Doom, Alone in the Dark, Mortal Kombat, House of the Dead, Blood Rayne... When you saw these, did it feel as if you were being punished? We, as gamers, are letdown repeatedly by these half-efforts at making a good film. The potential is there, why can't these films be at least on par with the rest of what the movie industry gives us?
The problem stems from a director's inability to portray the game in an effective way. The actions inside of a game cannot be mimicked on screen, it's up to the director to portray their own vision of things, not to try to copy game in every facet. Remember the first person shooter scene from Doom? If you do, you should learn to block it out like I have, because that is exactly the reason game-movies are awful.
The movie industry is butchering what could be great movies, all to gain a quick buck off of us fans. Doom should never have been made into a movie, period. It’s the epitome of a mindless shooter, and it has done nothing story-wise. Was it a fun game? Yes. It was revolutionary in its time, but not because of its story.
Silent Hill held a lot of promise, but it was a letdown. Overall, I liked the movie, but it was mediocre at best and could have been so much better. The same could be said for Max Payne. Again, it held promise, but was ultimately a letdown. These games are perfect candidates for something that could be turned into wonderful, thought provoking films, but no one wants to try with them.
