TV is becoming a bigger and bigger medium than it ever was back in the day, and as time goes on it’s quickly gaining more and more credibility. And, like films, ambitious video game companies have already turned some TV shows into (if not successful) video games.
And so with Telltale’s interpretation of HBO's Game of Thrones on the horizon, I decided to take a look at some other TV shows that I think are deserving of a video game.
Arrow
The CW
The only one on this list which could work as a first person game, players would take control as the Green Arrow as he fights crime in Starling city. It would most likely hop from present, with protagonist Oliver Queen fighting crime in the city but also the past, where the billionaire is marooned on an island, alone and struggling to survive. The past section could even be implemented as a way of unlocking skills, so that whenever one is unlocked he has a flashback, similar to the TV show. I think this would work really well as a superhero game as for the first time in too long we’d be in the shoes of a character who has very real limitations. It wouldn’t be like inFamous, where our hero can fry an enemy’s face off while taking ten or so bullets at the opening of the game. Our hero would have to be cautious the entire way through, because a bullet can stop him as easily as any other man. Players would also have to be careful not to kill targets. Even if they don’t use sharp arrows, a blunt one can easily knock a villain from a rooftop and have the same effect, potentially lowering how the city sees the Green Arrow and how hard the police and citizens will work to catch the masked vigilante.
Breaking Bad
AMC
Players would take control of three protagonists from the series. The game would probably have to be very linear and story-driven, and you’d have to either play as Walter, Jessie or Mike. Walter’s character would be heavily focused on speech and interactions with other characters, possibly with a meth-making mini-game thrown in, to try and keep your family life and your life as a drug dealer separate. You’d have to try and make it home in time so that Skylar doesn’t get suspicious or so that Hank doesn’t finally put two and two together. As Mike the game would function more like a third-person shooter, where you do missions for Mr. Fring and Saul Goodman. Jessie would function as a go between character, who would have plenty of action in his segments but also multiple character interactions. But what I think would really stand out was if the game continued even if you failed. If Skylar figures out that you’re a drug dealer she’s definitely going to leave you right now, not when she’s “supposed to” in the TV show.
If Jessie gets caught by Hank or anyone else you better hope you’ve got a plan to bust him out, or leave him there to rot. And possibly give up your identity. Either way, this allows the game to stay fresh and exciting and not a simple scene for scene remake of the amazing TV show.
Prey
ITV
The show sees Simm evading capture so that he can clear his name as he tries to unravel a conspiracy that goes much deeper than he realises. I think this would work really well as a game as it would make the player focus on methods of survival and evasion from the police and being in constant fear of being caught. As it’s set in Britain there’s no abundance of firearms and so the choice between fight or flight will usually result in the latter if they wish to stay out of police custody. The focus on survival and evasion makes it vastly different from many other titles out there, as most games are heavily focused on “shoot the bad guys to win” mechanics. You may want to kill that man who was tied to the death of your family, but does he really deserve it, and will you need him later on in the story? Again, I suggest allowing the game to continue after you “fail” a segment, so that the game will only restart if you are caught or killed and let the game carry on if you simply lose or kill a POI. This allows the game to stay fresh and diverge from the TV show and also opens up the possibility for multiple endings.
Torchwood
BBC
Think of it as a scaled down Mass Effect, but in this one your choices will ultimately impact the fate of the Earth, rather than what colour something explodes.
Click here to see how we thought a Doctor Who-themed game should play out.
True Detective
HBO
The game is easy to imagine. Players would take control of either Marty (Harrelson) or Rust (McConaughey), or possibly both through segments. The game could even be open-world, much like the amazing detective game L.A.Noire. Players would have to make their way to crime scenes to investigate the going’s on, and players would have to make their own judgements over what they think happened. There would be enough action segments to keep most gamers happy when chasing down suspects. It could even use GTA V’s character swapping mechanics to swap from Marty to Rust, and each character would have set strengths and weaknesses. What would set apart this game from the TV show is if we got to have a look at some of the other cases the two worked on. In the show we’re left out of an entire seven-year gap between the original case and the present, and I at least think it would be very interesting to know what the two dealt with in that time period. It would also be perfect for a co-operative storyline where one player controlled Rust and the other Marty as the two navigated different cases. And by co-op, I mean proper co-op, where someone can sit down next to you and play the damn thing, rather than having to buy both the system and the game.
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