Much of what makes video games so enjoyable — like their interactive nature, the immersive graphics, and the hours of gameplay — is also what makes them so tricky to adapt into movies and TV shows, hence why many of these adaptations fail. However, with the runaway critical and commercial success of The Last of Us in 2023 and a promising Fallout TV series on the horizon, it looks as if there might be a new dawn for actually watchable video game adaptations.
That said, they’re still few and far between, although there are several that were critically panned upon their release, but hold up surprisingly well over time (Silent Hill), or at least make for fun watches (Lara Croft: Tomb Raider). A video game adaptation is never going to be Citizen Kane by any means, but they can provide some rousing action, creative effects, and even emotional stakes… at times.
Below, we’ve rounded up some of the most notable video game adaptations (movies and TV shows alike), ranked from worst to best.