Top 10 Most Underrated Video Game Movies of All Time

WatchMojo

From pixel to picture perfect, these adaptations deserve more love! Join us as we explore the most underappreciated films based on video games that critics and audiences overlooked. Despite their flaws, these movies captured the spirit of gaming in ways that deserve recognition and a second chance.

Transcript

00:00Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for video game films that when

00:11overlooked by critics, audiences or often both, we'll be looking at direct adaptations

00:16of video game stories and films that creatively explore video game culture.

00:30Coming from visionary director Duncan Jones, the film, based on the massively popular Warcraft

00:41franchise, was nothing if not ambitious.

00:44With one of the biggest budgets ever given to a video game adaptation, it was a spectacle

00:48that rivalled similar fantasy epics like the Lord of the Rings trilogy on a purely visual

00:52level.

01:02However, many critics took issue with its script, and despite setting box office records, its

01:07huge price tag meant that it failed to break even financially.

01:10Despite a few issues, its incredible scope, breathtaking worldbuilding and loving attention

01:15to the series' mythology make this one worthy of a second look.

01:31For better or for worse, the craze of films that adapted video game properties started

01:35in earnest with Super Mario Bros.

01:37The film was, to be charitable, loosely based on the game franchise, which was as popular

01:42in the early 90s as it is today.

01:43Aside from character names and a slew of references, it had more in common with Blade Runner than

01:48its source material.

01:53However, it did have a certain charm.

01:57Initially lambasted by Mario fans as well as traditional critics, its truly bizarre plot,

02:02wacky special effects and seemingly unhinged actors have earned it fans over the years.

02:07Despite being such a flop that it scared Nintendo from making further films for decades, it absolutely

02:12earned its spot in the cult classic canon.

02:17As its title suggests, the 1986 arcade game Rampage and its many sequels feature a trio of monsters

02:34wreaking havoc, destroying cities and eating people.

02:37That trio included the giant gorilla George, a lizard monster Lizzie, and a freakishly huge

02:42werewolf creature Ralph.

02:44While the film changed the origins of the kaiju and added sufficient plot, the destruction

02:52and disaster from the games were perfectly represented, thanks in large part to the use of effects.

02:58George is now a protagonist, fighting alongside humans led by a perfectly utilised Dwayne Johnson.

03:03While it may not be high art, neither was the incredibly fun original game, both instead

03:07providing a metric ton of smashing stuff.

03:14Rather than being a direct adaptation of a particular plot from the vast array of Assassin's

03:27Creed games, the film told an original story focusing on a new central character, Kal.

03:31That story fits seamlessly into the overarching plot of the games, with the shadowy organisation

03:37and their conflict with the assassins once again taking centre stage.

03:49As both Kal and his ancestor Iguala, Michael Fassbender anchors the film as it shifts between

03:5415th century Spain and the present day.

03:57Both periods are beautifully realised as Fassbender re-teamed with director Justin Kerzel and cinematographer

04:03Adam Arkaport, who had made one of the most gorgeous films of all time just a year prior

04:07with their adaptation of Macbeth.

04:25Released five years before Super Mario Bros., this little-known film, which never received

04:29a theatrical release in North America, was the first ever feature-length video game film.

04:33Based on the side-scrolling arcade game of the same name, Mirai Ninja followed a cybernetic

04:38ninja in a quest for vengeance.

04:40Falling firmly into the genre of tokusatsu, it combined sci-fi elements with those reminiscent

04:45of feudal Japan, yielding spectacular results.

04:55The film wouldn't be released at all in the West until a VHS dub in 1995, when it was

05:00retitled as Cyber Ninja in the US and Warlord in Canada.

05:05Even today, the film and its piece of video game history remain largely unknown.

05:13With a small budget and a limited release, few saw Werewolves Within.

05:29Even fewer were aware that it was based on a VR game for the PlayStation 4.

05:33Those who did see it were impressed as it quickly set the record for best-reviewed video game

05:36film, based on aggregators Metacritic and Rotten Tomatoes.

05:47While the film shifted its setting from medieval Europe to the Pacific Northwest, it retained

05:51the mystery involved, as a group of people attempt to suss out which of them is secretly

05:56a creature of the night.

05:57Like any good mystery, it's full of twists and turns, courtesy of a clever script from

06:01Mishnah Wolf.

06:22Much like the 2013 game that it was primarily based on, the 2018 reboot of the Tomb Raider

06:27film franchise brought a more realistic take to Lara Croft.

06:30A survival thriller set on a mysterious island, the film contained enough gun-toting adventure

06:35in the jungle as well as puzzle-solving to satisfy hardcore fans and newcomers alike.

06:47Alicia Vikander was absolutely shredded for the role, while also providing the title character

06:51with much-needed charm.

06:53However, the film hardly scratched together a net profit, and reviews, while better than

06:57most video game films released to that point, were mixed.

07:01This, along with a right lapse from the studio, killed the planned sequel, with yet another

07:05reboot in its place.

07:24How exactly does one turn a racing simulator with no plot to speak of into a feature-length

07:28film?

07:29The intention was to loosely base it on the real-life events surrounding Jan Mardenborough,

07:34a Gran Turismo player who used his gaming skills to become a professional racecar driver.

07:39The film challenges the perception that gamers are basement-dwelling nerds, presenting Jan

07:43and other gamers as real athletes, fighting for respect and victory in a system that despises

07:48them.

07:55Only receiving a lukewarm critical reception and box office return, the film fizzled out.

07:59Considering its strong direction from Oscar nominee Neil Blomkamp, and strong supporting performances

08:04from David Harbour, Orlando Bloom and Jim O'Nunsu, that's quite a shame.

08:23Faithfully adapting the first entry in the Phoenix Wright series of courtroom drama video games,

08:28right down to the over-the-top hairstyles, Takeshi Miike's adaptation was well-received

08:32in Japan upon release.

08:34However, it's gone largely unknown in North America, as another film that never received

08:38a proper release, and one that was largely ignored altogether by Western critics.

08:52As of writing, it hasn't received enough reviews to even register a score on Rotten Tomatoes.

08:56Those who did manage to see it, however, were rewarded with the same zany antics and twists

09:01that were beloved in the original visual novel.

09:04Even those not immediately familiar with the franchise are sure to find a lot to love in

09:08this off-the-wall legal thriller.

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09:32Silent Hill.

09:39Upon release, Silent Hill received the usual criticisms aimed at both video game adaptations

09:43and horror films, leading to an abysmal reception from critics.

09:47However, even its harshest critics could not deny the incredible visuals alternating between

09:52a foggy, oppressive landscape and absolutely nightmarish scenes.

10:06Much of the film was shot on Super 35 film, helping to add to the grainy, lived-in feeling

10:11of the forgotten town.

10:13Darker scenes were shot digitally, meaning it was never difficult to see.

10:16The sound design was equally unnerving, and often directly lifted from its source material.

10:21Ultimately, many of the criticisms laid against the film by critics, including its less-than-straight-forward

10:26story, oppressive world and bleak and ambiguous ending, are precisely what make the film truly

10:31special.

10:36So, what video game film do you think deserved to level up with audiences and critics?

10:40Let us know in the comments below!

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