Games on Film

Harry and Rory are joined by comedian Sooz Kempner for a look at the much-anticipated big-screen outing of the blue blur himself, Sonic the Hedgehog. Since the early Sega console days, the iconic character has seen many video game sequels and spin-offs, starred in comics and cartoons, and inspired memes and questionable fan art, but following an original video animation, another earlier attempt to...

Games on Film hits the big five-o and to celebrate this milestone, it's finally time for Podcasting Bros. Harry and Rory to meet Plumbing Bros. Mario and Luigi! It's almost impossible to talk about the video game movie canon without talking about the first such adaptation, and our relationship with Mario goes as far back as our first video game experiences. But with its troubled production, deviat...

Harry / Rory cross paths with Crank creators Neveldine / Taylor for their satirical sci-fi action film Gamer, as Slayer Gerard Butler, controlled by player Logan Lerman, fights for freedom from a kill-or-be-killed real-life gaming world. Over a decade since its release, Gamer remains relevant in its depiction of battle royale shooters, online identities, and e-sports celebrities, but how does the...

It's the future: the year 2007 to be precise. At least that's the setting for the first episode of 2020, Double Dragon! Harry and Rory hit the streets of New Angeles for the big screen beat-em-up adaptation that pits villainous tycoon Koga Shuko against brothers Billy and Jimmy in a quest to unite the two halves of the Double Dragon medallion and claim its awesome mystical powers. They discuss the...

It's Christmas time, and not only is the subject of this episode a new release, but a Christmas film (technically) too! For their final video game movie of 2019, Harry and Rory venture once more into the world of Jumanji to discuss one of the year's big blockbusters. Dwayne Johnson, Jack Black, Karen Gillan and Kevin Hart return, but the game has changed. With new characters, new locations and new...

With the imminent release of The Rise of Skywalker, Harry and Rory are joined by comedian Stephen Trumble for a 'games based on films' special, as they combine podcasting and podracing for an episode focused on Star Wars. From the Atari arcade classic up to EA's recent Jedi Fallen Order, there have been dozens of titles spun off from the blockbuster sci-fi series, and the influence and impact it h...

Having taken a Detective Pikachu detour earlier in the year, it's time for Harry, Rory and their guest (and sibling) Hamish Steele to resume their journey through the animated Pokémon saga with the third big screen instalment. Plus, there's a recap on the recent release of Pokémon Sword and Shield on Nintendo Switch and a look at the Pikachu & Pichu short before the main feature. Entei-tainment gu...

Harry and Rory prepare to meet their Doom once again, with the new feature-film reboot of the first-person-shooter franchise. Doom: Annihilation promises a more faithful adaptation than what has gone before, as a squad of space marines do battle with demonic forces on a Martian moon. But is the film worthy of the wave of negativity it has received since it was first revealed, or is it actually an...

It's video gamers versus the Blood Countess from beyond the grave via a cursed horror game in spooky slasher Stay Alive. Harry and Rory discuss the inspirations and authenticity of the eponymous in-movie game, as well as time trial ghosts, fears of big buildings and literal blood baths - but can they stay alive and reach the end of the podcast? More to the point, can you? This podcast contains SPO...

Harry and Rory once again do bloody battle with the works of Uwe Boll, this time with the first instalment in his video game vampire trilogy. Kristanna Loken leads a star-studded cast as the half-human, half-vampire, half-titular Rayne, seeking vengeance against the so-called "King of the Vampires" Ben Kingsley, encountering booby traps, blood orgies and many a bad wig. Will it be fangs, but no fa...

The third film in the Resident Evil series, Extinction is literally post-Apocalypse, as Milla Jovovich and a motley crew of survivors journey across the American wastelands and do battle with zombies, crows and a lot of sand. With the director of Highlander at the helm and a distinct setting, will Extinction prove to be an oasis in the desolate desert of video game movies or a mere Mad Max wannabe...

Harry and Rory are joined by special guest Luke Owen to discuss his book 'Lights, Camera, Game Over! How Video Game Movies Get Made'. They chat about the genesis and writing of the book, hear about interviews and anecdotes with the casts and crews behind key adaptations, as well as those that got stuck in development hell, and generally ramble about video game movies past, present and future. Find...

