Much as movies based on video games are often disasters, so too have there been many examples of the reverse: movies based on video games that, regardless of the actual quality of the movie they're based on...stink. However, despite having a reputation for being cynical, hastily put together cash grabs that eventually went extinct for a reason, the truth is that there are some movie tie-in video games that are actually good. That's these, ranging from the "not great but not broken or awful" to the "legitimately good". For clarity, I will not be including LEGO games or the 2005 Punisher game, since though the latter has Thomas Jane reprising his role, it takes far more from the comics than the actual movie, and so is really more of a Comic Book video game than a Movie Tie-In one. At least in my opinion. I similarly will not be including original stories that happen to be set in universes that are movie franchises, like Alien: Isolation or the video game for The Thing.
All that out of the way, I hope you enjoy the list.
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Though it differs greatly from the movie proper (owing in part to licensing issues), the game still got overall solid review scores for a movie tie-in game, earning it a place here.
This is one that successfully adapts *three* movies for the price of one!
Considering how bad the movie itself was (not to mention a criminal squandering of the late David Bowie), the PS2 and PC versions are surprisingly decent, making this a case of the game being better than the movie itself!
Yes, surprisingly. At least the Gamecube and PS2 versions anyway.
As I noted in my ranking of Superhero video games, this one's largely been rendered obsolete by the Batman Arkham games. But having said that, it is *still* one of the better movie tie-in video games. It's worth mentioning that Gameinformer, which was generally very hard on movie tie-in games, gave Batman Begins a decent score of 7.25. Much of what makes Batman: Arkham Asylum great is present here, albeit in a significantly watered down form. But really, compared to the likes of Batman: Dark Tomorrow and the Batman Beyond tie-in game, that's still pretty solid. And hey, most of the movie's cast reprise their roles for this one, with the unfortunate exception of Gary Oldman as James Gordon.
While the Arcade Beat-Em-Up for Batman: Forever got a more mixed/middling reception, the beat-em-up that was released for Batman Returns fared much better, at least on the Genesis and SNES. Pity Catwoman wasn't playable alongside Batman.
As incredulous as I am about it, the fact is that the Xbox 360 version actually got multiple 8/10 scores, and even its lowest scores are 6.5/10s from Gameinformer and Gamestop, which is far from the worst scores a movie tie-in game's gotten. I may still think the movie itself is inane and not for me, but apparently it produced a solid tie-in game on the Xbox 360. And heck, the Wii, PS2, and PC versions all got overall decent reviews too. Who'd have guessed?
Another one that isn't anything stellar, but it does at least have the modest honor of being the only remotely good tie-in video game the MCU got before the concept of movie tie-in games went the way of the Dinosaurs. Until someone gives Captain America a fantastic, lovingly crafted solo game, this is the best we've got as far as Captain America solo games go. If nothing else, Chris Evans and Hayley Atwell reprise their roles, and that's always a welcome thing for me.
Both the console and GBA versions, at least in my opinion. Not as great as the Lord of the Rings games, but better than the Eragon game (much like the movie proper!)
The SNES/Sega version
