From Console to Screen: The Best and Worst of Video Game Movies (Part Three)

Adventure Awaits

Tomb Raider 

Lara Croft is a name that many people know and associate with the Tomb Raider video game series. The first game came out in 1996 and has spawned at least 20 sequels. Tomb Raider follows a British archaeologist (Lara Croft) on adventures around the world combining exploration, puzzle solving, and combat to uncover ancient and often mythological secrets. The series is renowned for the fact that it has a female lead; it's one of the first games that ever did. Tomb Raider is also known for its cinematic action and focus on navigating deadly forgotten ruins. Tomb Raider pioneered the 3D action adventure defining what an action puzzle game is and establishing a lasting pop icon.

This classic adventure series has been no stranger to the big screen, having been adapted on two different occasions. Once with 2001’s Lara Croft: Tomb Raider—which spawned a 2003 sequel, The Cradle of Life—starring Angelina Jolie, and again with 2018’s Tomb Raider starring Alicia Vikander. All three of these films focused on Lara Croft as she went on perilous adventures throughout the world fighting enemies in pursuit of sacred bounty. Though none of them were particularly darlings with critics, they all saw decent financial success, with Jolie’s duology collectively earning over $400 million worldwide.

The Tomb Raider films are generally considered decent action adventure films but when you compare them to their game counterparts the Angelina Jolie versions don't hold up as much as the 2018 reboot. While not the worst video game adaptations out there there are definitely some places within the movies that could have been more faithful to their original source material. However these films are pretty decent and pass as adaptations.

Uncharted

In 2007 a direct competitor to Tomb Raider would come out, Uncharted. Uncharted has six main games and follows the character Nathan Drake who is a treasure hunter. There's also characters like his mentor Victor Sullivan and a journalist named Elena Fisher. This trio hunts down historical myths across the globe, battles mercenaries, and discovers the obsession with wealth often outweighs its value. This game at times feels like a Tomb Raider rip off, but it does have a few things about it that Tomb Raider doesn't; mainly elements within its story which would be spoilers for a rather interesting plot and a heart breaking twist.

The PlayStation icon got a long-awaited film adaptation in 2022, directed by Venom’s Ruben Fleischer and starring actors like Tom Holland, Mark Wahlberg, and Antonio Banderas. It centers on a young Nathan Drake as he goes on a journey to find a legendary treasure, with the help of allies like his mentor, Victor Sullivan. The film got positive reactions from general audiences—though critics and fans of the games were polarized—and it earned over $400 million during its worldwide run. Its success led to a sequel being announced, but there have not been many current updates, leaving the franchise’s future in limbo.

While most video game adaptations end up either fully impressing or disgusting fans, thus one is directly in the middle, with some enjoying it and others detesting it. But in any case, the film made an impact financially, finding a similar degree of success to its gaming counterpart. Though the future of the film franchise is in uncharted territory, it’s undeniable that this movie managed to find treasure of its own, though potentially at the cost of angering a few devoted fans of the original source material.

Borderlands

Borderlands is a looter-shooter set on the lawless planet of Pandora. The first game came out in 2009 and seven games came to follow the most recent from 2025 Borderlands 4. There are four main characters who are all vault hunters and they search for a legendary alien vault rumored to contain riches, only to discover it hides something else. The Borderlands games follow these hunts for vaults and continuously have twists that are rather interesting. Borderlands pioneered the looter-shooter genre by blending fast-paced first-person gameplay with Diablo-style random loot generation and a unique art style. While the game is fantastic, does the movie live up to it? 

In arguably the most infamous adaptation on this list, the film version of Borderlands released in 2024, helmed by director Eli Roth of Cabin Fever and Thanksgiving fame. It revolves around a group of outlandish individuals who must protect a young girl who holds great power, while being pursued by corporate villains. The film was released with a collective groan and eye-roll from critics, fans, and audiences alike, with many considering it one of the worst video game adaptations of all time. To make matters worse, it grossed a lousy $33 million against a budget of over $100 million, making it a box office catastrophe. 

While the Borderlands games continue to be recognized as some of the best of their kind, the movie currently stands as one of the worst-rated theatrical adaptations of a mainstream title. A number of factors can be attributed to this—with fans especially detesting the miscasting of its lead performers and its PG-13 rating, which restricted the film from fully leaning into the raunch and vulgarity of the game's humor. Ultimately, while there was potential for a fun interdimensional action flick, fans were instead given a Guardians of the Galaxy knockoff which failed to leave any impact.

Assassin’s Creed

The Assassin Creed franchise started in 2007 and continues to this day with 14 main games in a few spin-offs. Assassin Creed is a historical action adventure game. It blends Sci-Fi, conspiracy theories, and history to retell historical events. In the first game you follow the character Desmond Miles as he travels back in time through a futuristic machine to the memories of his ancestor during the Third Crusade. The main conflict in Assassin Creed is the war between two secret societies: the Assassins and the Templar. Assassin's Creed was one of the first games to revolutionize open world parkour. 

It introduced a fluid accessible parkour system allowing players to scale almost any building and navigate cities vertically, setting a new standard for urban exploration and games. You can see this change in standard in the newest Tomb Raider games in the Survivor Trilogy. 

Surprisingly, this iconic series got a film adaptation in late 2016, with Michael Fassbender playing the lead role. Centering on a man who recognizes his ties to an ancient bloodline of assassins, the movie was hit with a number of roadblocks throughout its release. Namely, critics reacted negatively to it, while audiences were quick to forget about it. Combined with a general lack of hype and competition from films like Sing and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, it ultimately underperformed at the box office, leading to the cancellation of a planned sequel and subsequent franchise.

