The explosion of streaming services has been good news for video game adaptations. The console boom of the 1980s led to a spree of video game adaptations and an almost instantly terrible reputation that the genre struggled to shake.
Now, a highly competitive space finds new streamers looking to make their mark and media giants trying to keep a grip on market share. Both see new value in getting it right, but adapting video games has always been a risky practice. They arrive with a built-in audience — but a highly critical one. With ever-increasing content pouring into homes, the idea of viewers switching between console and streamer on the same screen is irresistible.
We’ll see more adaptations or re-imaginings of video games in the next few years. The long-rumored return of Nintendo’s flagship icon to movies is a certainty. Thanks to The Super Mario Bros. Movie, Nintendo has well and truly cemented itself as a contender, along with HBO’s The Last of Us, based on Naughty Dog’s franchise of the same name.
The Witcher doesn’t make this list as Netflix’s smash hit took its lead from the original book series, not the games. But that sprawling and successful franchise played a big part in redeeming adaptations. It just took networks and streamers a few decades to catch up.
Over half the games below have been released this decade. After years of being derided (Warcraft), misunderstood (Silent Hill), or mishandled (Prince of Persia), it feels like adaptations have overcome a jammed control stick and turned a corner.
10. The Cuphead Show! (2022 TV Series)
Just sneaking into the list is this fast-paced slapstick animation. The Cuphead Show has received near unanimous praise for its retro but innovative animation, performances, music, and humor. The hilarious antics of cup brothers Cuphead and Mugman and their misadventures on Inkwell Isle have received three seasons on Netflix.
The series expanded the original Cuphead game’s run and gun shoot-em-up stylings but retained the dark central story: the brothers must constantly evade the devil, who’s intent on harvesting Cuphead’s soul.
9. Pokémon Detective Pikachu (2019 Movie)
Few people were hopeful when Ryan Reynolds was cast as the deerstalker-wearing version of the curious yellow Pokémon. Still, this mystery off-shoot edged toward an impressive half-a-billion-dollar haul on its theatrical run, with most criticism reserved for the story.
Detective Pikachu wisely focused on the character and Reynolds’ performance, and the sharp script went down as a treat. It’s the third highest-grossing video game movie of all time, after Warcraft and The Super Mario Bros. Movie (oops, spoilers!).
8. Halo (2022 TV Series)
Paramount Plus’ high-profile and ambitious epic had to carry the network’s launch promos and end the franchise’s prolonged difficulty making it to the screen. There’s no doubt Halo: Combat Evolved was a revolutionary game; Bungie’s first-person shooter changed the genre and became Xbox’s first must-have title, launching one of the most successful multimedia franchises ever.
Could an adaptation that mutated from movie to series make the name of a new streamer? Halo bent the rules of the established game lore but won enough fans with its impressive action scenes to earn a second season. The subsequent run will have to do a bit more to keep a spot on this list.
7. The Angry Birds Movie 2 (2019 Movie)
This sequel pulled an old trick out of the bag. Yes, we’re all used to birds and pigs being sworn enemies, but in the second movie, they had to join forces to stop an advanced weapon that threatened both their islands. The astonishing $350 million haul of the first film made this cooling of relations inevitable.
While it didn’t match its predecessor’s box office, it edged ahead in this list with its surprisingly good sense of humor, dedicated slapstick, impressive cast, and a dash of mystery. That summer, many parents breathed a sigh of relief as they left movie theaters. They’d just seen one of the highest-rated animated adaptations of a video game of all time.
6. Batman: Assault on Arkham (2014 Movie)
Not a comic adaptation but a spin-off from Rocksteady’s phenomenally successful Batman: Arkham game series, the 20th feature in the DC Universe original animated movie line, Batman: Assault on Arkham, is set after Arkham Origins and about two years before Arkham Asylum.
Assault on Arkham shifts the focus onto DC’s Suicide Squad, including Deadshot and Harley Quinn, who are ordered to break into the asylum only to, unsurprisingly, run up against some colorful inmates and the Dark Knight. Drawing out the franchise’s approach to Gotham City, it’s an interesting experiment that didn’t quite live up to the reputation of the games.
