2024 was an interesting year with some of the highest-grossing releases we have ever seen. Now the interesting thing here is this year revived a genre that was thought to be a lost cause – video game adaptations. There has been a long-running notion that whenever a studio decides to bring a beloved video game to life with a live-action adaptation, they ruin the essence of that game for the fans. While 2024 has revived the genre, 2025 could be the year when video game adaptations captivate the audience like never before. You ask how? Let me tell you!
Video Game Adaptations in 2024 Prove the Hype
In 2024, multiple shows and movies were released based on highly popular video games. Because of popular notions regarding video game adaptations, people did not expect much from them but when they came out it blew the minds of everyone who watched them. So, let’s look at some of the genre-defining videogame adaptations in 2024 and their roaring success.
1. Sonic The Hedgehog
Running at a hundred miles per second, Sonic The Hedgehog is a prime example of how much people love watching their favorite video game characters come to life. When the first Sonic movie came out with a trailer, people were rather hyped but had serious complaints regarding the VFX. This was probably the first time, a fanbase was able to bully a studio into fixing the animation.
It was reflected in the love people showed when the movie finally came out. The first two movies generated a total revenue of more than $700 Million worldwide. The latest release from this franchise, Sonic The Hedgehog 3 was able to generate a revenue of $122 Million on its very first day beating Mufasa: The Lion King by a long stretch, and is projected to make more money than both the previous movies combined.
2. Fallout
Fallout became the second most-watched show on Amazon Prime Video ever and in the first two weeks of streaming, Fallout attracted 65 million viewers. The series boosted Amazon’s viewership and significantly increased the sales of Fallout games and in-game purchases. The Fallout made Bethesda a revenue of more than $80 million in just game-related profits.
3. Arcane
Based on the highly popular MOBA game, League of Legends, Arcane has already become one of the highest-rated shows ever with a 100 percent rotten tomatoes rating. Not just this, after Arcane Season 2’s release, every episode of Arcane has received a rating of more than 9 on IMDb which is a massive achievement for the show.
Arcane Season 2 has generated a viewer count of 4.86 billion in its overall run and in just the first two weeks of streaming, Arcane managed to amass a total of 1.37 Billion views.
Looking at these numbers, it is safe to say that video game adaptations are making their way out of the pre-defined notion.
So, 2024 has made it obvious that the hype for good video game adaptations is there but what about the coming year? Let’s take a look.
2025 Will See Most Hyped Video Game Adaptations Come to Screen
2025 is lined up with some of the most anticipated and hyped live-action video game adaptation releases. The highlight of this year in terms of this genre is The Last of Us Season 2 which is dubbed to be one of the best adaptations to ever be made. I believe this show reignited people’s faith that there can be good video game adaptations.
Other than that, there are a lot of releases scheduled for 2025 and if I’m not wrong, 2025 will see the most number of video game adaptations released either as a movie or TV show. The Minecraft movie is set to release in April 2025. Even though the initial reaction people had when it was announced was not very positive. Also, the trailer has not helped much. Nonetheless, Minecraft remains quite an anticipated film.
If you don’t know how popular Mortal Kombat is, you have definitely been living under a rock. Mortal Kombat released its live-action film back in 2021 which was an instant hit among the fans of the franchise. Even though people thought that this would be a one-and-done deal, the Johnny Cage tease by the end confirmed Mortal Kombat 2 is now set to release sometime in 2025 with Karl Urban taking up Cage’s role.
Until Dawn is another highly anticipated videogame adaptation that will hit the screens in 2025. The release date for the Until Dawn movie has been set for April 25, 2025. The horror game has a massive player base and I personally cannot wait to watch it being adapted into a movie.
2025 is poised to end with a bang with the release of Five Nights at Freddy’s sequel slated for December 5, 2025. This simple yet fun-to-play horror game was a huge part of those born in the late 1990s. The first installment of the movie was well-received and the sequel could be equally entertaining and horror.
Not only releases, we could also get release dates for some long-awaited videogame adaptations in 2025. For example, God of War live-action has been in development since 2023 and now Amazon has found Ronald D. Moore as the showrunner. We might finally get a release date in 2025.
So, 2025 is pretty packed with video-game adaptations, and all of them are hyped among fans of the franchise. Simply put, 2025 holds the potential to define the future of video game adaptions after setting the stage in 2024.
2025 Will Decide the Future of Videogame Adaptations
2024 has given us some of the best video game adaptations we have seen so far. And, 2025 is the real deal since it is lined with numerous releases in the genre. Now, the thing to consider here is that for years, leaving a couple before 2024, video game adaptations have been looked down on by people since a majority of them have failed to live up to what people expect from them.
Since they are regaining a fanbase, a lot is resting on 2025’s shoulders because it won’t take too much for the old notion to be restored. If the adaptations we get to see in 2025, turn out to be bad, the notion of “all video game adaptations are bad” will come back even stronger.
However, if, they work out well, from 2026 onward we could see a massive boom in the video game adaptation genre since there are many announced projects. So, 2025, is the year that can make or break video game adaptations, what do you guys think? Let us know in the comments!
