So many video games have been adapted into movies, but recently, they're having more success by being adapted into TV shows (as Halo has become a huge hit with fans of the game). However, the opposite rarely happens, as few TV shows ever get adapted into video games, even though they have so much potential and there'd be a huge market for them.
Redditors have called to attention a ton of TV shows that they think are perfect video game material. From an espionage spy comedy to a reality series, these shows would make some great open-world sandboxes, platformers, and MMOs.
Archer
Crashusmaximus would love nothing more than to see an Archer video game, but, surprisingly, not for the comedy. The Redditor posits, "Mission-based stealth/shooter with office social RPG style interface," which sounds like a unique spin on a stale game genre. The game adaptation could combine stealth and action (a la Splinter Cell), but it'd also have a unique cell-shaded art style, and it'd be full of humor too.
Just like the two incredibly loved, successful, and hilarious South Park games, the animation style would hardly need to be changed for an Archer video game. And again, like the South Park releases, an Archer video game could be like an entire season in itself.
Batman
Batman has already had so many video game adaptations, and the Arkham series includes some of the best superhero games ever. But where those games are dark and gritty, Sterculius wants one a lot more light-hearted and fun. The Redditor argues, "They need to make a game based on the old Adam West Batman show."
The game would have some of the most ridiculous gadgets found in a Batman release, such as the shark repellent Bat-spray and the flashing shots of onomatopoeia words, like "pow," would make for one of the most unique-looking games. Above all else, nothing sounds better than cruising around a sun-lit Gotham in the convertible Batmobile.
Cops
IOnlyLikeColdDrinks thinks a video game adaptation of Cops could be the next sandbox blockbuster game. The Redditor wants, "Just an open-world game where you arrest [...] drunk people." It almost sounds like the opposite of the Grand Theft Auto series, especially GTA V, where players are controlling Trevor, who often wakes up in the middle of nowhere after blacking out.
Cops could be an exciting reverse GTA and it could have an interesting fixed camera, but in a shaky-cam style just like how the TV show is shot (which would be reminiscent of the underrated Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days).
Adventure Time
Space_montaine wants to see Adventure Time get the video game treatment. The Redditor posits, "It could be an adventure-platformer style game, where you'd fight bad guys with your sword and solve puzzles using Jake's shape-shifting power." Just like Archer, the developers wouldn't need to exhaust themselves by designing characters, as the animation and character designs of the animated show would translate perfectly to a video game.
Between the surrealism and creativity of the series, a video game adaptation would be like a mix between Katamari Damacy and Little Big Planet. And as there hasn't been a truly original and inspiring platformer for years, Adventure Time could be the perfect property to bring inventive platforming back into the fold.
Community
A deleted user thinks the surreal sitcom, "Community could become a decent game." While Bully 2 remains in development hell, it ultimately seems like it'll unfortunately never see the light of day. However, a Community video game could very well be the spiritual successor to the 2006 Rockstar-developed classic.
A video game adaptation of the series could follow Jeff going around campus and reluctantly helping other students with their outrageous and often surreal problems. And as the show is so steeped in pop culture references, the dialogue in the game and the levels would surely be no different.
Parks And Rec
Just like Community, Parks and Rec is another work-based surreal sitcom that forces viewers to check their disbelief at the door. But that also means it'd make for a ridiculously fun video game. Dunno260 is the first to recommend the comedy get the video game adaptation treatment.
The Redditor posits, "I think a fun little sandbox-type game could come from Parks and Rec, somewhat like Roller Coaster Tycoon meets SimTown." A simulator game where players have to oversee the duties of Leslie Knope and co. and attempt to make everyone happy does sound extremely fun, but it's hard to see where the characters would come into play. If anything, it'd be added to the pile of the dozens of random simulator video games.
Mad Men
At first, Mad Men doesn't sound like it'd make that much of an exciting video game, as it has a neat '60s aesthetic and it's a drama that mostly sees people talking in rooms about advertising. However, Ancyon thinks the long-running drama would be a great game.
The Redditor explains, "The player character gains XP, which can be invested into new skills [...] as well as cash, which can be used to upgrade the grey three-piece suit into a higher level three-piece suit." There could be a mode where players have to create successful ad campaigns for strange products, and with all the dashing pinstripe suits and fedoras, the game would have one of the best character customizations ever.
Hawaii Five-0
Whimsies wants to see Hawaii Five-0 get a video game adaptation, with the ability to freely drive around at the player's leisure. which would probably result in a similar game to Cops. The Redditor explains, "I think it would make a pretty awesome free roam-type video game with missions like GTA."
But where the Alan Wake remastered release removed its product placement, a Hawaii Five-o game will probably do the opposite, as the TV series has a reputation for over-the-top product placement. If it was an open-world game, the developer and network would work together to make sure there's product placement in every frame of the game, whether it's a billboard advertising a phone brand or streets full of fast-food drive-thrus.
Storage Wars
Of all the creative TV shows out there, the last series anybody would think of adapting into a video game is Storage Wars, except for Ikbentim, who thinks it's perfect video game material. Although it sounds half like a joke, there's actually some weight to the Redditor's elevator pitch.
The user explains, "You walk around MMO style visiting auctions, yelling 'YUUUUPPP," then you use your in-game currency to buy sleeveless shirts and run your own thrift shop." It could actually be an entertaining climb-the-ladder-style game, where players start from the bottom bidding on low-cost units and work their way up to riskier and pricier units. Storage Wars would make for an interesting strategy-based release, but it could just as easily be yet another strange TV tie-in game.
Firefly
Firefly was canceled after just one season, and though it did get the follow-up movie, Serenity, fans have always felt hard done by and have always wanted more of the show. Adaminc thinks a video game could be the way to do that. The Redditor notes that the game adaptation should be an MMORPG, and that, "You can buy ships or not, hire a crew, become a trader, mercenary, assassin, bounty hunter, businessman, join the military, simply start a business on one of the planets."
While that's ambitious and something that the biggest and most immersive games ever haven't achieved, it does sound incredible. A Firefly game could be a great space sci-fi game like the Mass Effect series and give players the freedom to explore the whole universe, just like No Man's Sky.