Video Game Movies Worse Than Borderlands

Highlights

Not all video game movie adaptations are bad, with some like The Last of Us and Fallout succeeding on the big screen.
Borderlands emerges as a flop in the movie adaptation realm, raising questions about the worst video game adaptations.
Movies like Street Fighter, Hitman, and Postal, while not great adaptations, offer entertainment value in their awfulness.

As a film enthusiast who has spent countless hours immersed in the world of cinema, I must confess that my personal list of the worst video game adaptations includes these two gems – Alone in the Dark and Postal.

It’s no wonder that those in charge of other entertainment sectors, like cinema, attempt to cash in quickly by recreating popular video game environments on the big screen, given the substantial income these games generate.

While many TV and movie adaptations of video games often receive criticism for their poor quality, examples such as “The Last of Us” and “Fallout” demonstrate that with skilled creators, these games can become box office sensations or breakout TV series.

Occasionally, it can be profitable, but there are instances where it turns out more like the Borderlands movie, a recent failure that earned barely more than $10 million during its debut weekend, struggling to recover even a fraction of its $100 million investment.

Has the latest video game adaption on the big screen left you questioning if it could be the most dismal yet? Our response was that there have been other attempts even more disappointing than this one.

While some movies on this list might offer an unintentionally entertaining experience compared to the high-quality standard set by “Borderlands,” it’s important to note that the overall quality of these films falls short in comparison.

8 Assassin’s Creed

Why So Serious?

Video Game Movies Worse Than Borderlands

Rotten Tomatoes Score:	18%

As an avid fan, I’d say Assassin’s Creed strives to be a thrilling, action-packed journey, but its narrative can get overly dramatic at times. To put it frankly, the Assassin’s Creed series, with their intense action and stealth elements, usually provide an immersive gameplay experience that keeps me hooked.

In essence, the film adaptation of “Assassin’s Creed” closely adheres to its origin, leaving minimal fresh or captivating content for dedicated fans. For those unfamiliar with the Assassin’s Creed (AC) series, the poor quality in editing, direction, and performance is likely to deter you regardless.

In his most intense performances, Michael Fassbender truly excels. Here’s to hoping that should he revisit the Assassin’s Creed adaptation, it transforms into a vibrant tribute to the series rather than a lackluster, problematic portrayal.

7 Double Dragon

Putting The ‘Drag’ In Dragon

Rotten Tomatoes Score:	12%

The movie “Double Dragon” falls short when it comes to entertaining ’90s films aimed at children, despite initially appearing as an engaging family-friendly martial arts adventure. However, it fails to hit the target in numerous aspects.

In the game of Double Dragon, the rhythm isn’t consistently engaging. Frequently, it transitions abruptly from intense emotional moments to impersonal battles against nameless adversaries. The fight sequences lack tension and excitement, featuring cartoonish scenarios where opponents seemingly knock themselves unconscious with overly exaggerated moves.

In a different phrasing: Double Dragon could have been more impactful if it had fully utilized its “New Angelos” setting or given a comprehensive portrayal of its video game’s original content, as it only touches on these elements superficially.

6 Doom

We Don’t Like What The Rock Was Cooking

Rotten Tomatoes Score:	18%

The movie based on “Doom” could easily have been given a completely different title, and people might not even notice the change. Not only does this film fail to capture the essence of the game franchise, but its overall quality leaves much to be desired.

As a gamer, I find myself frequently disappointed with the familiarity of Doom‘s narrative, which leans heavily on horror tropes reminiscent of the Alien series. It’s a pity because this game had the potential to create a truly distinct cinematic experience.

Featuring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson along with Karl Urban, this film boasted a lineup that looked promising for a captivating, adrenaline-pumping thriller. However, the storyline and acting in Doom fell short of expectations. When the action attempts to mimic the first-person view from the games, it feels like watching an easy video game level played by your younger sibling.

Interestingly, despite the poor reception of the movie based on that violent video game, The Rock still found himself involved, as he also featured in the disappointing 2018 version of Rampage.

5 Street Fighter (1994)

Even Borderlands Wasn’t This Cheesy

Rotten Tomatoes Score:	11%

Street Fighter might be aptly described as a film that leans heavily into campiness. The movie seems unconcerned with maintaining seriousness, leading to numerous flaws in its narrative structure, editing, performances, and overall quality.

The film may have garnered a devoted fanbase, but it unfortunately falls short in capturing the genuine essence of Street Fighter. It lacks authenticity in portraying several characters and their histories, and the action scenes are dull and poorly managed. This is disappointing since most of the content revolves around action.

The most favorable assessment for the film version of “Street Fighter” could be that they managed to cast a diverse group of characters quite effectively. Moreover, the inclusion of numerous fighters from the game series adds some value, even if it doesn’t make the movie enjoyable enough to watch in any significant way. However, there is still something to appreciate about it.

