Best Candidate For A Movie?

[Artega]

/EDIT: With the obvious success of the Lord of the Rings book, I was thinking about CRPGs that are good candidates for such treatment (i.e., three movies at three hours long each). Of course, they need not be real-life (they could be animated - anime-style would be nice, but is not necessary), though I would prefer it that way.

Well, which would you choose? I would go into details about the Baldur's Gate series storyline for those who have been punishing themselves by never playing the games, but that would take a long time, and I'd probably confuse some people along the way. Suffice it to say, it's an involving storyline, and a very good one at that. Third, Diablo doesn't have Minsc. Minsc is, well, basically the funniest NPC in any RPG you will ever see. Finally, Diablo has Diablo, who is obviously a total badarse, but he is NOTHING compared to Jon Irenicus from Shadows of Amn. I swear Irenicus is the coolest villain EVER. Everything, from his history, to his attitude, and hell, even his VOICE is cool. Play BG2 and you'll know what I'm talking about.

/EDIT: I think I need to clarify something about the Diablo series. Instead of having it end in LoD, it would end at the end of Diablo II, as it SHOULD be. I personally think Diablo should still be the final boss. Having Baal as the last boss just doesn't make sense. Besides, Baal is a Michael Jackson lookalike, and that's a thought that cannot be processed. Instead, it would start with something like Diablo: The Sin War, which would catalogue Diablo's history. It would basically talk about such events as Izual's assault on the Hellforge, the rise and fall of Inarius, and the Horadrim chasing the Prime Evils about the planet. Perhaps it could focus on a particular Horadrim (maybe even Cain?) for a lead role. The next in the series would be Diablo: Tristram or something like that, with the final one being Diablo: Terror's End. Baldur's Gate would just be Baldur's Gate, with the final two mirroring the games' names (Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn and Baldur's Gate II: Throne of Bhaal, though the "II" might be dropped somewhere along the way). Also unlike Diablo, the BG series would follow the storyline set in the game. Preferred lead role would be a human male Paladin. Why a Paladin? First, because I like Paladins. A lot. Second, it makes a lot of sense. The entire series is about the protagonist (you) and your lineage as a Child of Bhaal. Bhaal was/is evil. Sarevok was/is evil. The entire game is basically about you fighting the evil (or becoming it, in the case of evil-aligned characters), and how it affects you, your world, and your companions. Personally, I have always felt there was a sort of "intended party" in the games, and the movies would reflect this. BG1 would have the Paladin (un-named right now - I like Artega for obvious reasons, but Artega just doesn't really fit the AD&D world, IMO) accompanied by Jaheira, Khalid (damn BIS for killing him in BG2!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!), Minsc, Dynaheir, and Imoen. In BG2, party choice was a bit more open, but the game basically pushes you towards having Minsc, Jaheira, and Imoen in your party. Dynaheir and Khalid were killed by Irenicus at some point (the bastard), which leaves two slots open. Leave it to the writers to figure it out. We're still using a good-aligned party here, though, so no Edwin (though Edwin's whole Nether Scrolls quest would be quite amusing to see on the silver screen) or other evil people. Perhaps Anomen and Keldorn? Of course, finding an actor that can imitate Anomen's incredibly nasally and annoying voice may be a bit difficult. In ToB, someone would have to die to make room for Sarevok (probably Anomen - Anomen's a great cleric in the game, but he's so arrogant, I think the audience would cheer when he dies). Yes, Sarevok. The same guy in BG1 that tried to have you killed. Wouldn't the writers have fun with that? How they'd do Cespenar, I have no idea, but they would HAVE to include Cespenar. He gives Minsc a run for the money for funniest NPC in the series! I'm not sure how one would work out Irenicus, either. He kinda fits that grey area where the voice is that of a man in his middle years, but looks as if he were in his twenties or thirties. Of course, Irenicus is an Elf, so he's likely several hundred years old. I wonder what the writers would do? And I just realized I'm rambling, so I'm going to stop now :blink:

By the way, I like the new forum software. Reminds me of Black Isle Studios' forums. I like the smilies, too :huh: :o ;) :P :D :lol: B) :rolleyes: <_< :) :angry: :( :unsure: :blink: :ph34r:

[Roland]

Warcraft. :P Hands down, the best candidate. I swear, Blizzard should go into the animated movie business. They have some talent that blows the "Final Fantasy" movie out of the water, no contest.

But if I had to choose between the two... Urgh. I don't know. :P Diablo.

[Baajikiil]

Heh, just reading this post has made me want to go back to playing the series over again. So many NPC combinations not tried yet...

I agree, the BG story was very well done and is quite epic. It would make a decent plot for a movie(s).

Hmm. now I've got to get the discs back from the friend I lent them to:)

[Chameleon]

MINSC!!!!! He was the reason I played BG1 about 10 times. Just to hear him talk.

