Video game films have been coming back in a big way as of late, with Assassin’s Creed, Warcraft, Ratchet & Clank, and Hitman: Agent 47 all trying — and failing — to capture the magic of the games on the big screen. Capcom is the latest company to to take a swing at video game film, and it’s doing it with its classic hero Mega Man.
Mega Man, as the film is currently being called, will be a live-action adaptation rather than an animated film, which has us excited in the same way the 1993 Super Mario Bros. movie had us excited. It’s being co-directed by Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman, who previously worked on short films as well as Nerve and Paranormal Activity 3. Chernin Entertainment, responsible for the excellent recent trilogy of Planet of the Apes films, will be producing it, so there’s at least a little hope that this could actually work out.
The timing for the film couldn’t be better, as Capcom just released Mega Man 11 to great reviews. The action platformer uses a modern art style rather than the retro pixel art of its predecessors, but it still retains the classic challenging gameplay that longtime fans enjoy. It’s available now on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and PC.
This won’t be Capcom’s first foray into film, of course. The Resident Evil film series is just as popular as the games on which it’s based, and we’ve seen both live-action and animated adaptations. Back in the ’90s, an awful Street Fighter movie was made, and there are plans for a Monster Hunter film in the future, as well. It will star Milla Jovovich and be directed by her husband Paul W.S. Anderson, who were involved in all of the live-action Resident Evil films.
Not every video game movie has been bad, however. Though not terribly original (its plot is basically the same as the 2013 rebooted game) Tomb Raider delivers plenty of action and an intense performance from Alicia Vikander. It also has plenty of nods to the games’ classic elements, though the recent Shadow of the Tomb Raider is a far superior way to learn about Lara Croft.
