Popular video game classics played by millions of people in the 1980s and 1990s are getting new life, and Hollywood is snapping them up to become Tinsel Town’s new blockbusters of the 21st century.
Retro hits like Mario Bros and Tetris all made a comeback in the form of big-budget films this year, while Sega’s iconic blue-spiked speedster, Sonic the Hedgehog, will see its third film since 2020 next December .
And today, gamers around the world went into a frenzy after the long-awaited trailer for quirky crime shooter Grand Theft Auto was released ahead of the release of the series’ eighth main title.
The trailer for Grand Theft Auto VI is now on track to become the most viewed YouTube video in a single day, with 61 million views in just 12 hours – a clear sign of the excitement surrounding the return of the critically acclaimed franchise . whose last extravagant excursion was a decade ago.
The franchise, which first released on the PlayStation in 1997 as a violent top-down shooter, has become one of the world’s biggest grossers, with more than 405 million units sold and a whopping $8.33 billion (£6.6 billion) in revenue Titans of Video Game Kings established developer Rockstar, which is based in Edinburgh.
“GTA VI” will be released in 2025 and is set in the fictional Vice City, which is reminiscent of Miami, and appears to feature the first playable female character in the franchise
The Super Mario Bros. movie became the biggest film of 2023, grossing more than $1.3 billion worldwide
Released by Paramount Pictures, this image shows Sonic, voiced by Ben Schwartz, in a scene from Sonic the Hedgehog. (Paramount Pictures/Sega of America via AP)
The 1990s cult game Tomb Raider has also recently made a comeback, with new games and a film reboot in recent years
Also proving to be a giant in the gaming world is Nintendo’s legendary Italian plumber Mario, whose recent return to the big screen has grossed more than $1.3 billion (£1.03 billion) worldwide since its release in April.
Starring the not-so-Italian Chris Pratt as the mustachioed hero in the red shirt and blue dungarees, the blockbuster managed to displace the 2013 Disney classic “Frozen” and become the second-biggest animated film of all time – with “Frozen 2” just at the top was spot.
The latest Mario film is a far cry from the previous live-action film, which hit theaters in 1993 and failed both critically and commercially.
The Pratt-led cast of this year’s feature also includes talented artists such as Charlie Day, Anya Taylor-Joy and Seth Rogen, as well as Jack Black, who voices Bowser.
Comscore box office analyst Paul Dergarabedian said “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” has achieved an impressive worldwide audience.
“The film dominates the film market, redefining the box office potential for a video game adaptation and setting the stage for a perfect summer movie season,” he added.
The Super Mario Bros. film surpassed the $1 billion mark, becoming the third pandemic-era film to do so, following Spider-Man: No Way Home and Top Gun: Maverick
The film, starring 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 spin-offs based around their respective characters, Luigi and Donkey Kong
Also riding the nostalgia wave is Sega’s clever hero Sonic the Hedgehog, who will make his third cinema appearance since 2020 next year.
The fast-paced creature’s previous two films, which starred Jim Carrey as Sonic’s nemesis Dr. Starring Robotnik, the film grossed an impressive $735 million (£582 million) combined.
Narrated by Ben Schwartz – who starred alongside Mario’s Chris Pratt in the sitcom Parks and Recreation – the next film is scheduled to hit theaters in December 2024.
However, it hasn’t been entirely smooth sailing for the franchise, as the legendary gaming star became a laughingstock after the release of his first trailer in 2019, leaving fans of the series second-guessing Sonic’s appearance.
Panicked film bosses at Paramount Pictures have delayed the film by three months to give the title character a design makeover, including correcting Sonic’s eerily human teeth and facial features.
The makeover worked and audiences responded, making “Sonic the Hedgehog” the best film of its opening weekend and the highest-grossing opening film of a video game adaptation, without taking inflation into account.
“If you don’t listen to your customers, and that goes for any business, you will fail,” Paramount distribution chief Chris Aronson said at the time.
