Tuesday saw the release of Dead Space 2, the highly anticipated sequel to 2008's sci-fi/horror game developed by Visceral Games (read Game Rant's first impressions of the game here). Not long after the original debuted to positive reviews, the obligatory talk of a Deadspace movie came out with director D.J. Caruso (Disturbia, I Am Number Four) at the helm.
A year later and more news breaks about the film with Caruso revealing that the story of his in-development Dead Space film is a prequel that would lead into the events of the first game. Now, six months later, the talk is back, but in the other direction. Gamers and moviegoers alike may be happy to hear that the creators of Dead Space are not rushing ahead with a live-action film adaptation, after seeing the negative results of most other game adaptations.
In an interview with Newsbeat, Dead Space co-creator Ian Milham was asked about what their current thoughts on a live-action movie are, now that the second game has hit shelves along with the second animated film (Dead Space: Aftermath).
Milham's thoughts on a live action Dead Space movie:
"We would love to have a live action film and we've had a lot of discussion.
"But one of the reasons Dead Space still exists and is popular is because we've made sure to do everything right."
"So we're doing the same with the film, not just a cheap cash-in but to do something really worthwhile, so we'll see."
The "we'll see" makes one wonder where they are in planning the Dead Space film and whether or not Caruso's prequel idea is still something they may run with. If that's the case, this situation mirrors that of the Gears of War film which was also going to be a prequel until development siezed.
Milham's response is not dissimilar to that of other developers protective of their ideas and franchise, Valve and Konami. Valve (Half-Life, Portal) would prefer to make their own movie the right way, respective of their own games, rather than let Hollywood ruin them for the fans, and in the case of the Metal Gear Solid adaptation, it has suffered from infinite delays and it seems Konami also doesn't want to tarnish the brand with a disappointing or troubled film.
Most video game movies have been massive letdowns and have only served to bring negative buzz attached to those respective franchises. On the other side of the equation, all video games based on movies tend to suck as well so we haven't seen the two industries work together well consistently. In both cases, a studio or developer is rushing into using the brand name as an easy cash grab and the consistency of failure finally has some studios, or in this case, developers, worried of the long term impact on their reputation.
It sure makes you wonder what's going on in the heads of those who work at Naughty Dog studios upon hearing all of the negative response to the ideas and Mark Wahlberg potential casting in the Uncharted movie.
Do you want a Dead Space movie based on the first game or a prequel to the game franchise?
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Source: Newsbeat (via Screen Rant)