Old movies that would make good video games.

Edit: *would make good video games

Per the discussion on the Bombcast, what are some old movies that you think would make good games. It's a hard question because movies don't often leave room for gameplay. I love Double Indemnity and The Lady Eve but what would you do in the video game version besides "Press x for banter with Barbara Stanwick?"

DOA (1950) -- Mild mannered accountant is poisoned with a slow acting poison that kills you over the course of 3 days. Plenty of room to expand on the various paths he goes down in search of his killer. Some gunfights, driving and tense dialogue prompts. Extend the poison to a week long poison and that's a reasonable 20-30 of gameplay.

I haven't listened to the Bombcast, but there should definitely be a The Blob game.

Not so much the narrative, but I've always thought the aesthetic of Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari would be great for a point and click adventure or something.

Also, there are far too few Sergio Leone inspired western games.

@beachthunder: As long as you get to play as the blob yourself, and as long as they give it the old 50's movie soundtrack (be sure to stay tuned for the vocals that kick in at around the one minute mark). I could see myself blobbing around a town devouring everything in sight, singing along to that all day long.

edit: Or how about a chess game that has a dialogue system letting you debate existensialism and religion with the AI? "Death will remember that."

Zardoz. Duh.

Outland would be good. It's a FPS on a space station, kind of plug and play.

Up in Smoke.

Open world action adventure; you can drive a big green van, there's side missions, there's 70s chicano punk funk. Stacy Keach reprises his role of Sgt. Stedenko.

kojima's first post-konami game should just be escape from new york

The Thing

Speed Racer

Use those cool shoe-shaped divekick controller some cool person did and make a Gene Kelly/Fred Astair rockband-like game with them.

Well since Citizen Kane already has a videogame I'd have to say Lawrence of Arabia.

Some of the old Hammer films would make great shlocky FMV games. I wouldn't mind a take on The Maltese Falcon by the people who made the game version of And Then There Were None.

Blade Runner if Bioware or MachineGames made it.

HOLY SHIT!!! THIS!

Already exists. I actually played it a little bit, but never got very far because the file size of the save game on PS2 was HUGE; 3 MBs, which was almost half of a PS2 memory card.

-Les Vampires

The classic Louis Feuillade silent serialized epic about a magnificently fiendish criminal syndicate being thwarted by a brilliant reporter. A fun mix of trap doors, chases, fights, and a revolving door of villains. Would make a cool point and click or adventure game. Something tells me Broken Sword was influenced by Feuillade films, but I could be wrong.

-Yojimbo

The Kurosawa jidaigeki about a ronin manipulating two gangs in a small town to destroy each other. I think this would kick ass. Basically an action game where you're free to join either group and incite infighting, stealth kill important members, etc. Of course you've got the hood with the gun at the end as a final boss too.

-Duel

The Spielberg cult classic about a guy in the California wilderness being stalked by the driver of a semi-truck. Just like the film, you wouldn't see the driver, and he'd just come after you in the truck. A horror/driving game.

-El Topo

The sort of prototype for the acid western, I don't think its weirdness has been represented properly in the western video game. Much of it is already structured as a series of 'boss fights', so I think it would make a neat game. Think Journey + Space Funeral + Red Dead.

-The Wages of Fear/Sorcerer

Both are great, one's a remake of the other naturally, but the films are about drivers in South America on a suicide mission: driving nitroglycerin through rocky terrain. In the films they overcome obstacles like unstable roads, bridges, bad weather, obstructions, etc. Naturally a driving game.

Metal Gear solid 4 would make a great game.

Cool Hand Luke. It'd be a Work Time Fun style minigame collection with games such as eating hardboiled eggs and digging holes and filling in holes.

An adventure game of The Third Man, if not just for that great noir aesthetic coupled with the zither music.

@colony024: I absolutely agree that there needs to be more Sergio Leone inspired western games.

Just saw Event Horizon again last week. It would make a great horror game. It's basically the same story as Dead Space or Doom. Just do that but with Amnesia/SOMA -esque mechanics.

Do you see?

Ghostbusters would make a great game...and it has a few times! I really liked Ghostbusters: The Game when it came out lastgen, but some people gave it an unfairshake, imo. I especially loved the multiplayer. I would love a new game with the same gameplay for busting but they should add a psuedo open world so you can drivethe Ecto-1, or whatever vehicle you use, to jobs. Then have management sim gameplay where you are building up your HQ, vehicles, equipment, employees, etc.

@izzygrazeThat exists! I played through, and beat that, back on PS2. Was a fun game. You could have up to 3 or 4 people running with you and they might turn into the thing.You would have to test their blood, keep them calm, or else even if they weren't the alien they could flip out and start attacking you or other teammates.

