The best video game movies to watch at home

It’s a banner week for video game adaptations in live action. Resident Evil: The New Show Resident EvilNetflix dropped the streaming of, and also dropped the adaption of UnchartedThe film stars Tom Holland, Mark Wahlberg.

There’s now a long storied history of video game adaptations, from 1993’s Super Mario Bros. to this year’s Uncharted and Sonic the Hedgehog II. There’s also a litany of upcoming based-on-a-video-game movie projects, including planned adaptations of [deep breath] Borderlands, Five Nights at Freddy’s, Gears of War, Ghost of Tsushima, Minecraft, Metal Gear Solid, Space InvadersPlease see the following: Dance.

Which ones, out of all the available ones that you can watch at home? Polygon is available to assist.

We’re including movie and television adaptations here, but many readers will probably notice the omission of Netflix’s The Witcher. That’s no slight against the show, but it doesn’t qualify; while the series probably wouldn’t exist without the video game franchise, it is an adaptation of Andrzej Sapkowski’s books.

Mortal Kombat (1996)

Image from New Line Home Video

Paul W.S. Anderson is the director Anderson is a former player. Mortal Kombat at the arcade, and his first of what turned out to be quite a few video game adaptations was, naturally, 1995’s Mortal Kombat. This movie features the fighting tournament, which is a departure from the earlier adaptation. The effects may look old at times but they are still effective. Mortal Kombat A colorful, charmingly cheesy tournament movie which embraces its source material (the theme song’s needle drop). It recreates the bloody atmosphere of the game. —Pete Volk

Mortal Kombat It is also available on HBO Max and for free with a Hoopla library card.

Resident Evil films

Image: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

Image: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

Image: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

Image: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

Anderson’s most ambitious and extensive video game adaptation work is the six-part Resident Evil series. Anderson directed four of these six episodes, but Anderson wrote all six and starred with his collaborator Milla Jovovich. While fans of the games have long complained that the series diverts from the source material (at the time, Anderson said “under-performing movie tie-ins are too common and Resident Evil, of all games, deserved a good celluloid representation”), the movies themselves absolutely rule. As well as being an outstanding display of Jovovich’s action star bona fides, the Resident Evil movies are also a fantastic study of genre and of a filmmaker’s continuing refinement of his unique style.

The first movie, 2002’s Resident Evil, is the closest to straight horror of the franchise, and features some truly unforgettable moments (like the laser grid trap — if you know, you know). The second movie. Apocalypse – Resident EvilAlexander Witt, a renowned director of the second unit is in charge of this organization.Skyfall, Avengers: Infinity WarIt is however, my favorite franchise.

Things really start to kick off with 2007’s Extinction: Resident EvilRussell Mulcahy directs “The Observer”Highlander) and best described as a “zombie Western.” Anderson returned to the director’s chair for the last three entries, all of them bangers that see Anderson refine his frenetic style of shooting action, imbued with a chaotic energy and supported by the undeniable badassery of Jovovich. —PV

Watch the Resident Evil 5 movies online on Hulu. Or, you can view them on Tubi free of ads. Resident Evil: Chapter Final Tubi offers free access to the video with ads.

Silent Hill

Image: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

Much like most excellent video game adaptions, Silent HillThe inspiration for the movie comes from games, but I have not attempted a translation. Rose (Radha Mitchel) searches for her daughter, Silent Hill. Rose seems transported to another dimension by the town, which is filled with evil monsters who want to kill her. Christopher Bean, Christopher’s husband, chases her to the town, but encounters no one once he gets there. Half extended metaphor for the differences in how men and women experience the world and half terrifying realization of some of the video game franchise’s scariest monsters, Silent Hill isn’t just a great video game movie adaptation but one of the best and most underrated horror movies of the 2000s. —Austen Goslin

Silent HillStarz Prime Video is the best way to view it. You can also rent or buy digital copies at VOD vendors.

DoA: Dead or alive

Image: Dimension Extreme

Let’s start with the disclaimer: This is an adaptation of a fighting game franchise that can be described as “hot people in limited clothing duke it out.” The movie is quite faithful to this idea, in a delightfully trashy way that works because of how damn goodIt is as beautiful as it sounds. The fight scenes are spectacular, the colors pop and the actors make it stand out. Just be prepared to listen to some well-crafted video game dialogue.