The Assassin's Creed movie adaptation stays faithful to the game's aesthetics. It mainly excels at matching the fantastic parkour and fluidity of the fight scenes. However, it falls short. The movie adaptation is dull and has a narrative that is focused too much in the present day unlike the video games. The film has phenomenal action sequences but it fails to capture the escapist fun of the game series. 

Creepypasta Craziness

Slender Man

Slender Man didn't start off as a game, originally it started as an entry into a photoshop contest on the Something Awful forum. In 2009 the picture was posted by Eric Knudsen and blew up on the internet as a creepypasta. Three years later would come the very first game for Slender Man. This minimalist game would be known as Slender: The Eight Pages. In this game it's the player's goal to collect eight pages in a dark forest while avoiding Slender Man and surviving. Slender: The Eight Pages is linked to revitalizing the indie horror genre and helping popularize the Let's Play YouTube format, which during this time you would also see in the Minecraft Youtuber community.

It was only a matter of time before this internet icon became the subject of his own movie, but the results were less than stellar. The film centers on a group of friends who find themselves tormented by the titular beast after one of them randomly goes missing one day. Though it does have a fascinating premise, and it did turn a profit financially, critics and fans were quick to blast Slender Man, especially for its writing. Even audiences were unimpressed by the film, as it earned an astounding D- grade from opening day crowds polled by CinemaScore.

It’s a shame that one of the most recognizable figures of the creepypasta community ended up with such a disastrous movie, especially with the promise he holds. Slender Man is built on a mysterious background with an ominous looming, providing an eerie feel to any location he attended. But alas, the movie instead opted for a cheap demonic approach with more emphasis on jumpscares and random imagery than actually building an atmosphere, taking the contemporary horror icon and absolutely squandering him.

Exit 8

By far the newest game on this list from 2023, Exit 8 is a game that follows a commuter trapped in an endless liminal Tokyo subway corridor, much like Escape the Backrooms. In this game the player is forced to spot abnormalities to break an eighth level loop. This game explores existential dread, routine, and psychological guilt. 

Many people refer to it as a walking simulator and at times it does feel that way. Exit 8 can get rather boring here and there, but the unnerving fact that you have to keep checking for changes in your environment and you're constantly doubting yourself makes Exit 8 a psychological horror that sticks with you because you're never quite sure if you can trust your memory or not. 

The movie adaptation of Exit 8 released in Japan in 2025, before being shown in North America in 2026. It follows a man who finds himself trapped in an isolated train station, as he must avoid various anomalies to find his way out through the titular exit. Though it has currently not made much of a mark at the American box office, it has earned a respectable worldwide total of $41 million, and has received critical acclaim ever since its original premiere.

The adaptation of Exit 8 is widely considered one of the best video game film adaptations this year so far. It is incredibly creative and sometimes even creepier than the video game. Like with Iron Lung the director had to take a video game with very little plot and turn it into something much larger. In fact it's even more challenging with Exit 8 because Exit 8 is a 20-minute walking simulator  with not much to it. To turn that into a feature-length film is challenging because of how little there is to the story. The film manages to build on the concept and create something unique that is possibly even better than the game. 

Honorable Mention

Pixels

Pixels is like a love letter to classic arcade games and includes Pac-Man, Donkey Kong, Centipede, Galaga, and Space Invaders. As well as a handful of others that are less prominent in the movie. Pac-Man (1980) is a maze game that has the player avoid four colorful ghosts. Then there’s our barrel rolling platformer Donkey Kong (1981). Following our bipedal monkey, is a hundred plus legged centipede: Centipede (1981) is a fixed shooter video game where you face off against the titular insect. In contrast to Centipede, Galaga (1981) is a seminal fixed-shooter arcade game where you play as a spaceship and shoot down insects. Space Invaders (1978) a shoot ‘em up video game where players must fend off aliens to survive. These video games were typically found in arcades and are referred to as the golden age of games. 

Admittedly, we're technically cheating here since this isn't based on a specific video game—rather, it’s based on a short film. However, given how it revolves around several classic game characters, it still technically qualifies as a video game movie. Besides, in what other movie do you get to see Kevin James play as the President of the United States, fighting against evil versions of Pac-Man and Donkey Kong with Adam Sandler and Peter Dinklage? 

Though it got negative reviews from critics and underperformed at the box office, Pixels has grown somewhat of a cult following in recent years, with some praising its visuals and humor. It takes icons of gaming’s golden age and puts them in a more merciless position, leading to one of the most distinct and creative premises of any of the adaptations on this list. 

Plus, the fact that it’s a comedy is an additional bonus, as the movie encourages viewers to have fun through its bright visuals, constant jokes, and energetic chemistry of its performers—namely Sandler and James.

Coming Soon

The big screen will be seeing a surge of video games turned movies in the next few years. Coming this year is The Backrooms and Mortal Kombat II movie adaptations. Next year (2027), will finally see The Legend of Zelda as a movie and will also see the sequel to The Minecraft Movie. There’s also a handful of other adaptations that don’t have release dates yet like Elden Ring and Bloodborne.

From Console to Series

Movies aren’t the only video game adaptations gracing our screens in recent years. There’s also a handful of TV shows worth noting: The Last of Us, Devil May Cry, Fallout, Arcane (based on League of Legends), The Witcher, and Castlevania. Many video game to TV show adaptations find themselves animated which seems to make matching their original source material easier, but there are a handful of live actions that do manage to do their respective video games justice—even if they fall off like the fourth season of The Witcher. Some series like Tomb Raider even get the special treatment of getting a movie and both a live action and animated TV series. 

The world of video game adaptations is an ever-growing subgenre, as a variety of films and shows use distinct styles to bring their source material to life. Granted, some of these works are certainly better than others, but the talent that goes into these projects is undeniable. It gives each product a distinct sense of uniqueness, keeping the door of opportunity wide open for more adaptations in the future, even as they continue to level up.