While video games are still struggling to find the cinematic adaptation that will give them the sort of credibility that comic books have received, one thing that’s for sure is that production companies are not letting the lack of success thus far dissuade them from finding new properties to adapt. The producer of Bridge of Spies has entered into a new agreement that will bring adaptations of several Sega properties to the screen, chief among them, the ninja game series Shinobi.
It was announced via press release that Marc Platt, and his Marc Platt Productions, would be partnering with the production arm of Sega Group to produce several films based on various Sega video game titles. Shinobi is the main title they spotlight, as it has a history that stretches back to 1987, making it one of the longer running, and most consistent titles. While it may not have the public name recognition that some video game characters have been able to accomplish, it’s certainly well known by gamers. The series traditionally follows a ninja named Joe Musashi, as he is usually tasked with defeating an enemy named Zeed who has kidnapped somebody of importance to Joe. According to the press release, it sounds like the film will be based, at least in part on this concept as the character of Joe Musashi is specifically name-dropped as the protagonist.
As part of this deal with Sega, Marc Platt Productions is also planning for adaptations of other titles like Altered Beast, Crazy Taxi, Golden Axe, and Virtua Fighter. Not all of them will necessarily be feature films, though, as both television and the ever-vague "digital projects" are also planned. The Sega name obvious by its absence here is their most famous creation, Sonic the Hedgehog. That’s because the game studio already has a production deal in place with Sony for a CGI/live action film based on that character.
If there’s one film on the list of Marc Platt productions that might bode well for all of these eventual adaptations, it’s that the company was involved in producing Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. While not a video game itself, the movie used a lot of video game logic in its story, and thus it still ended up as something of a "video game movie."
This past weekend, Ratchet and Clank proved they will not be the movie that revolutionizes the way that the industry looks at video games. There will be a couple more bites at the apple this year, however. The Warcraft will be out in just a few weeks, and Assassin’s Creed is set for December. 2016 may still be the year we remember that video games were legitimized as source material.
