In April 2024, Amazon’s “The Last Life” took the throne of the streaming platform, making people re-aware of the possibilities brought by video game franchises. As far as Amazon is concerned alone, the success of the Fallout series is record-breaking.
For all Amazon’s efforts to capture fantasy fiction in both books and games, Fallout has finally hit the mark. Despite their huge success, Wheel of Time and Ring of Power have remained stagnant.
While those shows could learn something about built-in fandoms and adherence to source material (and the show’s approach to not telling it), Fallout chose the road less traveled.
This may sound campy (sarcastic), but imagine taking something fans have loved for decades, incorporating new storylines, and sticking to the feel and authenticity of the source material. result? It was a stunning success. Shocking, right?
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The people who run Amazon are not fools. In their eyes, success brings success. Amazon is acquiring some major video game franchises in an attempt to capitalize on the mediocrity and flaws of rival platforms while righting its own.
Video game franchise in Amazon’s ‘Bag of Tricks’
In many ways, video game adaptations are a lot like books. They have huge fan bases behind them, some of whom have been around far longer than non-gamers might expect.
The transition from games to video formats is somewhat easier due to similarities in structure, direction and special effects.
Amazon has chosen some big companies with a long history and a large following. If Fallout is a blueprint for the future, these franchises are in good hands.
Tomb Raider
For a while, Tomb Raider went back and forth, with TV adaptations usually being handled by Netflix rather than Amazon.
Phoebe Waller-Bridge, who has experience directing, writing and executive producing “Fleabag” and “Killing Eve,” will direct the adaptation.
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There may be a degree of fear behind her choice, as many have accused her of single-handedly ruining the latest Indiana Jones movie. Playing a morally ambiguous character next to Indy didn’t sell well. However, acting and directing are two different things.
Both Killing Eve and Fleabag were critically acclaimed, especially the latter. If she can perform at the same level in Tomb Raider, the show could do well.
Warhammer 40,000
In December 2022, Amazon acquired the global rights to the Warhammer 40k universe, and two pretty amazing things happened soon after. First, Netflix and Henry Cavill parted ways, leaving the role of The Witcher to Liam Hemsworth.
Second, Amazon handed him one of the biggest video game and tabletop franchises, reportedly giving him all the creative freedom he wanted. If there’s an actor in Hollywood who respects the original work, it’s Henry Cavill.
He will star in the series and serve as executive producer. He’s also a noted gamer with a huge respect and love for the source material. Such experience is necessary because Warhammer is epic in both scale and setting.
god of war
Sony’s mega-franchise God of War is also coming to Amazon. The upcoming series will focus on games released in 2018. Of all the video game franchises being produced, God of War may be the only one without any gray areas.
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It’s a hit or miss, with a massive fan base unlikely to tolerate massive, unnecessary lore changes, and characters that barely resemble their video game counterparts.
Rafe Judkins of The Wheel of Time dominates, which is concerning considering The Wheel of Time is still struggling to find its footing.
However, the writers of the script have a lot of solid work and experience under their belts. Mark Fergus and Hawke Oatsby are the writers of “Iron Man,” “Children of Men” and “The Expanse.”
like a dragon
By a long shot, Yakuza is one of the most successful video game franchises, with more than 20 million copies sold since 2005. The popularity and appeal and recent success of Shogun.
Shogun proved there’s a deep interest in Japanese culture, and Yakuza brings even more of that to the forefront. It’s a bit different from the fantasy and sci-fi elements of the above entries, instead focusing on crime, drama, and suspense.
The director is Takeuchi Masaharu and the protagonist is Takeuchi Ryoma. Unlike God of War, Tomb Raider and Warhammer, Yakuza’s release date is October 24th.
Disco Elysium
This will be an interesting thing. The game is an isometric tactical role-playing game without the combat common in games like Rogue Trader, Baldur’s Gate 3, and the Divinity series. Instead, you’re a detective living in a fictional city ravaged by a recent revolution.
It’s an indie hit and a cult favorite. It’s a fascinating thought experiment in how Amazon turned a game with unique level progression and choices into a TV series. In this type of game, you can push things in a hundred different directions.
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It opens a wide door for creative showrunners, especially within the compelling visual setting of historical fantasy.
Video game adapted for Amazon’s MCU
To be fair, Amazon isn’t the only company with multiple video game franchises. Netflix is adapting BioShock, Horizon Zero Dawn, Assassin’s Creed and Gears of War. That doesn’t include Arcane and Castlevania.
But Amazon doesn’t just stop at the list above. Life is Strange and It Takes Two are also in development.
The world’s obsession with the Marvel Cinematic Universe has spanned two decades, but there are fundamental differences between the Marvel Cinematic Universe and its game adaptations.
When consumers are tired of expensive leotards and tight-fitting costumes, video game adaptations offer a completely enclosed realm.
One of the things that negatively impacts comic book storytelling is its sheer volume, characters, storylines, and crossovers.
Kratos’ Norse universe and its characters, on the other hand, limit God of War to a well-constructed and simpler world. If the story gets crazy and out of control, it’s because the showrunners took it in the wrong direction.
Combine reduced complexity with a well-loved story, and you’re ready to cook with gas.
Will Radiant Formula lead the way?
This is the key. The biggest complaint about major franchises these days (and it’s not even close) is the ability of showrunners to turn them into personal projects, limiting the scope of the characters to reflections of the writers’ characters.
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Fans of video game franchises such as Warhammer, Fallout, and God of War want to see their favorite games, not the Hollywood version of Intruder’s famous look.
Ashes of Life manages to give fans what they want without even considering the well-known and beloved characters. This is because the world itself is a character.
The bleached, irradiated landscapes, dilapidated hodgepodge of dwellings, and desperate lives of the people in these worlds match their video game counterparts.
In such a sandbox, Amazon is free to create new characters and storylines as long as they adhere to the original rules. The success of Afterlife is down to this simple formula.
If Amazon can imitate it through the various franchises it acquires, the level of success will be unparalleled.
Looking forward to more
Last but not least is the unknown horizon. When it comes to major video game franchises, there’s a sense of inevitability, much like the Marvel Cinematic Universe movies The Avengers.
It’s not just the fact that Amazon makes these acquisitions. Amazon’s rivals are doing the same thing, with Netflix, Max, Peacock and Paramount+ either already involved or working on it.
Hopefully competition will bring quality, but it will certainly bring quantity. Expect more and more gaming franchises to join the fray sooner rather than later.
The epic content of the Divinity series or Baldur’s Gate 3, the vast, surreal and extremely dangerous world of Elden Ring, the planet-conquering politics of Hellraiser and the darkness of Metroid Science fiction is too tempting to ignore.
It’s only a matter of time before things get really real and hopefully fun too.
Which video game franchises do you think are best suited for Amazon Prime? Let us know in the comments!
