Rockstar Games co-founder Dan Houser has said that he feels videogame – movie adaptations won’t always be destined for mediocrity, though insisted that in order from them to succeed, the process must be born from something other than financial gain.
Chatting with the folks at the Hollywood Reporter, Houser didn’t mince his words when it comes to the current state of film – game/game – film tie-ins, telling the Hollywood Reporter: "Virtually all movies made from games are awful, while many games made from movies are also pretty horrible.”
"This will change, but with an ever more discerning audience, the goals of taking something from film-to-games or game-to-film have to be more than financial. If you feel the property has something about it that is universal or could work in another medium, and it is not simply about making easy money, then that is something worthwhile.”
"Too often, however, the aim appears to be to cash-in on the success of a particular game, book, pop singer, website, etc., and that usually produces mediocre results."
Quizzed as to why we have yet to receive a film adaptation of Grand Theft Auto or Red Dead, Houser commented:
"We have explored a lot of movie deals, but we have just chosen not to make a movie… If we were to attempt to make a movie, we would like to make it ourselves, or at least work in collaboration with the best talent, so at least if it is bad, we can know we failed on our own terms.”
"But doing that takes time, and making games properly takes a lot of time. So, we may make movies one day, with the right property and the right partnership, but we have not found the time to do that yet."
As for a potential flick based on L.A. Noire, Houser observed how Westerners have enjoyed renewed success across various mediums in recent years, and feels the same could apply to the classic Noir movie-going experience.
"Well, we spent a long time being told Westerns were dead, then we made Red Dead Redemption, which along with True Grit showed that well-made classic Westerns have life left in them in any medium. The same could be said of classic Noir – a great film could be successful now, just as Chinatown and LA Confidential were long after the 1940s," he said.