Movies And TV Shows Tie-In Games — The Good, The Bad, And The Future

Ever since video gaming became a worldwide sensation, movies and TV show adaptations of the medium have become quite common. Fallout, The Last of Us, Cyberpunk, Arcane, and the upcoming God of War series are but some examples. Fans of games now have a little extra treat to look forward to (though it might not be perfect in every case). But did you know that a few decades back, it was predominantly the other way around?

Back when gaming was budding forth and movies and TV shows were the popular entertainment media, games used them as a base. Of course, such collaborations exist today, too, but they’re fewer and inferior in quality. Do you wish to see more such tie-ins like me? Grab a subscription with something like Paramount gift cards, rewatch your favorite shows, and come join me in this discussion.

The Glory Days Of “Games Based On Movies and TV Shows”

Nowadays, certain game franchises are so widely popular that the live-action entertainment media wish to benefit from that popularity. I think it’s the greatest form of flattery, and a testament to the incredible growth of gaming. But today, let’s move the clock back a decade or so, and discuss the time when video games were the lesser medium and often produced adaptations of movies and TV shows.

I still remember vividly returning home from the screening of X-Men Origins: Wolverine with a disappointed look. The movie has its merits, yes, but it didn’t quite live up to the expectations. Imagine my surprise when I saw it adapted into a video game. I honestly went in with very little hope considering the source, but boy, was I blown away back then.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine, the game, is a masterpiece of an adaptation, surpassing even the source material. The same is the case with many Star Wars games I played. Stuff like Jedi Knight and Knights of the Old Republic holds up exceptionally to this day. The Godfather is a hidden gem, and can I ever forget the earlier Harry Potter games and how much fun they were?

The question is, what makes these games so good? There are a number of factors, but I believe the essence is how these games retain their identity as a game first and foremost. They experiment with unique mechanics, take some creative freedom as per the storyline interpretation, deliver a true game rather than an interactive movie, and prioritize gameplay engagement over sticking to the script to a T.

Remember when they made video games along side movie releases, which was ur favorite movie/video game as kid?
byu/roberto151st inplaystation

What Went Wrong Down The Road

As crazy as I am for past games and nostalgia, I’m still rational enough to understand facts. Movie or TV show tie-in games were extremely frequent back in the day, and as such, not every one of them was a masterpiece. I’ve listed some good ones above (my apologies to the fans of those I missed), but there is an equal number of bad ones, too.

Still, the fact remains that while there were solid tie-in games in the past, the quality started declining rapidly over the years. The Amazing Spider-Man 1 was solid, but the sequel was a mess. Some later Harry Potter games lost their charm, and classic Star Wars games have a lot of misses. The Lord of the Rings had some exceptional games like Return of the King and the Middle-earth duology, but today you have abominations like Gollum.

Except for the Jedi series by Respawn, Star Wars games have been a disappointment, from Battlefront to the latest Outlaws. Marvel’s Avengers, though technically a comic adaptation, was a massive flop, and so was Suicide Squad.

In my opinion, this is largely due to the fact that video gaming has become too big. Creativity has little place in today’s big-budget, blockbuster, microtransactions-fueled, money-making gaming medium. This is true for all AAA games, not just adaptations like these.

The Future Of Tie-In Games

In the past, gaming was looking to bask in and share the glory of movies and TV shows. It was easy to make games as a marketing source. Yes, many of them weren’t as good back then, too, but solid creative work was a lot more frequent. Today, it costs more to make a AAA game than the movie or the show itself; why bother?

What show/movie needs a video game?
byu/X–Gilgamesh–X ingaming

The blockbuster approach to gaming has reduced the overall quality as well. Games have essentially become glorified movies themselves with all the photorealism and cinematic quality; tie-in games just no longer hit the same.

Regrettably, these are the issues that plague gaming as a whole, but I don’t believe all hope is lost. Yes, gaming has grown, but movies and TV shows are still immensely popular, and with the kind of technology available today, very impressive games could be made, provided they stick to the gaming formula of engaging gameplay combined with the lore-rich worlds.

Fantasy worlds like The Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones have unlimited potential as grounded CRPGs or Action RPGs. Franchises like John Wick could make a killer Max Payne-style game. It comes down to dedication and creativity. I’m very much looking forward to the new James Bond game, and if successful, it could be the perfect example of why tie-in games will sell today, all the same, provided they’re brimming with quality.