Movies based on games and games based on movies both have a sort of torrid history. Cash-ins like the Super Mario Brothers movie and the Aliens: Colonial Marines video games have proven that these products are often created with a cynical attitude that they don’t have to be good, so why try? Somebody will buy it or go to the movies to see it because of the name, regardless of quality, so hire the cheapest creative talent you can find, rush them to finish it on a really tight deadline, and pump the product out and sell it before anyone gets wise to how bad it is. Wreck-it Ralph falls into that category, and we’ll explain why. If you haven’t seen it yet, Wreck-it Ralph is currently available on DirecTV on-Demand, and also Redbox. If you haven’t signed up for DirecTV yet you can get special rates using SaveOnTVDirect.com.
There have been exceptions. Vin Diesel, a big gamer himself, took care that the Chronicles of Riddick video game would live up to the standards of the first person shooters of its day, and the first Mortal Kombat film had some awesome action sequences.
But, the key word there is “exception,” and the Wreck-it Ralph video game is not one of them.
The real tragedy here is that the film was such a wonderful treat for gamers. With cameos from characters like Sonic the Hedgehog, the cast of Street Fighter II, Q-Bert, and dozens of others appearing in bit parts and backgrounds, tons of in-jokes that only gamers could pick up on, and beautifully realized environments paying tribute to the important genres of game, it was clear that Wreck-it Ralph was a film by gamers for gamers.
The ridiculous thing about is that Wreck-it Ralph could have translated so perfectly into video game form. The world of the movie allows for a creative developer to explore any genre of video game they like. Imagine if the player were able to enjoy a fighting game level, a racing level, and a space shooter. What we got instead was a bland side scrolling platformer that makes no real effort to play with video game conventions in the way that the film did.
The funny thing is that there is a pretty great Wreck-it Ralph, being the Fix it Felix Jr. flash browser game, playable here. The game plays like an authentic arcade machine, boasts a pretty rockin’ soundtrack, and lends more texture to the world of the film itself, giving fans a real-life version of the game to enjoy after watching the movie. There was even a real life arcade cabinet of the game made to celebrate the release of the film.
The whole ordeal reminds us of a principle fact of entertainment and commerce: when it comes from a place of affection, as the Wreck-it Ralph film did, then you can very easily adapt video games into movies and vice versa. When it comes from a place of crass commercialism, as the Wreck-it Ralph video game did, then even the most obvious adaptations simply don’t work out. You’d think it would be impossible to make a bad video game out of a movie about a video game character, but all it really takes is indifference to ruin the easiest adaptations. [box style=’note’] Note: This is a sponsored post. [/box]