* Stand and deliver. That my hamster may have a better look at you!
* Boo likes the forest.
* Ah... night time, good for sneaking up on evil!
* Go for the eyes boo! Go for the eyes! Raaugh!
* Camaraderie, Adventure, and Steel on Steel. The stuff of legends! Right, Boo?
* Yes Boo, I agree. This group could do with a swift kick in the Morals!
* If I continue with this I'll never look Boo in the eyes again! Choose carefully, I'll not let this come to pass!"
* You have stepped behind the line of evil! Taste Hamster justice!
* Play on Bard, tis sweet music to my furry friend!
* Magic is impressive. But now, Minsc leads, swords for everyone!
* I need aid soon, lest my Hamster become... an orphan!
* Who wants some?
* You point, I punch.
* Less talk, more fight!
* Full Plate and packing steel.
* Butt kicking for Goodness!
* Squeaky wheel gets the kick!
* There be safety in numbers, and I am two or three at least!
* Make way evil! I'm armed to the teeth, and packing a Hamster!
* Choose your friends wisely, not all are as trustworthy as Minsc and Boo."

And my absolute fav
* When the going get tough, someone hold my rodent!

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

[Leshy]

I swear, Blizzard should go into the animated movie business. They have some talent that blows the "Final Fantasy" movie out of the water, no contest.

Actually, I've thought exactly that several times as well while watching the Blizzard movies in Warcraft III. They have some seriously talented 3D artists employed.

As for the topic, Baldur's Gate, definitely. At least that has a storyline ;)

-Leshy
"Reality? That's where a 3D Studio Max Pizza doesn't compare to a real one!"

[Albion Child]

I voted for Baldur's gate for 2 reasons. 1, It's cool. 2, Any movie starring Deckard Cain would justmake me sick.

[Artega]

But who would be able to play Minsc? Or voice him?

But yeah, Minsc is what makes BG1/BG2 worth playing :D I didn't quite like him in BG1, because his voiceovers were a bit slow-paced, but BG2 fixes all of that, and adds in some HILARIOUS dialogues:

"Desharik (Pirate Lord) - What are you trying to accomplish? I can indeed have people committed to Spellhold, but why would you request it?

Artega (Protagonist) - I am clearly deranged. Look who I travel with! Minsc, meet the Pirate Lord!

Yoshimo - Artega, do not let Minsc speak for us. I know I can get us in without getting us killed or looking like fools. I know I can do this. We must hurry.

Artega - Let Minsc say what he must. I enjoy him.

Desharik - Er, why is your friend pointing a hamster at me?

Minsc - Boo will soon have you figured out. You certainly seem friendlier than I think a Pirate Lord would be. And where is your peg?

Desharik - My... what?

Minsc - Your peg. A proper pirate has a peg, whether leg, arm, or... uh... some other expendable extremity. And a parrot.

Desharik - A parrot?

Minsc - Certainly! As I have my Boo, so too must you have your parrot. Boo likes parrots. They could wrassel.

Desharik - I've seen enough. Congratulations, you are on your way to Spellhold. You are clearly a danger to the general community.

Desharik - By the gods, I think I'm stupider for talking to you. Stupider? More stupid? Get them out of my sight, all of them. They may all have his disease of the mind."

That's probably one of the best, but what Minsc says to the thief trying to sell him the Planar Sphere in the slums district is hilarious, too:

"Waylane [Thief] - Hey! Hey you there! Fella with the painted head!

Minsc - Yes? You talking to Minsc?

Waylane - Yes, you! See this mighty fine sphere, here? You can have it for your very own for a mere 500 gold pieces! What do you say?

Minsc - Boo says such a sphere will not fit into my pocket. If I can't carry it with me, it's just not a good buy.

Waylane - Oh, er... the l'il fella says all that, does he?

Minsc - Yes indeed. Boo is exceptionally smart for a hamster. Smarter than all the hucksters in Calimshan.

Waylane - I see. What else does he say?

Minsc - He mutters occasionally about fellow hamsters that will kill you all, but he is just moody, so don't worry. See how he glares? Shhh, we should leave him be."

And of course, there's his new and improved "Becoming Leader" clip: "Minsc will lead with blade and boot! Boo will handle the details <squeak!>"

I would quote more of Minsc's (and Jan's, and a couple of Yoshimo's) hilarity, but I haven't finished sifting through my 300-odd screenshots, so maybe later, eh?

And you can't forget Cespenar! Not quite sure of the exact wording, but my favorite line of his was this (reacting to some kind of war hammer): "What's this? Big hammer? Me remember when Bhaal drop hammer on big godly toe. Kicked poor me all the way to Baator. Very bad week, that."