“We redesigned Sonic in a way that was obviously very satisfying to the fans and they were very forgiving. Now that they’ve seen the movie, they love it. Everything worked out.’
Also making a comeback was one of the best-selling video games of all time, Tetris, which received its own film on Apple TV+.
Starring Rocketman’s Taron Egerton, the film tells the story of how the addictive 1980s block-dropping game became a worldwide phenomenon.
Apple TV+’s Tetris was released earlier this year and tells the story of the making of the hit 1980s game
The addictive block-dropping games of the 1980s became a worldwide phenomenon and the best-selling game in history
Rocketman star Taron Egerton plays the American salesman who befriends a Russian computer geek trying to escape the KGB and smuggle
Tetris was first produced in Russia during the USSR era and became the best-selling game of all time, selling more than 520 million copies worldwide.
Other classic video games that have hit the big screen include the extremely bloodthirsty beat ’em up Mortal Kombat, which has also sold millions of copies worldwide.
First released in 1992, the arcade classic was famous for its brutal finishing moves, allowing players to rip off their opponents’ heads, among other notoriously brutal killing tricks.
Due to its success in the 1990s, film executives released two films based on the fighting series: “Mortal Kombat” in 1995 and the critically panned sequel “Mortal Kombat Annihilation” two years later.
The 2021 release attempted to breathe new life into the game by telling the story of down-and-out MMA fighter Cole Young, who was chosen to fight as Earth’s hero in a brutal hand-to-hand combat against an evil alien force.
However, the film received a mixed response and grossed around $83 million (£65.7 million) worldwide.
The original arcade game Mortal Kombat was an arcade classic played by millions
The franchise was first released in the 1990s and has spawned a number of films
In 2021, a new film attempted to reboot the franchise and retell the story behind the game
The most recent Pokémon revision with Deadpool star Ryan Reynolds was more successful.
The 2019 film “Pokémon: Detective Pikachu” marked the first time that the legendary “pocket monsters” were seen in a live-action film, having appeared in a series at the height of their popularity in the late 1990s had taken part in cartoons.
It was released 27 years after the games first hit stores in Japan on Nintendo’s legendary Gameboy handheld console in a red and green version.
The role-playing games were on a cartridge and followed the journey of a young Pokémon trainer as he attempted to battle and capture as many of the small creatures as possible, with players being able to trade Pokémon by using a cable to connect them to the to connect the other’s Gameboy.
Pokémon became an instant classic and sold millions of copies. An English version of the game was released in America in 1998 and in the UK a year later as Red and Blue.
It was followed by an animated series and a host of other titles – including a popular card game – that sold some 369 million copies worldwide as the craze swept the world and whose lightning-fast main character, Pikachu, was seen at a Christmas festival in Bangkok, Thailand, last month .
And the franchise seems to be just as popular, with the latest entry, Scarlet and Violent, releasing on the Nintendo Switch last year. While Pokémon: Detective Pikachu grossed an impressive $450m (£356.3m) worldwide
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-fast main character, Pikachu, was seen at a Christmas party in Bangkok, Thailand last month.
Pokémon has sold millions of copies worldwide, with the last film released in 2019
And in 2018, another legendary gaming star of the 1990s returned to the big screen, this time in the form of action heroine Lara Croft.
Tomb Raider was the latest high-profile series to star Swedish actress Alicia Vikander as the titular adventurer.
The film followed the fearless heiress as she becomes a crypt-researching, bow-shooting heroine.
Lara Croft was first introduced in the video game of the same name on the PlayStation in 1996 and became an overnight hit.
The franchise has sold more than 95 million copies worldwide and led to two films in the early 2000s in which Angelina Jolie played the infamous big-chested action heroine.
Tomb Raider starring Lara Croft was first released in 1996
Tomb Raider was the latest high-profile series to star Swedish actress Alicia Vikander as the titular adventurer.
Crash Bandicoot, the popular 1990s platform adventure game, is also making a comeback after making its debut on next-gen consoles last year with Crash Team Rumble.