Summary
The past few years have seen a flood of video game film and TV show adaptations. There have been some major successes, likeHBO’sThe Last of Us, alongside a bevy of lackluster or outright disastrous endeavors. But these failures don’t seem to be deterring the film and television industries, as there are several video game adaptations in the works, some of which seem more promising than others.
There’s an argument to be made that the horror genre is specifically suited to the game-to-film pipeline, as horror games are more about vicarious terror and less about complex game mechanics. It’s one of the main reasons games likeFive Nights at Freddy’s,Amnesia,Outlast, andSlender: The Eight Pagesare among the most commonly streamed games of the last decade. At the same time, some horror games are inextricable from the gaming medium and wouldn’t make for good films or shows. Indeed, while something likeFive Nights at Freddy’sorUntil Dawnmay be reasonable picks for a movie adaptation, film studios should avoid the likes ofAmnesia.
There haven’t been any reports of anAmnesiamovie being developed, but with how popular horror game adaptations are becoming, such a project wouldn’t be unlikely.
Why Amnesia Works Best as a Game
Why Games Like FNAF and Until Dawn Are Sensible Movie Adaptations
Although the execution of theFive Nights at Freddy’smovie is questionable, it’s easy to see why it was greenlit. Aside from the undeniable popularity of the IP,Five Nights at Freddy’sis built on complex, rich lore that, crucially, can be applied to many different sorts of stories. The franchise offers solid source material while also leaving enough wiggle room for filmmakers to create a script that works on the silver screen. Additionally, the games get a lot of mileage out of jump scares and creepy, memorable mascots—two concepts that translate smoothly to the film medium.
Until Dawnmakes even more sense as a movie. Supermassive’s 2015 choose-your-own-adventure game borrows heavily from film conventions, starring A-list celebrities like Rami Malek and Hayden Panitierre while being built around scripted, cinematic moments rather than emergent gameplay or player expression. Truly, the only thing that separatesUntil Dawnfrom a typical horror movie is the fact that players have some degree of control over where the story goes. The meat of the experience is, in many ways, more akin to a movie than a game.
An Amnesia Movie Would Lack What Makes the Games Work
The narratives of theAmnesiagames are fairly vague and up for interpretation, lacking both the specific lore ofFNAFand the character-driven drama ofUntil Dawn. Thepsychological horror ofAmnesiastems from its interactivity, whereas interactivity only elevates the horror of the aforementioned games. Even though the franchise, especially beforeThe Bunker, is fairly simple from a mechanical standpoint, it is interactivity that produces tension and fear, and this is something that cannot be translated in a film or TV adaptation.
There are a lot ofgood movies and shows based on games, but film executives and creatives alike should be judicious when selecting which IP to adapt.Amnesiais an example of a game series that may seem like a good adaptation candidate on paper—it has an intriguing premise, unsettling atmosphere, iconic creature design, et cetera—when, in reality, it’s the sort of experience that only works as a game. To make it a satisfying film or show, so many of its core attributes would have to be changed, to the point where it could end up being wholly removed from the source material.
Amnesia: The Bunker
WHERE TO PLAY
Amnesia: The Bunker is a first-person horror game from the makers of SOMA and Amnesia.Left all alone in a desolate WW1 bunker with only one bullet remaining in the barrel, it’s up to you to face the oppressing terrors in the dark. Keep the lights on at all costs, persevere, and make your way out alive. A truly intense horror experience.Immerse yourself in the multiple ways of tackling survival. In the shoes of the French soldier Henri Clément, you are armed with a revolver gun, a noisy dynamo flashlight, and other scarce supplies to scavenge and craft along the way. With randomization and unpredictable behavior, no play-through is the same.Hunted by an ever-present threat reacting to your every move and sound, you must adapt your play-style to face hell. Every decision will change the outcome of how the game responds. Actions bear consequences.