It is a great help. Dead or aliveThe legendary Corey Yuen served as director. He was a choreographer and filmmaker from Hong Kong, who directed many great movies there including Michelle Yeoh’s star-making movie. Yes Madam, and is best known in the States for being Jet Li’s personal action director in his Hollywood movies (as well as the action director of X-Men). —PV

DoA: Dead or alive It is free to view with advertisements on Tubi Vudu The Roku Channel Freevee Pluto TV and Plex

As a Dragon

Image by Media Blasters

Takashi Miike, legendary director (AuditionHe has done a number of video game adaptations including the fun version of Yakuza. Miike plays into the comedy material of video games and makes the most of all the possibilities when he recreates the game’s rules in live action. —PV

As a Dragon You can watch it in its entirety on YouTube.

Ace Attorney

Image: Toho-Towa

Miike continued to follow up As a DragonThis Ace Attorney franchise is delightfully faithful. Appropriately extravagant with This is exactly This is the same kind of stylistic cues and hairstyles that you’d expect from the franchise. It’s a charming and completely different type of legal drama. —PV

Ace Attorney You can rent, buy, and even purchase it digitally at Amazon, Google Play or Apple.

The Valorous Marksman/BiuBiuBiu

Huawen Pictures

The Mandarin-language film is available only in 2021 Type of a video game adaptation, but it’s remarkable and worth mentioning either way. The story follows a young man, who once excelled in esports but is struggling to care for his child. A huge tournament offers him a chance to win a great prize pool. He organizes a team and takes advantage of the opportunity.

You can find sports drama in BiuBiuBiu While the movie is well-made, the film shines in the depiction of the game’s gameplay. Hu Guohan, Zhou Siyao, and Zhou Siyao, instead of showing the protagonists on the phone playing the game, take us in the realm of the game. With shocking accuracy, they recreate the awkward movements of mobile gaming with shocking detail.

Here’s a taste:

It is an action film that has a thrilling storyline and feels decades ahead of its time. —PV

The Valorous Marksman (or BiuBiuBiuYou can watch the entire video at YouTube: ).

Monster Hunter

Image: Sony Pictures

Anderson made it even larger with his video game adaptation. Anderson teamed up as Tony Jaa, Jovovich and T.I. take on huge monsters using very powerful weapons. Respect the vastness of the games in both fighting style and opponents. Monster Hunter It is popcorn cinema and the only modern blockbuster to effectively use CG to create believable set pieces. It features action-comedy buddy chemistry between Jovovich & Jaa, and huge set-pieces. Monster Hunter In all of the best ways, it is large and dumb. —PV

Monster HunterStarz Prime Video and VOD vendors are available for viewing.

Arcane

Image courtesy of Netflix

Riot Games’ League of Legends animated series, ArcaneThis book is all about the early years of League of LegendsVi, Jinx Caitlyn Jayce and Viktor are the champions. There are two stories that connect the tale. One story follows Jinx’s descent into madness after a tragic accident and the journey of Vi to save her little sister from herself, while the other story follows Jayce and Viktor’s invention of Hextech, a new creation that fuses magic and technology. Beyond its amazing characters and great writing, the premiere season of Arcane It is one of the most striking animated series and visually stunning in recent history. —AG

Arcane You can watch it on Netflix.

The Werewolf Within

Image: IFC Films

Director Josh Ruben and writer Mishna Wolff’s 2021 horror comedy The Werewolves Inside This is a great video game adaptation because of how much it uses its source material. Loosely inspired by the 2016 VR game of the same name, Ruben and Wolff’s film stars Sam Richardson (It’s my opinion that you should leave() Finn is a kind, but hapless forest ranger who moves to Beaverfield in search of a better life. He finds himself in the middle of an emergency when the town’s residents suspect that a vicious, lycanthropic killer is hiding in their ranks. The film is full of witty dialogue, exciting twists and lively comedic chemistry between Richardson, Milana Vayntrub and their co-star. The Werewolves Insideis a movie about video games that surpasses the inspirations it takes to be a charming horror flick. —Toussaint Egan

The Werewolves InsideIt is available on Showtime by Prime Video or digitally purchased at VOD vendors.