10 Incredible Video Games That Came From Terrible Movies

Not everything that came with the Matrix sequels was bad.

matrix path of neo
Warner Bros.

The relationship between movies and video games is the weirdest thing. Something of a perfunctory setup for the vast majority of gaming history, if any film of note was coming out, there was the video game release alongside.

Essentially an extension of the marketing budget, what started as 2D sprites, platformers and simplistic designs fitting the time constraints of film production, quickly blew out into rushed projects being kicked out the door to make a launch window. However, once 2D became 3D became HD, all those levels, characters, cutscenes and more just couldn't be done in the same chunk of time it takes to go from pitch to script to big screen anymore.

It makes it even harder to find something worthwhile, and thought everyone talks about the "video game curse" when it comes to movies based on games, games based on movies are just as much of an unknown quantity.

To this day the vast majority are completely throwaway, harbouring mechanics that are serviceably satisfying as "something to play" when you come out the theatre, but nothing more. After all, that's all these games were meant to be, and their developers picked up a nice paycheck alongside.

Look hard enough though, and you'll find something that encapsulates the property at hand, in a way that's genuinely recommendable.

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Gaming Editor
Gaming Editor

WhatCulture's Head of Gaming.