A few franchises have significant reach in today’s gaming world, but none quite match a big movie tie-in.
Throughout gaming history, a game released with a movie has sold well; it’s already a popular brand and has a head start in a crowded market. Often, a movie tie-in meant big sales whether a game was quality or not; gamers of a certain age will never forget the awful Dick Tracey game, which did well in the gaming charts despite being no fun at all to play.
These days, movie tie-ins tend to be much better, much more immersive. They are a joy to play, so you can relax and enjoy an experience that is often better than the film the game is based upon. As we stand on the cusp of a new generation of consoles, we thought we’d look back at a handful of movie tie-ins that are still great fun to play today.
GoldenEye – N64
Looking at the video, GoldenEye wasn’t the best visual experience, but you must remember the time; 3D games were incredibly rare, which set GoldenEye apart. The machine was new, too; you could have four controllers all plugged in simultaneously, which might have been a strain on the gaming chair situation, but meant maximum fun. There was a good single-player element, but the multiplayer was where the fun was at. GoldenEye set the bar for all other first-person shooters that have come since; without it, there would be no Call of Duty, no Battlefield and no Star Wars Battlefront. It was so influential it sold eight million copies according to GG Recon and is described as a juggernaut of its time.
Terminator: Resistance – PlayStation 4
Terminator games have been a staple of the industry for more than three decades now. Terminator and Terminator 2 first came out on the 8-bit machines, and the imagery has been used many times since. You can find a game drawing from the film in the online slots available on Ladbrokes, namely the hugely popular The Terminator I’ll Be Back title. That uses the catchphrase from the early movies and the famous image of the red eye; something also featured on the iOS and Android game Terminator Genisys: Future War. Arguably the best direct tie-in is the PlayStation 4 release Terminator: Resistance. It is set during the original future war depicted in The Terminator and Terminator 2: Judgment Day and is considered part of the movie canon.
Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order – PlayStation 4
Like Terminator Resistance, Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is part of the movie canon and takes place five years after Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith. It also has to stand out in a crowded market; Star Wars games have been around even longer than Terminator. The first appeared on the Atari more than 40 years ago, and there have been endless titles since. Many prefer the Battlefront series, but Fallen Order is a story-driven title that feels more like a film license than Battlefront. Playing as Cal Kestis, players have access to the Force and a light sabre, with authentic sounds, antagonists and settings. There’s little doubt this is one of the best movie franchise tie-ins out there.
Batman: The Movie – Commodore 64
Today’s games tend to offer an experience that veers off from the movie, as our last two titles have proven, but back in the 8-bit days, they tried hard to remain faithful to the film’s plot. Whilst Dick Tracey was disappointing gamers everywhere, Ocean Software’s Batman did exactly the opposite. It boasted five levels, all based on scenes from the film, and it was coded very well. Commodore Format Magazine claimed it was one of the best movie releases on the platform, whilst it won Game of the Year for the ZX Spectrum. It was also helped by being bundled with the Amiga 500, which meant it reached people’s homes much easier. Considering this is still seen as a classic, despite such excellent Batman games as Arkham Asylum coming out, it is even more impressive.
If you want to relax and play these excellent movie franchise games at home, then be sure to check out our article the ‘Most Comfortable Gaming Chairs’ to ensure you’re more comfortable than you would be at the cinema!
