movies do you want to include in this list? Let us know in the comment.