It's a science-fiction double-feature as Harry and Rory jack into the virtual reality spectacle of the Lawnmower Man movies for this bumper episode. They discuss the works of Stephen King (and why this is no longer a Stephen King movie) and their experiences of VR and simulators in the early 90s, and then it's on to the first film, featuring brain-training, cyber-sex and a robo-chimp, and its sequ...

Harry and Rory fling themselves head first into the second big-screen outing for the titular angry birds and the rival green pigs, who must put aside their differences and team up to take on a new threat. They discuss the current state of the games franchise and how this new instalment compares to the first film. But will its slapstick cartoon capers, jukebox soundtrack and literal toilet humour m...

Having already discussed three video game movie outings with his Hobbs & Shaw co-star, it's time for Jason Statham to make his Games on Film debut, leading an all-star cast in Uwe Boll's sword-and-sorcery epic, based on Dungeon Siege. Will The Stath aka Farmer save the Kingdom of Ehb from the savage Krug? With pantomime performances, psychic sword-fights and magical mumbo-jumbo, ITNOTK: ADST has i...

Harry and Rory set their sights on the first big-screen outing for IO Interactive's silent assassin, featuring doubles, double crosses and double sword fights. They talk blood, baldness and barcodes while trying to figure out the plot's twists and turns, but to what degree is the film a hit and/or miss? This podcast contains SPOILERS for Hitman (2007). Visit our Website: gamesonfilm.wixsite.com/po...

Harry and Rory welcome Lisa Theresa Downey-Dent to the jungle (by jungle, we mean podcast) for a look at the "board game to video game" blockbuster sequel to Jumanji. Returning friend of the show The Rock (Doom, Rampage) is joined by Jack Black, Kevin Hart and Karen Gillan as the avatars of a group of teens trapped in the titular game world, filled with dangerous animals, relentless baddies and he...

It's Carry On Computer Games, as Harry and Rory take a look at 80s sex comedy / video game movie Joysticks, in which a mean old businessman does battle with young punks, nerds and slobs and tries to shut down their gaming paradise for good. A product of a simpler (though not necessarily better) time, the film features arcade antics, plenty of Pac-Man, and gratuitous nudity. But did Joysticks spark...

With the recent release of series five of Black Mirror on Netflix, Harry and Rory step back in time and choose their own paths through the interactive movie / game / digital content that is Bandersnatch. They look at other episodes of the show, as well as earlier works by Charlie Brooker, before discussing video game development in 1980s Britain, the illusion of choice, and the eternal question -...

How did the creators of Final Fantasy manage to encapsulate the many iterations of the long-running and beloved video game series into one ground-breaking animated feature film? Most would argue they didn't! But as Harry and Rory dig deeper into The Spirits Within, will they discover an underrated sci-fi classic that showed the shape of things to come or is it simply an extended FMV sequence in se...

Harry and Rory are joined once again by their guest (and brother) Hamish Steele to take a look at how the world of Pokémon has been translated into a live-action, big-screen, urban-fantasy neo-noir for kids! With Ryan Reynolds providing the voice of a crime-solving, coffee-drinking talking Pikachu, of course. They discuss fan theories, fan service and how this all slots into the PCU (Pokémon Cinem...

Harry and Rory present a special episode of Games on Film, recorded live at EGX Rezzed in London on 4th April 2019, as part of the Fringe Theatre line-up. For this panel, they nominated some video games they would like to see turned into a movie, suggesting how they would adapt it and what problems that might encounter, and putting forward cast and crew they think would be up to the task - as well...

It's been 40 years since Ridley Scott's landmark sci-fi horror was released, and the impact that Alien and its sequels have had on cinema, as well as video games, continues to be felt four decades on. In this episode, Harry and Rory discuss their first encounters with xenomorphs, from Alien War to comic book spin-offs, before running through the films and picking out notable examples of Alien vide...

One of the big hitters in the video game movie canon, Street Fighter celebrates its 25th anniversary this year. After finally catching it on the big screen, it's time for Harry and Rory to knuckle down with the much maligned adaptation of the classic Capcom fighting game franchise. Harry dedicated a chapter of his university dissertation to the film, so there's some deep discussion regarding the w...

It's the one year anniversary of the podcast, and having kicked off with Tomb Raider (2018), Harry and Rory return to the world of Lara Croft with a look at the Angelina Jolie incarnation. They examine the iconic status of the character and Jolie's portrayal, pick out some of their favourite quotes from the movie, and dissect the big action setpieces on offer. This podcast contains SPOILERS for La...