Movies based on video games may have a lengthy history of being complete garbage - with a handful of exceptions - but that hasn't stopped Hollywood from churning out new ones. This year, however, sees a couple of blockbusters released that could break the mold: Warcraft and Assassin's Creed. Take a look at the latter's first trailer and judge for yourself.
While the movie, which is scheduled for release on December 21, isn't based directly on one particular Assassin's Creed game, it does appear faithful to the source material. Michael Fassbender's character, Callum Lynch, experiences the adventures of his ancestor, Aguilar, during 15th century Spain. Like the games, this is achieved using the Animus, which seems to have been given quite the upgrade.
Depending on your level of tolerance for Kanye West's music, it has to be said that the trailer looks quite impressive. Hopefully, we've waved goodbye to the bad old days when movie executives assumed that any crap loosely based on a video game would appeal to its fans.
Another (possible) reason to be optimistic about the Assassin's Creed movie is the claim by Ubisoft Motion Pictures CEO, Jean-Julien Baronnet, that it draws inspiration from Batman Begins and Blade Runner.
2010's Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time is still the biggest grossing video game movie ever made. But even though it made $336 million worldwide, it brought in just $90 million in the US - less than half of its $200 million budget.
The success of Assassin's Creed, Warcraft, and the soon-to-be rebooted Tomb Raider vehicle could dictate the frequency of future big-budget video game movie releases. Should they prove popular enough, we may see a slew of these titles arrive, much like what is currently happening with the DC/Marvel movies.
For the sake of the genre, let's hope we really have entered a new era of entertaining video game movies, and no longer have to suffer the likes of Super Mario Brothers, Double Dragon, Street Fighter (all of them), Mortal Kombat: Annihilation (not the first one), Wing Commander, House of the Dead, Alone in the Dark (Worst. Movie. Ever), Doom, most of the Resident Evil series, BloodRayne, DOA: Dead or Alive, Postal, Hitman (both of them), In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale, Far Cry, Max Payne, and Need for Speed.
