Poll: Is "Wreck-it Ralph" the best ever video game movie?

[thejboy88]

Let me say right now that I absolutely love the recent Disney movie Wreck-it Ralph. I think it's a very well-written and entertaining film that not only gives us a positive view of games and gaming culture, but also does so with a great story and fantastic characters to boot.

But as I started thinking about it more, I began to wonder whether or not this film desevres the title of best video game movie. While it's certainly the best movie i've seen to be in some way related to video games, the fact that the video games it's featuring aren't real games (at least not the ones that are the main focus) but rather ones made up for the movie rather clouded that notion.

So I'd like to get a feel amongst the Escapist community on this matter. Is this movie the best video games movie ever made, or does it not count because there are no "real" video games involved?

 

[Nouw]

I'm leaning towards yes because it's about video-games. I find it a bit silly to restrict the genre of 'video-game movies' to pre-existing video-games.

 

[Scarim Coral]

Define "video game movie"

Do you mean like video game turned into lived action movies like street Fighter, Mortal Kombat, Super Mario Brothers, Resident Evil and Silent Hill or movie based around video games like Wizard (ok there a couple more films like that but I can't rememebr the names)?

Either way I probably say yes as my previous favourite games related film were Mortal Kombat and Silent Hill.

 

[KoudelkaMorgan]

I didn't like Wreck It Ralph. I'm not a fan of movies where I can predict every single plot point before the movie is 1/3 done.

I'd say The Wizard is the best out of the limited number of these movies I can remember. Mortal Kombat was good, Ascension not so much. Double Dragon and Mario Bros were so bad that they were still fun.

Also The Wizard has Jenny Lewis, and the MF Powerglove, so it has to win.

 

[Psykoma]

but the fact that the main cast are all fictional and not based on any actual games.

I get what you were trying to say, and I agree with it, but the way you worded it was hilarious

 

[omega 616]

It was an ok film, it was aimed a lot younger audience than most of us are. When I went there were only two types of people, young kids (about 5) and there parents ... it was me and a friend sat in a packed audience of parents and kiddies, pretty sure we were the average in terms of age.

(it was quite annoying having a bunch of chatty kids going "look mum there's sonic!")

There were occasional nods to us more mature gamers, the Konami code is the secret code the bad guy uses etc.

As for best video game movie, I don't think so. Not 'cos it wasn't based on an actual game (it's still about gaming so it gets a pass from me), it just wasn't that enjoyable. I think it was mainly due to me being too old for it's target audience, it was all bright and vibrant everybody was super nice, the bad guy wasn't super evil or intimidating in anyway. The only dark bit was the "duty calls" game and that was in there for about a minute.

Personally, I think Hitman is the best game movie ... I am probably very alone on that opinion though.

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

I think Scott Pilgrim vs. The World remains my favorite "videogame movie". I did like Wrect-it-Ralph and all the jibes at old school gaming, but I was soundly bored by the latter half of the movie, in which CHASE SCENE because FIGHT SCENE and then CHASE SCENE.

 

[gmaverick019_v1legacy]

It was an ok film, it was aimed a lot younger audience than most of us are. When I went there were only two types of people, young kids (about 5) and there parents ... it was me and a friend sat in a packed audience of parents and kiddies, pretty sure we were the average in terms of age.

(it was quite annoying having a bunch of chatty kids going "look mum there's sonic!")

There were occasional nods to us more mature gamers, the Konami code is the secret code the bad guy uses etc.

As for best video game movie, I don't think so. Not 'cos it wasn't based on an actual game (it's still about gaming so it gets a pass from me), it just wasn't that enjoyable. I think it was mainly due to me being too old for it's target audience, it was all bright and vibrant everybody was super nice, the bad guy wasn't super evil or intimidating in anyway. The only dark bit was the "duty calls" game and that was in there for about a minute.

to be honest, most kids i know my little brothers age and cousins ages, (they range from 5-8, 6 of them) they all didn't care for it near as much as my friends or I did. In the 3 showings of it i went to, the average age was easily right down my alley, as in 17-26 yrs old, in which all of my friends loved it, but you were right perhaps about older ages, because both my parents hated it, my dad even knows the konami code and he couldn't have cared less about the movie.

Personally, I think Hitman is the best game movie ... I am probably very alone on that opinion though.

and then you had to go and throw that out there, because I do actually like that movie alot, I like timothy olaphant as an actor, and thought it was pretty good. (not as good as wreck it ralph, but i'll agree to disagree on that.)

 

[Dr. Cakey]

I would say both that "yes, it is the best" and also "it doesn't count". When we say video game movie, we really mean an adaptation of a game.

For a while I thought Metroid would be a solid choice for a game movie, although it's highly unlikely considering how cautious Nintendo is with their IPs nowadays. Then Other M came out and I thought maybe we oughtn't push our luck after all.

 

[Nouw]

I'm leaning towards yes because it's about video-games. I find it a bit silly to restrict the genre of 'video-game movies' to pre-existing video-games.

If that's the case the winner is clear: Tron.

Forgive me but I have never actually seen the original Tron. I'm not too sure I'll like it either >.>, it looks a bit dated.

 

[Serinanth]

I really enjoyed wreck it Ralph, and I would say that it is a video game movie as its kind of a main point in the movie.
It is up there on my list, as is Scott Pilgrim, the original Tron, annnd.

Has anyone else seen The Last Starfighter?

Spoiler

It is a video game that starts the whole plot off but I don't know if it could be considered a video game movie. It's a pretty good movie and one of the earlier attempts at using CGI.

 

[Kurt Cristal]

I think Crank: High Voltage is my favorite video game movie. It's pretty much Grand Theft Auto as a movie, right? RIGHT?

 

[Veylon]

I wouldn't quite count it as a "video game movie". It'd have to be based on an existing franchise to count, in my estimation. Which is too bad, because it's considerably better than any game which I'd allow as counting.

This kind of makes me wonder: is there something about a movie based on a franchise that limits it from being good in some way? I mean, if you handed Link over to competent movie makers they'd be able to do something good with him, right?

For a while I thought Metroid would be a solid choice for a game movie, although it's highly unlikely considering how cautious Nintendo is with their IPs nowadays. Then Other M came out and I thought maybe we oughtn't push our luck after all.

Yeah.... I kind of had Samus pegged as a carefree type who's eager for adventure and loves doing what she does. I guess I was wrong.

 

[Louzon]

I didn't like Wreck It Ralph. I'm not a fan of movies where I can predict every single plot point before the movie is 1/3 done.

I'd say The Wizard is the best out of the limited number of these movies I can remember. Mortal Kombat was good, Ascension not so much. Double Dragon and Mario Bros were so bad that they were still fun.

Also The Wizard has Jenny Lewis, and the MF Powerglove, so it has to win.

How is "The Wizard" any better by your definition of a movie you're not a fan of? The movie is "Kid likes video game, enters tournament, meets jerk, beats jerk". People only watched it to get the trailer videos for Super Mario 3, anyways. lol

 

[Frank_Sinatra_]

Video Game Movie in the sense of based on a game, no. Mortal Kombat holds that.
Best movie about games? No. Tron holds that.

 

[Kanatatsu]

I think anyone who brings up Scott Pilgrim vs. The World should be shot in the face.