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From console to big screen: why adapt a video game for cinema?
Super Mario Bros., Sonic, The Last of Us: behind every video game adaptation lies a strategy for exploiting intellectual property. A profitable but risky bet, between faithfulness to the work and winning over a new audience.
By Kenza IKAOUI
Behind every film adaptation of a video game lies a reality that is far more strategic than artistic: exploiting an IP.
An IP, for Intellectual Property, refers to all the rights attached to a work of the mind or a creative universe. In the cultural and creative industries, the term goes beyond its legal dimension to become a strategic asset: a strong IP is a brand, a community, and a potential for revenue multiplied across its spin-offs, such as merchandising or adaptations into series or films.
Video games are today one of the most fertile grounds for this kind of exploitation. Contrary to a still persistent misconception, a video game is not just an interactive entertainment product destined to gather dust on a shelf or a hard drive. It is a fully fledged work of the mind, protected by copyright, with a universe, characters and a narrative that can be transposed to different media.
So what drives a studio to bring a video game to the big screen?
Capitalising on video game franchises
Mario, Sonic, Lara Croft, Hitman, Nathan Drake (Uncharted)… These names do not simply refer to video game characters. Over the years, they have become genuine franchises, in other words IPs whose value reaches far beyond the original game.
Adapting a video game for cinema is above all an act of exploiting that franchise. By bringing a universe to the big screen, the publisher or rights holder capitalises on established fame, on a community of loyal players and on a strong emotional attachment. The film then becomes an unprecedented vehicle for exposure: it introduces the franchise to an audience that has never picked up a controller and turns mere viewers into potential new players. This is precisely what the success of The Super Mario Bros. Movie, released in 2023, illustrates: it was designed as much for console nostalgics as for families who had never touched a Nintendo game.
An economic imperative for studios
Beyond cultural influence, film adaptation responds to a very real financial logic. Video game publishers operate in an extremely competitive sector, where the cost of developing a AAA game can reach several hundred million dollars, with no guarantee of a return on investment.
In this context, diversifying revenue streams becomes a strategic necessity. Exploiting an IP in cinema generates additional revenue: box-office receipts, sales of rights abroad, merchandising or a boost in sales of the original game. Each successful adaptation can help fund and develop future projects. This logic is also found in other creative industries, such as adaptations of novels or comics, but it takes on a particular dimension in video games, given how long development cycles are and how considerable the investments.
Risks not to be underestimated
Bringing a video game to cinema is not without risk. Two major pitfalls await those who take on the exercise.
First risk: public failure. A poorly received film can mean a heavy financial loss, but also, and above all, a reputational risk for the franchise itself. Film history is full of examples where a failed adaptation tarnished the image of a cult game. Take Street Fighter, released in 1994 with Jean-Claude Van Damme. Despite a substantial budget for the time (nearly 35 million dollars) and real commercial success (nearly 100 million dollars in worldwide takings), the film was a critical disaster and a bitter failure with fans, who did not find the spirit of their favourite game in it. The franchise’s image was lastingly damaged: it would take until 2009 and Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li, another failure, for a new attempt, and then an ambitious reboot scheduled for release in October 2026.
Second risk: criticism from the gaming community. Players are a demanding audience, deeply attached to the universe they have explored themselves. A perceived betrayal of the original work (whether of the plot, the characters or the overall aesthetic) can trigger a wave of virulent criticism, or even an organised boycott, with direct consequences for the reputation of the film and the game. The most striking example is Sonic the Hedgehog, released in February 2020, whose first trailer was enough to spark a worldwide outcry. The character’s design, considered too far from the original, provoked such a violent reaction from the community that Paramount and Sega took the historic and costly decision to delay the film’s release in order to completely rework Sonic’s appearance. This decision saved the honour of the franchise and of the film giant.
Adapting a video game for cinema is therefore no trivial matter. It is a strategic bet, with considerable stakes in terms of exploiting and protecting IP. The recent successes of franchises such as Mario and The Last of Us seem to show that the industry has learned from its past failures. But each new adaptation remains a balancing act: between faithfulness to the original work and the need to appeal to a wider audience, the margin for error is narrow.
One thing is certain: video games have conquered the big screen for good. The question is no longer whether they deserve to be there, but how to bring them there without betraying them.
Bibliography
Online sources
- Images en bibliothèques, « Jeu vidéo et cinéma », documentary resource (PDF)
- Radio-Canada, « Cinéma, télé et jeux vidéo : l’adaptation »
- WIPO, “IP Business Moments”
- Wikipedia, « Sonic, le film »
https://lexludica.com/en/articles/from-console-to-big-screen
