Fallout has been prevalent in the video game industry, and for good reason, because the intricate details that the game got right about its setting were most undoubtedly appreciable. Recently, many video games have been adapted into other forms of media, and Fallout is the latest.
Previous video game adaptations, like The Last of Us, have been immensely successful, and the upcoming TV show based on Bethesda’s RPG series seems promising, too. But all of that begs the question: if one were to develop video games based on TV shows, how would they fare? While it may seem unprecedented, games have been based on some popular TV shows.
Opposite to Fallout, Some TV series Were Adapted into Embarrassing Video Games
Many people from the masses are familiar with some of the most outstanding performances to ever appear on TV. While the entries in a list compiling such masterpieces may be subjective, some, like The Sopranos and Breaking Bad, are certainly part of the conversation.
Some gamers and fans of the TV series might even be surprised to know that there was a video game for the PlayStation 2 titled The Sopranos: Road to Respect. Unfortunately, it turned out to be one of the worst passive media tie-in games ever to grace the video game industry and is best not talked about. A similar quality TV show tie-in title was released one year later, titled The Shield: The Game, based on the TV series of the same name.
The disappointments continued with several other video games adapted from TV shows, including Breaking Bad: Criminal Elements, The Walking Dead: Destinies, et cetera. The major problem with these was that the creators looked to capitalize on the show’s popularity, paying little to no attention to the game design.
No wonder the number of movie and TV show tie-in titles decreased a lot because of the poor quality offered by the titles mentioned above. But it wasn’t all doom and gloom for the TV show tie-in video game scene, as some video games managed not to be poorly designed.
Amid Sopranos and The Walking Dead, There Were Some Decent Games Based on TV Shows
Akin to the titles and TV shows mentioned above, the popular TV show Game of Thrones was adapted into a video game of the same name in 2012. While it wasn’t the best thing to ever exist since sliced bread, it did get the themes, the characters, and the setting spot on and was worth a shot.
However, the list of good video games adapted from TV shows cannot be completed without mentioning Telltatle‘s The Walking Dead. The video game captured the TV show’s essence and sentiment despite not having a very innovative gameplay loop and functioning like an interactive novel like most Telltale games.
But by all means, it showed the industry that if good video games can be adapted into hit TV shows, good TV shows can also be adapted into hit video games. Overall, a well-made video game has a higher chance of success.
