Beloved video game classics played by millions in the 1980s and ’90s are being given a new lease of life, with Hollywood snapping them up to become Tinsel Town’s new 21st century blockbusters.
Retro hits like Mario Bros and Tetris have all made a comeback this year in the form of big-budget movies, while Sega’s iconic blue-spiked speedster, Sonic the Hedgehog is set for its third film since 2020, next December.
And today, gamers across the world were left in a frenzy after the long-awaited trailer for the outrageous crime shooter Grand Theft Auto dropped ahead of the release of the eighth main title in the series.
The trailer for Grand Theft Auto VI is now on track to become the most viewed YouTube video in a single day, notching up 61 million views in just 12 hours – in a clear sign of the excitement surrounding the return of the critically acclaimed franchise. whose last debauched outing was a decade ago.
The franchise, first released on the PlayStation as a violent top-down shooter in 1997, has cemented itself among the titans of video game royalty, selling more than 405 million units and drumming up a staggering $8.33billion (£6.6billion) in sales for developer Rockstar, which has a base in Edinburgh.
‘GTA VI’ will be released in 2025 and set in fictional Vice City, reminiscent of Miami, appearing to feature the first playable female character in the franchise
The Super Mario Bros. Movie became the biggest film of 2023 and has taken in more than $1.3billion worldwide
This image released by Paramount Pictures shows Sonic, voiced by Ben Schwartz, in a scene from ‘Sonic the Hedgehog .’ (Paramount Pictures/Sega of America via AP)
Iconic 1990s game Tomb Raider has also reveled in a recent comeback, with new games and a film reboot in recent years
Also proving itself as a giant in the gaming world is Nintendo’s Iconic Italian plumber, Mario, whose latest return to the big screen raked in more than $1.3billion (£1.03billion) in global box office takings since being released in April.
Staring the not-so-Italian Chris Pratt as the moustached hero in the red shirt and blue dungarees, the blockbuster managed to topple Disney’s 2013 classic Frozen to become the second biggest animated feature of all time – with Frozen 2 just about clinging onto the top spot.
The latest Mario film is a far cry from the previous live-action movie, which was released in 1993 and was met with critical and commercial failure.
The Pratt-led cast of this year’s feature also includes the talents of performers such as Charlie Day, Anya Taylor-Joy and Seth Rogen, as well as Jack Black, who voices Bowser.
Comscore’s box office analyst, Paul Dergarabedian, said The Super Mario Bros. Movie’s command of worldwide audiences was impressive.
‘The film is dominating the movie marketplace, redefining the box office potential for a video game movie adaptation and setting the stage for a perfect summer movie season,’ he added.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie soared past the $1 billion mark, to become the third pandemic-era movie to do so, following Spider-Man: No Way Home and Top Gun: Maverick
The movie, featuring Jack Black as Bowser (pictured) became the biggest hit of 2023
Ready for more: Several cast members, including Day and Rogen, have expressed interest in producing spinoffs centered on their respective characters, Luigi and Donkey Kong
Also riding the nostalgia wave is Sega’s wise-cracking hero, Sonic the Hedgehog, which is set for his third big screen outing since 2020, next year.
The speedy-critter’s two previous films, starring Jim Carrey as Sonic’s nemesis Dr Robotnik, have raked in an impressive $735million (£582million) between them.
Voiced by Ben Schwartz – who starred alongside Mario’s Chris Pratt in sitcom Parks and Recreation – the next film is earmarked for release in December 2024.
It wasn’t, however, a completely smooth ride for the franchise, with the iconic gaming star being branded a laughing stock after the release of its first trailer in 2019, with fans of the series panning how Sonic looked.
Panicked movie bosses at Paramount Pictures postponed the film three months to give its title character a design overhaul, including fixing Sonic’s eerily human teeth and facial features.
The makeover worked and audiences responded by making Sonic the Hedgehog the top film on its opening weekend and the highest-grossing opening for a video game adaptation, not accounting for inflation.
‘If you don’t listen to your customer, and this goes for any business, then you’re going to fail,’ said Chris Aronson, distribution chief for Paramount, at the time.
‘We retooled Sonic in a way that was obviously very satisfying for the fans and they were very forgiving. Now that they’ve seen the movie, they love the movie. It all worked out.’
