Staff Picks, April 2025: All The Adaptations

April is STACKED with video game adaptations releasing. There’s a new Minecraft movie called “A Minecraft Movie” releasing on April 4th, then the second season of The Last of Us on April 13th, and then the Until Dawn movie hits theaters later on April 25th (phew, my AMC A-List membership is gonna come in handy). 

We’re hearing from our friends Veronica, Cody, and Emi on what their favorite video game adaptations have been, along with which gaming franchises they hope eventually make it beyond the controller.

What’s been your favorite video game adaptation (any medium)?

The Last of Us — it’s one of my favorite video games of all time (just got a new tattoo of Ellie’s switchblade, that’s how obsessed I am). I remember playing it for the first time years ago and thinking “Wow, this is such a cinematic experience for a video game, it would make a great movie or tv show” and when the series adaptation was officially announced my expectations were REALLY high. 

I can safely say the HBO series blew me away and gave us even more TLOU lore to love (episode 3 anyone?! so good, ugh). Very excited for the second season to come out in April — I know the second game had some fans divided, but I personally loved it and am pumped to see it come to life in a new way.

If you could make any game get a great adaptation, which game would it be?  

I’m BEGGING for a BioShock adaptation — all three games please, but I’ll take what I can get. Rapture, the underwater city in BioShock 1 and 2, is such a perfect atmosphere to explore and the storylines are so rich. BioShock Infinite, the 3rd game, also has the airborne city of Columbia that I would LOVE to see translated to the big screen. I’ve heard rumblings that there may be an adaptation on the way, so I’m being cautiously optimistic. 

And to anyone who hasn’t played these, would you kindly start the first game in the series ASAP? I know we all love to be that person who says “I played the game before the movie came out”.

What’s been your favorite video game adaptation (any medium)?

Okay, this is going to sound insane, but probably… Five Nights at Freddy’s?... 

The movie itself isn’t particularly scary, but it's an enjoyable PG-13 horror flick — the kind that makes you smile knowing the extremely obvious jumpscare that’s about to happen, but you still do a tiny jump because you worked yourself up so much. 

But seeing the animatronics in the film and knowing that they’re real-life puppets made by the Jim Henson's Creature Shop (yes, that Jim Henson) makes watching the movie soooo much better.

They’re not CG. They’re not part of someone’s dream like FNAF 4. They’re real. And since they’re real objects, maybe something similar really is lurking in the dark... I’d have to imagine the insides of the real animatronic suits aren’t nearly as, uh, sharp and pointy, right…?

If you could make any game get a great adaptation, which game would it be?  

After playing through six Ace Attorney games, the Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney trilogy absolutely deserves its own anime adaptation, just like the first trilogy received. While the original trilogy has its own incredible story across three full-length games, the characters you come across in the Apollo Justice trilogy lean more into a comical, cartoony style that I’d love to see recreated in a full series.

I know I know… I already talked about this collection last time I was on Staff Picks, but I’m FINALLY almost done with all three games in it after over 100 hours of play time since last October. And surely since CAPCOM remastered basically every game in the series, the only thing left is a new entry… right…?

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What’s been your favorite video game adaptation (any medium)?

As a fan of dystopian media, Cyberpunk: Edgerunners captured my heart and it never let go. In just a few episodes, I was invested in David, Lucy, and everyone else trying to make it to the next day in Night City. 

Outside of the worldbuilding, Studio Trigger’s creation was truly so beautiful that I caught myself rewinding scenes just so I could see an effect again. When people ask which anime I’d like to rewatch again for the first time, Cyberpunk is definitely on the list. I still can’t listen to “I Really Want to Stay At Your House” by Rosa Walton without tearing up a bit.

If you could make any game get a great adaptation, which game would it be?  

I might be cheating a bit with my answer. I’d really like to see the God of War series as a TV show or movie, and if the internet is telling me the truth, it seems I’ll probably be getting my wish. Fingers crossed for a release date one day, because for me, following Kratos through both the Greek and Norse eras has already been an adventure. The depth of characters, the cinematic cutscenes, and the evolution of Kratos all combine to create a series that’s more than the sum of its parts. 

If the day ever comes where you need an actual break from playing games, now you have some great recommendations for shows and movies inspired by games! Soon, even everything we eat shall be games… muahaha. But actually, those Monster Hunter Wilds meals look ultra tasty. Trip to the Monster Hunter Cafe, anyone?

What’s been one of your favorite video game adaptations? Other than movies and TV, are there other ways you’d love to see game content get adapted? Perhaps an audio podcast, like Halo 5’s Hunt the Truth series? Let us know over at our X (Twitter) account!