Computer Game Movies - Does it Ever Work?

Since the 80's Hollywood have been dipping into the creative genuis of Computer games industry to find inspiration. Long gone are the days where it is all one way traffic, a quickly branded game sping off from a successful movie using an old licence for an actual playable game, simply a mechanism to milk more money from the fans with little or no thought. But has this reversed blend of user interactive small screen to big screen ever been a success? Here are five examples of game/movie crossovers.

Mario Brothers - $20m at the Box Office

Excluding regional based movies this was the first major motion picture to reach our screens across the globe in 1993. A game that entertained  generation had such a huge fan base that surely no matter how poor the film was it would be a success right? Eh well no, its hardly even available on DVD now and you won't find many copies of the VHS in lofts either, having all been gifted to the local charity shop!

Tomb Raider - $274m at the Box Office

So how do you make a good movie? First you need to get an A-List star to feature in it. Surely a gorgeous star is more desirable than a computer enhanced image, unfortunately they got this wrong and we quickly discovered the computer version of Lara Croft is indeed not only better looking but also a better actor! But this proved to be the first real money spinner in the Game to Movie industry.

Resident Evil - $102m at the Box Office

Many people don't realise where this franchise began, many believing the film and games go hand in hand, but true fans all know the origin was in one of the most addictive violent games of its time. Zombie culture is old hat now, with the rise of zombie TV shows and films it is all become very mainstream, but this means more and more fans coming to this series, often via the movies. 

Silent Hill - $97m at the Box Office

Groundbreaking games with atmosphere were not the common occurrence you see with HD graphics and online multi-player when Silent Hill gave us all a fright for the first time. This cloudy scare-fest was a sure fire hit for both the movie and the game, foggy and filled with haunting creatures all centered around finding your lost child.  

Prince of Persia - $335m at the Box Office

So before Prince of Persia the most successful cross over has come from the Horror Genre, with a much larger cult following than other genres. But this well made film, complete with believable acting just might have broken the curse. The biggest grossing Game to movie franchise to date.

So where next?

Call of Duty on the big screen or perhaps Grand Theft Auto the movie? Whatever the answer we can be sure that with sales of GTA and COD reaching over $500m in one weekend any movie is unlikely to be as financially viable.