We’ve previously talked about video games receiving a much-deserved cinematic adaptation, but it looks like 2025 is THE year for this rising genre.
From a creative horror reinterpretation, to an edge-of-your-seat fantasy adventure, here are some dope adaptations that you need to keep an eye out for.
In-Depth Look At Sony’s “Until Dawn”
There have been plenty of horror games that have captured the minds of both gamers and casual viewers in the last decade alone. Titles such as “Outlast,” “P.T.,” and “Dead Space” have certainly given us an unforgettable scare, but none of them were as intriguing as “Until Dawn.”
For those unaware, “Until Dawn” was a sort of choose your own adventure horror game, where each decision could lead to the salvation of one, if not all eight main characters – or their demise. This, naturally, resulted in various endings that players could explore, making the game endlessly re-playable. It is for this, as well as other reasons, that news of a movie adaptation has raised some eyebrows.
The trailer already unveiled that the main cast is stuck in a house filled with endless nightmares, where they are relentlessly hunted by various entities. However, the main kicker is that they are actually stuck in a time loop, where time will rewind and immediately resurrect them the instant they all die. This naturally plays into the re-playability aspect that the original game is known for – but doesn’t copy the story we know and love (shame we won’t get to see Rami Malek reprise his slasher psycho role, Josh). Speaking of comebacks, it has also been confirmed that Peter Stormare will return to the series as Dr. Alan J. Hill, Josh’s psychiatrist, though he might take on a more obscure and reduced role, as we see in the trailer.
In this in-depth look, it was confirmed by the film’s writer and producer, Gary Dauberman, that the film is more of a sequel to the game, if not a spiritual successor. Director David F. Sandberg seemingly confirms this, stating that it “expands upon the universe.” With each death, the main cast are immediately sucked into another genre, as a new wave of creatures goes after them – this ranges from parasitic worms, slashers and giants to the classic wendigo.
The cast are only given up to 13 deaths or tries, and will presumably be lost forever if they fail. Whether we’ll get to know what happens after the 13th or 14th death is something that remains to be seen, and we can’t wait for when the film drops later this year on 25th April.
Netflix’s “The Witcher: Sirens Of The Deep” Drops On 11th February
We know Netflix has quite a solid hold over the popular fantasy series, but the streaming service hasn’t been fairing well with its live-action adaption in recent years. Though some are excited for the upcoming fourth season of the aforementioned series, it is still up in the air until it receives a proper release date.
If you want to get your “Witcher” fix, however, the streaming giant is cooking up another animated spin-off movie to indulge in, this time featuring everyone’s favourite monster hunter, Geralt of Rivia. Originally intended to release last year, “The Witcher: Sirens of the Deep” has been slated for an 11th February release schedule.
Based on Andrzej Sapkowski’s (author of all the “Witcher” novels) short story “A Little Sacrifice” from “Sword of Destiny, Sirens of the Deep,” the tale follows our favourite heroes as they get tangled up in an ancient conflict between humans and merpeople. For those who were introduced to the franchise, you’ll be happy to know that Doug Cockle, voice actor for Geralt, will be reprising his role for this film. Alongside him will be the voice of Joey Batey as Jaskier, who is also the actor for the popular bard in the live-action adaptation.
In the trailer, Geralt is hired to chop up some merfolk that have been attacking and terrorising a kingdom’s naval fleet and fishermen. Looking to line his pockets with more coins, Geralt accepts. Of course, in true Sapkowski fashion, Geralt will soon realise that he might side with the wrong faction, and is not trying to stem the bleeding on both sides.
If this will be anything like the last animated Witcher movie (“The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf”) then we are in for a rollercoaster ride of action with a massive gut punch in the end. Netflix has not been the best at adapting popular IPs into live-action series, typically due to them tampering with source material and various other things, but we are genuinely excited for this as the streaming titan has a near-perfect record when it comes to animated films.
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