After a pretty tumultuous decade, the DC cinematic universe is finally getting the reboot it so desperately needs. While the Snyderverse still has its fans, it's hard to argue that the DC universe has featured any form of cohesive narrative throughline between its movies, but that's finally about to change. Recently, James Gunn took to the internet to reveal DC's upcoming slate of movies and TV shows, and as Gunn fans expected, there are a good few entries on that list that don't revolve around DC's A-list heroes, one of which is primed for a video game prequel.
As well as another Batman movie, a fresh Superman, and a new Supergirl, DC's upcoming slate also includes a number of relative unknowns. The biggest unknown on that slate is The Authority, a movie based on a superhero team that's the perfect blend of Watchmen and Justice League. But with The Authority being such as unknown team, a precursor video game could act as the perfect introduction.
DC Should Introduce The Authority In a Video Game Prequel
The comic book industry contains countless superhero team-ups, and for the most part, these teams need little introduction. The Avengers have become one of the best-known superhero teams on the planet thanks to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, each member of the Fantastic Four is known for their iconic powers, and the X-Men are home to a bevy of popular mutants - and that's just Marvel. DC's Justice League is filled with some of the most beloved heroes in all of comics, and the Teen Titans are remembered fondly for their appearances across animation. If a movie based on any of these teams released in the near-future, the vast majority of audiences would know generally what they're in for. The same can't really be said for The Authority.
Debuting in 1999, The Authority is a comic series by Warren Ellis and Bryan Hitch that took Ellis' old Stormwatch characters and repurposed them for the DC universe. Originating in the era of edgy, self-referential comic books, The Authority follows in the footsteps of influential books like Watchmen, introducing a superhero team that will do the right thing at any cost.
For the most part, The Authority is filled with characters that are direct pastiches of the Justice League's heroes. For instance, the team's muscle, Apollo, is essentially just Superman, and the group's dark and mysterious hero Midnighter is extremely similar to Batman. But there are some key differences that set these heroes apart, namely how they interact with the world around them. As opposed to the Justice League's desire to save as many lives as possible, The Authority isn't afraid of racking up casualties just as long as they achieve a goal that they perceive to be the greater good. There's a lot of nuance to The Authority and each of its members, which makes the task of boiling it all down into a 2-hour movie fairly daunting.
While the age of movie tie-in games is all but finished, James Gunn has stated that there will be canonical games set in the upcoming DC universe, with characters being able to swap between the different mediums when needed. The perfect place to start is an Authority prequel tie-in video game, giving fans an overview of the team and its origin before they see it on the big screen. There are a lot of characters to cover, and there's no better way of introducing them than letting the player directly control their origin stories.