Nintendo produces
Video Games. This is a long standing truth and I hope nothing will
change that in the upcoming years. Luckily with the huge success of
the Swith it seems as if Nintendos main business area is secured. But
we don't live in the same world as twenty or even just ten years ago.
With the rise of Smartphones everything has become interconnected.
Nintendo is slowly giving in and is starting to adapt, but there is
one field were they're still hesitant to do so. Maybe it is because
they've seen countless of their rivals fail and maybe it's because
their own tries in the early 90s have been colossal failures, but
Nintendo has always shied away from adapting their IPs for the
TV-Screen.
One of the last
decisions of the late Nintendo President Satoru Iwata has been a
stronger focus on Cross-Media Projects. The idea is to heighten
awarness for Nintendo products via partnerships outside of
Videogames. The announced collaboration with Universal Studios and
opening of a Nintendo Land in their parks is one of the results of
this strategy. And now CoroCoro announced a Splatoon Web Series,
which will launch on the 12th of August on their Youtube
Channel. Of course these is just the beginning, but slowly Nintendo
begins to realize that there is a huge portion of their fans out
there, who have grown up with their games, but, as their adult lives
moved on, can't or won't find the time to play countless video games.
Still most of them harbor many nostalgic feelings towards the
products that made their childhood awesome. Projects like Pokemon
Origins have proven that a mature adaptation of their properties can
prove to be a huge success.
The recent release
of the Castlevania series on Netflix proves that adaptions of vidoe
games can succeed. If they are done by people with passion and love.
Nintendo should utilize this and not only create merchandise for
their products but once again try to bring their franchises to the
screen. It doesn't have to be a full fledged cinematic universe with
several movies leading to the inevitable team-up in the Smash Bros.
film. It doesn't even have to be a cinema project. Netflix, Amazon
Prime and Co. prove that in todays environment TV-Series can be just
as big as movies. So today I'd like to talk about the five Nintendo
IPs that should be adapted as a TV-Series or Movie.
5: Star Fox:
I said it nearly
every time I talked about Star Fox Zero, but that game was a huge
missed opportunity. Not just because the Gameplay was a constant
battle against oneself, but also because the story was boring. It was
just a simple rehash from Star Fox 64.
I'm still
convinced that Star Fox would be perfect as a dramatic Space Opera
with big set pieces and even bigger stakes. We even got a glimpse at
this with the animated trailer for Star Fox Zero. It was beautifully
done and gave the characters a deeper personality beyond needing
constant saving or telling you to do a barrel roll.
I think an
adaptation as Anime would work best for the Character Design of the
games. Anthropomorphic animals may be huge in the animated industry
(looking at you Zootopia), but the over the top action and
characteristics of Star Fox would work better in a dawn environment.
Also I would prefer the adaption to be a TV-Series instead of a
Movie.
This gives the
creators enough time to build the team and it's characters. And with
that we don't have to waste our time with a origin movie, but can hop
right into action, telling the origin stories of different characters
along the way via flashbacks. Also the TV-Series style of Story
Telling lends itself better to the idea of a grand space opera,
filled to the brim with betrayal, intrigue and mystery. Just make it
a Netflix series so I don't have to wait weeks after the cliffhanger
ending of the last episode.
4: Fatal Frame (Project Zero):
I'm a huge Horror
Fan. I love Horror Movies, Horror Stories and Horror Games. Project
Zero is a favorite of mine, simply because in this day and age the
series still provides classic horror feeling, just like in the days
of the original Silent Hill and Resident Evil. Another one of my
favorites is Stranger Things. And I think you can already see where
I'm going with this.
The plotlines of
Project Zero Games would lend themselves perfectly to a mystery
series on Netflix. And unlike Star Fox I strongly advice against
making this an Anime. Of course it could work as one, but using real
actors would serve a Horror/Mystery Series better. Even though there
are some very unsettling Horror Animes out there, I always find them
not affecting me as much as other works. Maybe it's because I
subconsciously think drawn images aren't that threatening I don't
know, but I'm sure that a series with real actors would just work
better.
As for the Story
they could adapt on of the games (2 or 5 would be best I think) or
try to tell a new story. Project Zero is a series that heavily relies
on atmosphere, which is great for a series because you don't need
many expensive shots of the threat at hand. And the ghosts also
wouldn't need a huge CGI-Budget like a, for example, the mutants from
Resident Evil would.
