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Let's face it: movie tie-in games are not good. We'd like to say that there are exceptions to that rule, but unfortunately, while there are certainly exceptions, they are so few and far between that it's hard to even recall them.
That isn't stopping developers from releasing movie tie-ins, though, because with the growing popularity of mobile games, it has become even easier to developer and publish titles of any genre. So why not make games associated with a popular property right?
The most recent property slated for the mobile movie tie-in treatment is Marvel's Captain America: The Winter Soldier, and earlier today the first teaser trailer for the game released. As far as the movie version goes, Captain America: The Winter Soldier looks pretty good (watch a trailer here), whereas the tie-in game looks to be a fairly rudimentary brawler.
Captain America: The Winter Soldier is headed to gamers courtesy of Gameloft, a developer so prolific in the mobile space that their Wikipedia entry requires a second page for a list of their games. They deal mostly in the mobile space, with a dabbling in Wii games, and they are well versed in the tie-in genre. Some of their past works include Iron Man 2, Thor: The Dark World, Avatar, Mission Impossible 3, and even a game based on the animated film Open Season. They also developed the mobile FPS title N.O.V.A., which was actually quite enjoyable.
There is some potential in Captain America: The Soldier, specifically with regards to the story. Apparently Marvel helped co-write a story exclusively for the game, although it's unclear if said narrative will be prequel, sequel, or imaginative re-telling. Unfortunately, in a lot of cases, the "original" story card is played to avoid spoilers for moviegoers, and never manifests into anything compelling.
The Winter Soldier will also boast a multiplayer mode with clans and leagues. We don't know much more about the multiplayer mode than that, unfortunately, but the trailer does mention team-based combat.
A game featuring Captain America should have a lot of potential, but this trailer suggests anything but. Still, we'd like to see more — this is a teaser trailer, after all — before fully passing judgment on this one.
What do you think of this Winter Soldier teaser trailer? How would you like to see Captain America: The Winter Soldier brought to life in video game form?
Captain America: The Winter Soldier releases in late March for iOS and Android.