Also making a comeback was one of the biggest selling video games of all time, Tetris, which enjoyed its own film on Apple TV+.
Starring Rocketman’s Taron Egerton, the film follows the story of how the deviously addictive block dropping game of the 1980s became a worldwide phenomenon.
Apple TV+’s Tetris was released earlier this year and follows the story of how the smash-hit game from the 1980s came to be
The deviously addictive block dropping games of the 1980s became a worldwide phenomenon, becoming the biggest single-selling game in history
The film star’s Rocketman’s Taron Egerton as the American salesman who befriends a Russian computer geek form as they try to evade the KGB and smuggle
Tetris, first made in Russia during the time of the USSR, went on to become the single biggest selling game of all time, with more than 520 million copies sold world-wide.
Other video gaming classics to have received the silver screen treatment include the ultra-gory beat ’em up Mortal Kombat, which has also sold millions copies worldwide.
First released in 1992, the arcade classic was famed for its brutal finishing moves – which could see players rip off the heads of their opponents, among other notoriously savage killer tricks.
Cashing in on its success in the 1990s, movie executives released two films based on the fighting franchise, Mortal Kombat in 1995 and its critically-panned sequel Mortal Kombat Annihilation two years later.
The 2021 release attempted to breath new life into the game, telling the story of a washed up MMA fighter Cole Young who is chosen to fight as Earth’s hero against an evil alien force in brutal hand-to-hand combat.
The film was met with a mixed reception, however, grossing about $83million (£65.7million) worldwide.
The original Mortal Kombat arcade game was an arcade classic played by millions
The franchise was first released in the 1990s and has had a string of films to its name
In 2021 a new film attempted to reboot the franchise and retell the story behind the game
More successful was the recent Pokémon revamp, starring Deadpool star Ryan Reynolds.
The 2019 film Pokémon: Detective Pikachu was the first time the iconic ‘pocket monsters’ were featured in a live-action film, having previously starred in a series of animated features during the height of the popularity in the late 1990s.
It came 27 years after the games first hit stores in Japan on Nintendo iconic handheld console, the Gameboy, in a Red and Green version.
The role-playing games were on a cartridge, followed the journey of a young Pokemon trainer as they sought to fight and catch as many of the little creatures as possible, with players being able to trade Pokémon using a cable to connect to each other’s Gameboy.
Pokémon became an instant classic and went on to sell millions of copies, with an English version of the game being released in 1998 in America and a year later in the UK as Red and Blue.
An popular animated series and plethora of other titles followed – including a popular card game – with some 369 million having been sold worldwide as the craze swept the globe, with its lightning-firing main character Pikachu featuring at a Christmas festival in Bangkok, Thailand last week.
And the franchise appears to be just as popular, with the latest installment, Scarlet and Violent, were released last year on the Nintendo Switch, while Pokémon: Detective Pikachu raked in an impressive $450million worldwide (£356.3million)
The first Pokémon game was released in Japan by Nintendo for its iconic handheld console, the Gameboy, in a red and green version.
Its lightning-firing main character Pikachu featured at a Christmas festival in Bangkok, Thailand last month.
Pokémon has sold millions of copies around the world, with its last film released in 2019
And in 2018 another iconic 1990s gaming star made their return to the screen, this time in the form of action heroine, Lara Croft.
Tomb Raider was the latest in the high-flying series, staring Swedish actress Alicia Vikander as the titular vine-swinging adventurer-in-chief.
The film followed the fearless heiress as she becomes the crypt exploring, bow-shooting treasure hunter.
Lara Croft was first introduced back in 1996 in the video game of the same name on the PlayStation, becoming an overnight hit.
The franchise has sold more than 95 million copies and led to two films staring Angelina Jolie as the famously plump-chested action heroine in the early 2000s.
Tomb Raider, featuring Lara Croft, was released for the first time in 1996
Tomb Raider was the latest high-flying series, staring Swedish actress Alicia Vikander as the titular vine-swinging adventurer in chief.
Crash Bandicoot, the beloved 1990s platforming adventure game, is also enjoying a comeback, having made its debut on next-generation consoles last year, with Crash Team Rumble.