Project Zero would
be the perfect Mystery/Horror series. Done right I'm certain it would
grow a good following, which wonders what happens next after each
episode. Also apparently there is already a Hollywood movie adaptation in the works, so let's see where this is headed.
3: Fire Emblem
Ok now everyone
who watched the Game of Thrones premiere raise your hand. While many
great series have gathered a big following over the last couple of
years, it can't be denied that Game of Thrones creates the largest
hype. Now I've heard lots of wishes to adapt Zelda in the same style,
but I don't think it's the right franchise for that. Zelda is a
colorful adventure focused on its three main characters. Yes it has
lots of cool side characters, but the ones driving the plot are
always Link, Zelda and Ganondorf. I just don't see it lending itself
to a sprawling series filled with many different plotlines and
characters.
Luckily Nintendo
owns a series, which does exactly that. Before its Anime Overhaul in
Awekening the Fire Emblem series always told a grand story influenced
by the European middle ages. And even in Awakening and Fates it's
still the story of waring kingdoms, love and hate, betrayal and
sacrifice. A Fire Emblem Series could built upon those strengths and
build a huge world, filled with plotlines and memorable characters.
Also the prominent
perma-death feature from the games is a perfect template for a series
filled with unexpected and dramatic deaths. Also Fire Emblem is a
series filled with iconic sights, so the creators wouldn't have to
follow a specific game to create memorability. Just seeing a Pegasus
Knight will make fans hearts beat higher.
This would give
them the freedom to truly create their own vision of the series
without being shackled by pre-existing games. It could work either as
a gritty Game of Thrones style series or a classic high fantasy
adaption, but I'm sure it would work.
2: The Legend of Zelda
Whenever someone
talks about Nintendo IPs, which should be done as a movie Zelda is
the first to be mentioned. And even through so far I've been
advocating for TV-Series as means of adapting Nintendo franchises,
here I agree. Zelda deserves a movie. The franchise will always be a
story concentrating on the three bearers of the TriForce. (And Yes I
know there have been expectations.)
A Zelda movie
would be huge. Nearly everyone knows Nintendo. And nearly everyone,
who knows Nintendo knows Zelda. Of course it would also be a high
risk project capable of burying video game movies forever should it
flop, but that's why it needs to be done carefully. Find Producers,
who are really passionate about the project. Just look at the
Castlevania series. They had a producers, who loved the games, and
the series turned out great.
The Legend of
Zelda should be it's own story, but with strong ties to the games.
Every inch of this series is filled with iconic bits and pieces, so
the movie would be a treat for easter egg hunter. As for the story I
would either choose Breath of the Wild or Ocarina of Time as
template. But I would change one thing. Make Zelda an actual
character, who accompanies Link on his travels. (Or he on hers)
Maybe even incorporate the Champions or Sages into the story. Make the Princess and her knight gather allies before they take on Ganondorf.
Maybe even incorporate the Champions or Sages into the story. Make the Princess and her knight gather allies before they take on Ganondorf.
But now matter in
which direction they decide to take the story, it should be done on
the big screen. Zelda deserves this.
1: Metroid
Now with Zelda on
the second place this leaves only one obvious choice for Number One.
And of course it's not Mario. Now I know that Metroid would probably
the hardest property to do right as a movie or TV-Series, but if done
right it would be absolutely phenomenal. The producer of the
Castlevania Netflix series has already attested his interest in doing
a Metroid adaptation next, and if I take a look at how great his
first outing is, I'm confident that he would be the right man for the
job. Also a violent and dark Metroid series just appeals to me.
A Metroid
adaptation would be especially hard to pull of because a huge part of
the atmosphere in those games is the fact that Samus is alone. She is
the lone hunter on this hostile alien worlds. Metroid is a prime
example of a game were the gameplay creates the atmosphere. Adapting
that into a non-interactive medium would be pretty hard.
But such a series
would be the perfect opportunity to expand the lore of the Metroid
Universe. And hopefully better than Other M did. The producers could
focus on the Galactic Federation and Space Pirates, fleshing out
those two waring factions. Also I think Mother Brain and Ridley
deserve some deeper character work. Even though the Manga adaption
already steered in that direction.
Also one thing I'd
like to see from a Metroid adaptation is the attempt on making a
completely silent episode. Just Samus alone on a hostile planet. No
inner monologue or other characters to converse with. Just the best
bounty hunter of the galaxy doing her job.
Now what do you
think? Which games deserve a movie or TV-Adaptation? In in what
direction should it go?
And as always
thanks for reading
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