Cult-classicBeetlejuicehas had a few adaptations over the years, most notably a Broadway musical and animated TV show.Michael Keaton’s Beetlejuice/Betelgeusehas had some foray into video games too, though these adaptations were less successful. While the aesthetic and atmosphere ofBeetlejuicecould make for a great game, there’s not a whole lot of options for playing as the “ghost with the most.”
The continued popularity ofBeetlejuicemeans it could be appealing for the current trend of remakes and reboots in cinema, but most would agree the original film has a special kind of magic. The animated series that followed was successful, but does not hold the same cult status as the film. WhileBeetlejuicegames draw visual inspiration from both the film and the animated series, they are mostly products of a time when video game technology was in its infancy. While a potential sequel to the film is currently shelved, there’s always room in video games to bring back the beloved character.
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Adventures of Beetlejuice: Skeletons in the Closet (1990)
The firstBeetlejuicevideo game was released in 1990, and from a quick overview of availableBeetlejuicegames, their temporality becomes apparent.Adventures of Beetlejuice: Skeletons in the Closetis based on the animated show rather than the film, andwas released for the MS-DOS. Lydia features heavily, but in a slew of other game adaptations of animated shows,Adventures of Beetlejuicewas largely forgotten.
Beetlejuice (1991)
Fans ofSea of ThievesandBattletoadsmay be surprised to learn developer Rare made not one, but twoBeetlejuice-themed games. The first of which, simply titledBeetlejuice,was an adaptation of the film and released for NES. It was a short and fairly clunky platformer, and certainly not Rare’s finest performance. However, the timing of release explains some of this, due to limited processing power and a desire to capitalize on the success of the film. As the only game that based its aesthetic on the film, it is a pity this game didn’t perform better.
Beetlejuice: Horrific Hijinx from the Neitherworld! (1992)
Rare’s secondBeetlejuicegame borrows aesthetics from the animated show. It was released forthe Nintendo Game Boyand played a little smoother than the previousBeetlejuicegame. Lydia again appears in this game and plays a big role in the plot. It is not a particularly well-remembered game since the Game Boy had so many massive titles, but it is certainly considered the better of the two RareBeetlejuicegames.
LEGO Dimensions: Beetlejuice Fun Pack (2017)
While not a fullBeetlejuicegame, a pack forLEGO Dimensionsfeatured the titular ghost.LEGO Dimensionsis fun and cutesy, and the Beetlejuice character and figurine show a slightly different visual style to the Tim Burton character. This game is definitely the best playing game withBeetlejuicecontent available today.
The fact thatLEGO Dimensions’fun pack is the most recent gaming iteration ofBeetlejuiceis of note. With three gamesreleased in the early 90s,and one expansion pack for a 2017 game, Beetlejuice hasn’t had the most successful video game career. The character is well-loved though, and so there’s always room to have him appear in other franchises. Whether there should be a modernBeetlejuicegame depends largely on the quality and inventiveness of the game, as while Keaton’s character is great, his dark charm hasn’t been enough to launch any majorly successful games as of yet.