4 Hitman: Agent 47

Here, Agent 47 Is The Least Silent Assassin

Rotten Tomatoes Score:	8%

In a different wording: The game “Hitman: Agent 47” might have benefited from adopting a similar approach to its stealth counterpart, focusing on covert missions within a secret organization. However, it turned out to be more like an action movie with little care for detail, drawing heavily on the tropes found in numerous low-budget action films popular during the early 2000s.

It’s essential to have exciting scenes to keep the movie engaging; it wouldn’t be satisfying to have Agent 47 lurking in corners throughout the entire film. However, unlike action-packed series such as James Bond or Kingsman, there is a scarcity of the stealthy, spy-assassin vibe that was crucial for a Hitman Movie.

As a die-hard Hitman fan, I must admit there are other films in the series that could’ve made it onto this list, but for me, the 2007 film “Agent 47” stands out – albeit for its more glaring imperfections. The acting is less than stellar, and the cinematography feels disappointingly rudimentary. In fact, it’s so basic that even dedicated Hitman fans might dismiss this movie as one of the poorest attempts at adapting a video game to the big screen.

Here are the last three films in this list, and remarkably, they were all produced by Uwe Boll, the infamous German filmmaker known for creating a series of poor adaptations using favorable German film tax laws. Although many of his game adaptations could occupy these lower positions, we’ve highlighted the most noteworthy ones that we find exceptionally problematic.

3 Far Cry

Making Non-stop Action Totally Forgettable

Rotten Tomatoes Score: (audience)	12%

The core plot of Far Cry’s film adaptation is easier to forget than your average bad action movie. Even if you dislike Borderlands, you can still remember Claptrap, Lilith, and Tiny Tina. But it is difficult to remember a single individual character from the dumpster fire of Far Cry.

In a more natural and straightforward rephrasing: The acting and dialogue in Far Cry often come off as low-budget and cheesy, which makes it challenging to take the story or its perilous situations seriously. Given that the scenes surrounding gunfights are lackluster, it’s tough to feel even a slight sense of investment when characters find themselves in danger.

As a long-time fan of action movies, I have to admit that I was rather disappointed with “Postal,” the third and final Uwe Boll film in his oeuvre. Having high expectations for this movie based on its genre, I found it lacking in all aspects that make an action movie great. The action sequences were lackluster, the protagonist lacked depth, and the plot was confusing at best. It’s no wonder hardly anyone seems to be talking about this adaptation of a video game – it simply doesn’t measure up. In my opinion, “Postal” is not worth watching for even the most die-hard action movie fans like myself.

2 Alone In The Dark

Uwe Boll At His Worst

Rotten Tomatoes Score:	1%

The essential elements of movie creation – acting, directing, editing, and writing – were all poorly executed in the film titled “Alone in the Dark”. This movie, along with others on this list, can be considered subpar adaptations or films. However, “Alone in the Dark” isn’t merely a poor and untrue adaptation. It’s simply a terribly made movie, regardless of who was involved in its production – it’s hardly worthy of being called a film.

Uwe Boll struggles yet again to craft a compelling storyline, and the overall quality of this production seems quite low, giving off a sense of being poorly made. The action sequences appear chaotic and confusing.

And with easily the worst, most passionless acting on this list, this movie makes you feel dumb for even bothering to watch it.

Alone in the Dark ends up just being a cheesy rip-off of every movie in the horror-thriller genre, but with the added caveat that, even if you just wanted to watch a bad film and laugh at its expense, you would still have a terrible time enduring this mess.

1 Postal

Postal May Be Bad, But It Owns It

Rotten Tomatoes Score:	9%

Postal, similar to the games, appears to have been designed as the most disappointing experience. Yet, despite being significantly inferior to Borderlands, its apparent and deliberate badness makes it difficult not to stare at it.

Unlike the movie “Super Mario Bros,” which, despite being poorly received, still has its share of fans, the film “Postal” is enjoyable primarily because people tend to love to dislike it.

As a long-time gamer who has spent countless hours immersed in various video games, I can confidently say that this movie bears striking resemblance to the infamous “Postal” series, renowned for their absurd and morally questionable content. The portrayal of The Postal Dude, skillfully played by Zack Ward, is so authentic that it prompted the developers to bring him back as an additional voice in the games. Having personally experienced the chaos and nonsensical humor of these games, I can attest to the uncanny accuracy of this on-screen adaptation.

On a more personal level, one of my top choices for movies is “Freddy Got Fingered” – you know, the infamous comedy that took home the Razzie for worst picture in 2001. So when I sit down to watch “Postal,” a movie notoriously bad even by the standards of its questionable director, I find myself oddly appreciating it. This is because, unlike most items on this list, it seems fully aware of its own terribleness and revels in it.

To put it simply, it seems clear from this collection that an average video game adaptation, indeed even one that falls short of the quality of Borderlands, can still capture interest and provide enjoyment.

2024-08-21 19:09