Over the years, it’s become clear that inspiration can be pulled from any material when it comes to films. Oftentimes, films are developed from novels. On the other hand, there is also a great number of films that are inspired by video games.
Especially if you’re not a gamer, you may not be aware that games also come with their own rich backstories. A game is often created with one or several characters and just like in films and TV shows, fans get drawn to them as they move from one stage to another. And the more interest the game generates, the more likely it is that more games involving the same character will appear.
At the same time, the more popular the game, the more likely it is that a film will be developed. So far, here are the 15 best video game films ever made:
15 Warcraft Gave Us Incredible Visuals, But The Story Fell Flat
This 2016 film is based on Blizzard Entertainment’s video game of the same name. The movie’s landscape is incredible. However, the story itself appears to need improvement. Nonetheless, if you’re a huge fan of the game, you would most likely appreciate this movie. It stars Paula Patton, Travis Fimmel, Ben Foster, Dominic Cooper, and Toby Kebbell.
14 Need For Speed Delivers High Octane Action
“Need For Speed” is obviously based on that popular racing game that everyone’s been talking about for years. The film stars Aaron Paul, Imogen Poots, Rami Malek, Ramon Rodriguez, Dominic Cooper, and Scott "Kid Cudi" Mescudi. The film scored low among critics, but it was better received by fans, which may explain why it did relatively well at the box office.
13 Max Payne Features Mark Wahlberg And Mila Kunis
In the video game world, Max Payne is a cult favorite, which is probably why veteran actor Mark Wahlberg agreed to portray the character on the big screen. The actor was joined by Mila Kunis, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, Chris O’Donnell, Beau Bridges, and Donal Logue. The film was released back in 2008.
12 Silent Hill Did A Pretty Decent Job Of Bringing An Eerie World To Life
Silent Hill is a perfect game for gamers who like things to be a bit more on the eerie side. As a film, “Silent Hill” is bound to keep you visually engaged. Although, according to the critics consensus, “It's plagued by inane dialogue, a muddled plot, and an overlong runtime.” The film stars Radha Mitchell, Sean Bean, and Laurie Holden.
11 The Resident Evil Franchise Was Praised By Its Video Game Fans
From a popular video game, Resident Evil went on to start a pretty successful film franchise. The franchise stars actress Milla Jovovich as Alice, a woman who was tasked to infiltrate the Hive. The first film also stars Michelle Rodriguez, Eric Mabius, James Purefoy, Pasquale Aleardi, and Martin Crewes. So far, six ‘Resident Evil’ films have been released.
10 Many Agree That Assassin’s Creed Is Quite Impressive
Assassin’s Creed is another popular video game that was bound to become a film. The movie stars Michael Fassbender as Cal Lynch. He is joined by an impressive ensemble, which includes Marion Cotillard, Jeremy Irons, Brendan Gleeson, and Charlotte Rampling. Critics say that film is “arguably better made” than most video game adaptations.
9 Lara Croft Is Still Seen As One Of Angelina Jolie’s Most Iconic Roles
This was one role that Jolie fully committed to throughout production. Simon West, who directed the first ‘Lara Croft’ film, told the press, “Angelina was doing triple backflips on the set. She was doing the bungee jumps from 50 feet up in the air. She was laughing. The stunt doubles were clinging to their safety ropes.”
8 Prince Of Persia: Sands Of Time Is Said To Be Better Than Other Video Game Adaptations
A movie version of the popular Ubisoft game came out way back in 2010. The cast includes Jake Gyllenhaal, Gemma Arterton, Ben Kingsley, Alfred Molina, Steve Toussaint, Toby Kebbell, Richard Coyle, Ronald Pickup, and Reece Ritchie. According to critics consensus, the film is a “suitably entertaining swashbuckler.” It’s also said to be “a substantial improvement over most video game adaptations.”
7 The Movie’s Plot May Have Struggled, But Mortal Kombat Was Still Interesting To Watch
Especially for longtime gamers, Mortal Kombat is a classic. Hence, it made sense that a film based on this game would come out in 1995. The film starred Robin Shou, Bridgette Wilson-Sampras, Linden Ashby, Christopher Lambert, Talisa Soto, Trevor Goddard, and Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa. Many believe the plot could have been improved, but the action scenes were pretty cool, nonetheless.
6 Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within Has Impressive CGI Work
This 2001 film is based on the famous Final Fantasy game franchise. Unlike other video game films, this one looks a lot like its game counterpart as it relied heavily on CGI. Meanwhile, the voice talent includes Ming-Na Wen, Alec Baldwin, Steve Buscemi, Ving Rhames, James Woods, Donald Sutherland, and Peri Gilpin.
5 In Rampage, Dwayne Johnson Portrays A Primatologist
The Rock ventured into the world of video game movies for the 2018 film “Rampage.” The cast also includes Naomie Harris, Malin Akerman, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Joe Manganiello, Jake Lacy, P.J. Byrne, and Marley Shelton. Estimates indicate that the film made as much as $428 million in the worldwide box office.
4 Pokémon Detective Pikachu Is Pretty Hilarious
“Pokémon Detective Pikachu” is a hilarious game-based movie that stars everyone’s favorite furry yellow creature. Even better, you have none other than actor Ryan Reynolds voicing Pikachu. Meanwhile, the cast also includes Justice Smith, Kathryn Newton, Bill Nighy, Ken Watanabe, Chris Geere, and Suki Waterhouse. If you must know, the film also received a relatively high score from critics.
3 The Tomb Raider Reboot Made A Strong Impression With Critics
Years after Jolie’s last ‘Lara Croft’ film came out, many felt hesitant about rebooting the franchise with another actress in the lead. Nonetheless, Alicia Vikander did a pretty solid job at portraying the iconic character. In fact, according to critics consensus, the actress showed that she was “clearly more than up to the task.”
2 The Angry Birds Movie 2 Got Better Reviews Than Its Predecessor
Whether you admit or not, we’re pretty sure you’ve played Angry Birds on your phone at some point in your life. Hence, we understand why “The Angry Birds Movie 2” was quite well received by the public. The voice talents behind the movie include Jason Sudeikis, Josh Gad, Bill Hader, Rachel Bloom, Awkwafina, and Leslie Jones.
1 Sonic The Hedgehog Is Surprisingly Pretty Enjoyable For The Whole Family
“Sonic the Hedgehog” is the most recently released video game film. And so, it is also arguably the most popular at the moment. This much-loved Sega character is certainly enjoyable to watch. Not to mention, veteran comedian Jim Carrey makes for a cool villain here. The film also stars James Marsden and Adam Pally.