8 Video Games That Would Work Perfectly As TV Shows
If you can't beat 'em, watch 'em.
Video games are ideal for adaptation into other forms of media, able to capitalise on pre-existing audiences and ripe for securing fresh ones alike.
For a long time, it's been commonplace for successful franchises and standalone titles to be adapted into their own films, though this has produced more misses than hits. The blame can be placed on multiple factors, but the be all and end all is that it's incredibly hard to tell a game's multiple hour long story within the constraints of a two hour film. It's almost certainly going to feel rushed.
That’s where TV comes in. With it being as cinematic as ever and having the added benefit of having longer to tell a story, it is starting to assert itself as the better option.
There are many components that can make a game perfect for a TV show, whether that be a story that can be depicted over multiple seasons, complex characters that keep you invested or a superbly crafted world with endless elements to explore.
All are staples of great games, and thus those are the perfect ones to adapt into TV shows.
8. Cyberpunk 2077
Even though Cyberpunk 2077 hasn't been released yet, what has already been revealed of the story and setting just calls for an adaptation. It's the next step, and TV is the obvious platform for this as it wouldn't work any other way.
Sci-fi shows are a proven successful commodity, and the cyberpunk sub-genre has seen a huge surge in popularity over the years, having spawned numerous movies, comic books and TV shows that have been received well by critics and audiences alike. A Cyberpunk 2077 TV series would fit perfectly in there as the next addition.
The game's plot follows the playable character V as they search for the highly valuable, one-of-a-kind immortality implant. V could be transferred and become the series' protagonist with the main plot line still being the search to acquire the implant. But overall the series would not be limited to one single plot thread. Night City, the game's setting, has a focus on vertical landscapes of tall, towering skyscrapers. This combined with the boroughs in which the different gangs inhabit means that there are a lot of characters, story lines and locations to explore.
With another CD Projekt property, The Witcher, having already been adapted into its own series on Netflix, it's more of a question of when, than if, Cyberpunk 2077 will be given the same treatment.