5. Pokémon: The Series (1997-1999 TV Series)
For Pikachu to land two spots in this top 10, it has to be something special, right? It doesn’t come much bigger than this. A crucial part of the massive media franchise that told us we had to catch them all and has subsequently shown incredible powers of reinvention, the original series followed Pokémon trainer Ash Ketchum’s quest to become a Pokémon Master alongside his partner Pikachu.
The series has since developed into separate chapters reflecting new video games, amassing a phenomenal 1,000 episodes on the way. The format’s readiness to adapt was evident when it jumped from networks to streamers, becoming one of Netflix’s most-watched shows. In 2023, we bid farewell to Ash and Pikachu forever as the series shifted focus to new protagonists Liko and Roy.
4. Castlevania (2017-2021 TV Series)
Another adult animated series streaming on Netflix, Castlevania develops the dark fantasy of the highly regarded platformers that have been bothering consoles since 1986. A jewel in the crown of publisher Konami, it continues the theme of mashing Japanese sensibilities with Western gothic horror.
As with the game, the cliches and high stylization that come with that aren’t for everyone. Across its four seasons, Castlevania was generally well regarded for its performances and style, although the writing — led by Warren Ellis — divided fans. The show was successful enough to secure a spin-off focusing on descendants of the series’ protagonists tackling vampires in revolutionary France.
3. Arcane: League of Legends (2021 TV Series)
Holding an astonishing 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, the animated series Arcane was announced 10 years after Riot Games’ League of Legends was released. A multi-player online battle arena game sounds tricky to adapt into a satisfying series, but Arcane’s first season swept up acclaim. Almost every aspect received praise, from the music and animation to emotional weight and world-building.
Arcane wisely plays out the conflict brewing between the utopian Piltover and dystopian Zaun through the relationship of sisters Vi and Jinx. It’s a determinedly adult animation, but under the watchful eye of Riot Games, it’s gained particular praise for its broad appeal. This show attracted fans immersed in the game’s lore as well as casual viewers. It set a record as Netflix’s highest-rated series within a week of its premiere. That means a second series is on the way, but be patient — the first took six years to develop.
2. The Last of Us (2023 TV Series)
It was a long time coming, but in January 2023, HBO finally brought us The Last of Us, starring Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey as Joel and Ellie, respectively. Even months before the trailer dropped, there was considerable buzz surrounding the adaptation, which had been in the works since 2014, when the announcement of a feature film swept the internet, intended to be directed by Neil Druckmann, the co-president of Naughty Dog. Years down the line, that vision was made into a hit TV series that fired on all cylinders and struck gold with audiences.
The series aired its finale on March 12, 2023, but it wasn’t long before HBO greenlit The Last of Us for another season, which would adapt the sequel to the 2013 title, 2020’s The Last of Us: Part II. It isn’t just the phenomenal acting, gripping storyline, and mind-blowing practical and special effects that won over half the world, but Naughty Dog and HBO collaborated to drop several Easter eggs and references throughout as a true love letter to gamers.
1. The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023 Movie)
Another adaptation that was long overdue, Nintendo teamed up with Illumination and Universal to bring us The Super Mario Bros. Movie, a computer-animated feature film based on the Super Mario franchise. There’s no doubt that lifelong fans were apprehensive at first, especially after Chris Pratt was cast as the voice of Mario and not Charles Martinet, the original voice of Mario and Luigi from the games. However, trailer after teaser, fans built some hope that The Super Mario Bros. Movie would deliver — and it did.
Joined by Charlie Day, Anya Taylor-Joy, Jack Black, and Keegan-Michael Key, Pratt excelled as Mario, managing to exceed everyone’s biggest expectations and prove himself worthy to succeed Martinet. So far, The Super Mario Bros. Movie has grossed over $888.5 million worldwide and broken several box-office records, managing to surpass Warcraft as the highest-grossing video game adaptation of all time.