Escape from New York

I know this isn't "that" old but I always thought Blade would have made a cool game (yes I know they made one on PS2 that was shit). But if they made another one of those that had some good ol Wesley Snipes VO and some batman/shadow of mordor type combat, that would be fucking stellar. I think Blade is a very interesting character in a unique world that would lend itself very well to a video game.

Also I would rather they stuck closer to the themes of the first one and ignored the later installments.

@jec03: Isn't that just Smash TV?

12 Angry Men

Actually... All of those movies are point and click adventure game plot lines. Now I'm kind of amazed this hasn't happened...

Good point that's true although I still would like to see the running man made with modern graphics in third person and add Big trouble in little china to this list too.

All Quiet on the Western Front (the 1930 movie, specifically) could be a powerful blend of both adventure game and military action taking place within a trench network.

I'd like to see more WW1 games in general, actually

if they made a citizen kane video game then we could say it's the citizen kane of video games. Wizard of Oz would be a good trippy video game

To me, i think i would choose Escape From New York.

@sparky_buzzsaw: And Then There Were None does exist as an adventure game albeit with some slight adjustments to the story as needed.

Aguirre: The Wrath of God

Alexander Nevsky

Beyond the Valley of the Dolls

The Exterminating Angel

How Green Was My Valley

M

O Lucky Man!

Repo Man

Stroszek

The Virgin Spring

Ok that would be dope

@darkeyehails: Yes, that was my point. I wouldn't mind seeing that team take on some other older works or films.

I don't disagree. Don't know about third person though.

I would like a Porco Rosso based flying game.

This would be so good.

@sparky_buzzsaw: Right, just totally misread that. I agree that it turned out pretty well for an old style adventure game (setting aside how I felt about the ending).

Personally, I would like to see a Halloween game. You are Michael Myers and you stalk/ play mind games with your victims until they reach peak fear which makes them vulnerable to your attacks.

I know it's already been done, but I'd sure love to see a sequel to Robocop versus Terminator in this day and age. Maybe throw in a third faction too, something really bizarre. The concept could work great with a bunch of other licenses too - Toxic Avenger vs. the Evil Dead, or some such.

Steamboat Bill Jr turned into Asura's Wrath-style QTE insanity.

(Slightly more serious answer: Rear Window could be a pretty cool point and click adventure.)

"One of us, one of us. Gooba-gobble, gooba-gobble."

It wasn't a horrible game, but so much better could be done with something based off of that movie. That I would have to agree, I want a "The Thing' game, but an actual 'The Thing' game. Something that gets the paranoia down right, make it randomized each play through who may/may not be infected, have some sort of in game count down/timer as well so shit goes down whether you are there to see it or not. AUHG, I could go on but a true, real The Thing game would be great.

A lot of John Carpenters movies would make for good games, Escape from New York has already been mentioned. Big Trouble in Little China could make a good silly beat 'em up adventure. In The Mouth of Madness would make a great horror game, or maybe something along the lines of an episodic TellTale experience.

Also something based off of The Last Man on Earth/Omega Man/I Am Legend could be really cool.

Dr Strangelove, in the old "each level is a different playstyle" style of action game, with an overarching turn based strategy aspect that you cant actually win.

one is take the base another is fly the mission one ride the bomb another is a convince the people in the war room and so on.

Equilibrium. VR gun kata, finally a way to really use two guns at the same time.

I know the movie sucks but I would really like a dumb as fuck RPG based around Your Highness, or maybe just a really dumb fantasy RPG.

@zolroyce:

I'm sure there was a big trouble in little china game on the c64. It might not have had an actual license though.

I'd play that.

Open world for flying, strong cast of characters with hubs around the reigon, bars and clubs to chill at. Maybe factions involved in the war that you have to deal with/manage/avoid? A little Bioware RPG conversation stuff. God, Porco would be such a good game protagonist.

UGHHH, now I want it.

haha exactly. I imagined an open world arcadey flying game when I first saw the movie.

Personally I am a really big fan of that movie and think it's underrated. It is a great setting and vibe. I feel like that could be a great game.

Gave someone a copy of that as a Secret Santa. Kinda wished I'd grabbed one for myself.

@artisanbreads: I totally agree on it being under rated. Naturally most/all of his films are great, I just wish Porco Rosso got more credit. It's one of my favorites for sure.

Crimson Skies + Sid Meirs 'Pirates!' (with-a-bit-of RPG-thrown-in-there-Bioware-style)

Gosh, that would be sweet.

I would love a "The Cube" game. Puzzles+Gore+Psych Horror. Original Hellraiser inspired game.