With blockbuster adaptations on screens both big and small — Paramount’s Sonic the Hedgehog, Amazon Prime Video’s Fallout, and HBO’s The Last of Us, to name a few — gamers have likely thought about small- and silver-screen versions of their favorite titles.

While we don’t need overpriced popcorn buckets or theater snack-throwing viral videos, video game fans have been clamoring for adaptations of these classic hits for quite a while.

These 10 games deliver gripping storylines that would make for some seriously great television, even for folks who don’t know their way around a controller.

Mass Effect

Mass Effect adaptation rumors have been circulating for years, but no one’s gotten the intergalactic ball rolling just yet. The franchise boasts some serious Star Wars appeal: relatable leads, impactful relationships with three-dimensional characters (yes, even romance!), nonstop sci-fi action, intergalactic diplomacy and politics, and more.

The franchise’s flagship title is quickly approaching its 20th birthday, and I can’t imagine a better way to celebrate than by announcing a gritty HBO adaptation.

Red Dead Redemption

Red Dead Redemption is a visually stunning and emotionally haunting Western franchise that primarily follows no-nonsense gunslingers John Marsden and Arthur Morgan, though the latter of whom is only seen in the second entry. With the seemingly inescapable Yellowstone franchise breaking records, audiences clearly have a thing for ranchers’ drama. Give ’em a fleshed-out Red Dead adaptation, and they’ll be SAT.

Bioshock

Like Mass Effect adaptation rumors, Bioshock gossip’s been spreading for some time. Still, the dystopian 2007 shooter has been left on the table for almost two decades. A24, where are you?!

A realistic, dark approach to life — and death — on Rapture could turn new audiences toward the beloved franchise and gaming as a whole.

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Detroit: Become Human

Yes, that’s Jesse Williams from Grey’s Anatomy. Alongside other talented actors-turned-android (Valerie Curry of superhero drama The Boys and True Blood actor-turned-streamer Bryan Dechart), the trio takes on humans’ systemic marginalization of androids.

Gripping parallels to real-world events, captivating performances across the board, and endless storyline possibilities make Detroit: Become Human an unpredictable adventure that’s perfect for the big screen.

Portal

This trippy puzzle game’s female protagonist, Chell, is forced to endure testing in the drab, brutalist Aperture Science Enrichment Center, all under the watchful eye of a malicious artificial intelligence system, GLaDOS (pronounced like the name “Gladys”).

The lead’s futuristic portal guns propel her through walls and past obstacles, all to evade GLaDOS’ Big Brother-like supervision. With the recent meteoric rise of AI, I can’t imagine a better time than now for this one…

S.T.A.L.K.E.R.

HBO’s Chernobyl paved the way for this eerie franchise’s television spot. In IP’s first release, scientists and military personnel worked to re-establish human life within the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, which they call “the Zone,” but another devastating disaster destroys and deforms their new development.

The Zone’s remaining residents must steer clear of “Stalkers” — the now-radioactive humans, plants, and animals overtaking the community — in a desperate search for money and other lifesaving aid.

Life is Strange

As artsy college kid Max Caulfield settles into her photography class, she experiences a flashback-like vision that reveals a tornado about to wipe out her hometown of Arcadia Bay. After her terrifying vision, she runs to a nearby bathroom, where she sees a disgruntled peer shoot her childhood friend Chloe. In that moment of panic, Caulfield discovers she can suddenly rewind time.

The 10-year-old title’s immersive choose-your-own-adventure gameplay, strong female leads, and countless head-scratching “whodunnit” moments would make any Life is Strange adaptation resonate with modern audiences.

Metroid 

Speaking of strong female leads…

Under that super-recognizable suit is blonde bounty hunter Samus Aran, a Guinness World Records-recognized protagonist known for being among the first playable human female characters in a mainstream title.

Put Sydney Sweeney under that helmet and you’ve got yourself a surefire hit.

It Takes Two

This cute co-op title comes from the same masterminds behind the more recent two-player mega-hit Split Fiction (which is getting its own adaptation soon). Married couple Cody and May sit down with their daughter, letting her know they might be headed for a divorce. After hearing the news, their daughter turns to handmade doll versions of her folks, play-acting and “mending” their relationship.

But as a rogue tear rolls down her cheek and lands on her handmade mini-parents, Cody and May suddenly find themselves transported into their respective toy forms.

A heartwarming and emotional story that highlights the importance of family, relationships, and perseverance, I could easily see It Takes Two as a family-friendly cinema affair.

Mafia

Need I say more? We’re inching closer and closer to Mafia: The Old Country‘s release, and nothing would drum up hype quite like an announcement from Amazon Prime Video.

The franchise’s flagship release hit shelves nearly 25 years ago, and with the new entry’s August 2025 drop not far out of reach, there’s no time like the present for a small-screen version of this unflinching, unrepentant series that pulls no punches.

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