It might not have the same pedigree or general popularity as DC or Marvel, but Dark Horse Comics has had over three decades' worth of great graphic novels and comics. Dark Horse is often the publishing company tasked with adapting popular gaming franchises like Halo and Overwatch to the comic medium, and has a decent track record in doing so. Still, Dark Horse Comics has plenty of its own characters, some of which would make for some exciting video games.

Just under a year ago, in June 2021, Dark Horse revealed a new department of its company geared specifically towards creating video games. Simply titled "Dark Horse Games," the department has yet to announce or release any products, and with the recent acquisition by Embracer Group, the future of Dark Horse Games is uncertain. It may take some time, but Dark Horse is sure to be working on some games based off its IPs, and there are a few specific characters that should be the first ones up to bat.

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The Umbrella Academy

umbrella academy Cropped

One of Dark Horse's most popular set of characters right now is The Umbrella Academy. Originally written by My Chemical Romance frontman Gerard Way, The Umbrella Academy follows a dysfunctional family of superheroes, each with their own unique power. While the surface-level premise is interesting, it's the character relationships and the constantly evolving absurd plot that hooks the reader.

The Umbrella Academy has reached mainstream popularity in the last few years thanks to the Netflix show, which has done a surprisingly decent job of translating the more out-there aspects of the comic, and it is bolstered by a talented cast that clearly has a lot of chemistry with one another. With Umbrella Academy Season 3 already well into production, now would be the perfect time for an Umbrella Academy video game.

A potential Umbrella Academy game may be a little tricky to pull off, with both the comic and the show not really melding into any one specific video game genre too obviously. However, with some passion and care, the cast of the Umbrella Academy could make for a compelling narrative-driven, time-hopping adventure game.

The game could be a simple recreation of the comic storylines, putting players in the shoes of each member of the Academy as they encounter different foes, using each character's distinct powers. The range of each character's powers could give a potential game a lot of variety. A potential Umbrella Academy game could take some inspiration from The Incredibles game on the PlayStation 2, where each mission focused on one of the heroes and built the level around their specific abilities.

Sin City's Marv

Characters of Robert Rodriguez's Sin City in collaboration with Tarantino

It's been a while since Sin City was in the popular zeitgeist, but this incredibly stylish neo-noir anthology series would make for a solid third-person detective game. The game could center around Marv, at least to begin with, using "The Hard Goodbye" storyline as a starting point. This comic arc would give the game a simple but effective focus, putting players in the role of Marv as he tracks down Goldie's killer.

This storyline would take the player from gang hideout to gang hideout, engaging in brutal fistfights and firefights until the player finally found who was responsible for the killing. It's a relatively simple tale of vengeance, but it'd be a fairly compelling backdrop for a violent and bloody brawler.

A Sin City game could really set itself apart from other third-person action games by embracing the iconic art style of the source material, opting to keep the game black and white and only choosing to highlight certain important objects or characters with color, making for something like a black and white Mirror's Edge.

Of course, Marv isn't the only character in Sin City, and a potential Sin City game could make great use of the comic's anthology structure. The character of Detective John Hartigan would make for some good detective-based gameplay, while Miho could offer some stealth missions that emphasize swordplay. A truly great Sin City game is more than possible, as it would just need to embrace the adult themes, brutality, and visual style of the source material.

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Hellboy

BPRD And Hellboy Poster

Arguably, the character of Hellboy has never really been done right in movie format. While the Ron Perlman-led, Guillermo del Toro-directed movies were fresh and fun at the time, they haven't aged too well, and a lot of the action set-pieces, character motivations, and dialogue don't entirely hold up today. Similarly, the recent 2019 reboot also didn't cut it for many fans of the comic, with the movie being heavily criticized for being overcomplicated and too obsessed with providing meaningless fan-service as opposed to delivering a tight and compelling narrative.

Unfortunately, Hellboy has never really done too well in the video game market, either, with only one poor movie tie-in and a 2000s PC game that had some of the clunkiest controls around. Hellboy's undeniable best outing in the video game landscape is his appearance in Injustice 2, where his unique fighting style and arsenal of weapons were lovingly implemented.

A game based on Hellboy seems like a no-brainer. A vast universe that focuses on a paranormal defense organization that protects the world from demon attacks seems like the ideal backdrop for a third-person action/horror title. Hellboy himself would make for a great playable character, with his "Right Hand of Doom" giving the player some brutal close quarters options while his array of outlandish guns and weapons could be used for ranged combat.

With a world soaked in Lovecraftian influences, a Hellboy game could easily set itself apart from the competition with a unique, juxtaposing horror/comedy tone. One of Hellboy's defining features is its light-hearted nature in the face of otherwise horrific elements, and that unique tone could make for a unique video game based on the Dark Horse property.

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