You just gotta love BioWare/Black Isle's sense of humor, eh?

[LiquidDamage]

I swear, Blizzard should go into the animated movie business. They have some talent that blows the "Final Fantasy" movie out of the water, no contest.

A monkey with a typewriter could blow Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within out of the water.

I have never been more disappointed with a movie.

I think a good movie could be made from any game franchise, the idea alone might sell the movie, but it is the writing and acting (or animation + voice acting) that makes it good. FF:TSW was simply crap as far as writing went. I might criticise the animation if I felt that better animation would have made a better movie.

You can't polish a turd.

[TheDragoon]

LiquidDamage! How's it going? I haven't seen you post in a very, very long time! :)

[The Luminaire]

Nod to Roland here, Warcraft would make a waaay better movie, especially if the cinematic quality was up to the sequences in WC3. Im awestruck every time I watch them.

As to the vote, I dont think either would make a very good movie. Diablo just, well, doesnt *have* enough story to make a good movie. Baulder's Gate would be better, but it, at the other extreme, is so *huge* that trying to make sense of it all might be rather daunting. And I wouldnt want to see a "Dungeons and Dragons" massacre again :P

[Artega]

I never saw Dungeons and Dragons, and I have absolutely no inclination to, either. For all intents and purposes, I avoid it like a plague rat. Somehow, the idea of several adolescent teens getting teleported into what I assume is Abeir-Toril and likely somewhere on Faerun (probably somewhere around the Sword Coast or Amn) just doesn't strike me as entertaining. I can imagine how exciting watching a teenager with the equivalent of 3 STR running around could be. Or a girl trying to figure out how to cast a single Magic Missile. Too bad she can't try to cast Fireball and end up killing all of them. That would make a good movie, methinks.

And you're right; Baldur's Gate would be tricky to make into a movie, to say the least. They'd likely end up cutting out half of the game just to fit the movie into a three-hour stint. Just so long as I get to see Minsc, Cespenar, Firkragg, and CARSOMYR, I'll be okay :)

[Munkay]

Agreed on the Warcraft theme... I still find myself picking up warcraft II and playing through it. Oh the memories.

Perhaps its a safer bet to say diablo storyline, purely for the reason that there is less of a storyline//undercurrent to botch in a movie plot :P

If you could promise me a brilliantly done movie? Baldurs Gate. Hands down.



ninja? :ph34r:

[LiquidDamage]

LiquidDamage!&nbsp; How's it going?&nbsp; I haven't seen you post in a very, very long time!&nbsp; &nbsp; :)

I've been posting, you must have missed them. They were mostly in the big ass controversial threads, so you probably didn't notice them.

[TheDragoon]

Fair enough, I tend to steer clear of threads that get over 50 posts long or so since it gets kind of hard to tell who is responding to what (especially when I usually don't care THAT much. :) ). It's good to see you still around, though!

[LiquidDamage]

I never saw Dungeons and Dragons, and I have absolutely no inclination to, either.&nbsp; For all intents and purposes, I avoid it like a plague rat.&nbsp; Somehow, the idea of several adolescent teens getting teleported into what I assume is Abeir-Toril and likely somewhere on Faerun (probably somewhere around the Sword Coast or Amn) just doesn't strike me as entertaining.

I assume you are thinking of the D&D cartoon, as the movie didn't use that concept. Surprisingly enough, that cartoon, with the "real kids in a D&D world" (and no, it wasn't the FR, I think it was some generic world) concept was about 100 times better than the movie.

The movie was absolutely horrifying. Seeing an actor like Jeremy Irons humiliate himself the way he did was just... depressing. I swear the movie was written by a 12 year old who had just gotten his hands on a DM's Guide and Monster Manual.

I'd repeatedly watch the Final Fantasy movie for 24 hours straight before I'd watch the D&D movie again. It was that bad.

[Taem]

I made my vote for BG since it has a superior story line. I often felt that diablo could of had a good story line if they didnt rush the game development. The first diablo game was great! And the hellfire expansion, I loved it - except for the aliens bit. That was a little extreme. I can see a good movie made from diablo 1 and all the side-quests you could do in it (ohhh and the BUTCHER in the movie would suddenly shout out scaring everyone - "AHHHHH, FRESH MEAT!!!"), but not diablo 2 unfortunatly.

[Artega]

I assume you are thinking of the D&D cartoon, as the movie didn't use that concept.&nbsp; Surprisingly enough, that cartoon, with the "real kids in a D&D world" (and no, it wasn't the FR, I think it was some generic world) concept was about 100 times better than the movie.

Nope. I was referring to the movie. I've never seen it, have no reason to, and didn't even see a preview on the TV or in the rare movie or two that I see at the theatre. I don't recall there ever being a DnD cartoon, but perhaps I'm too young. The earliest cartoon I can recall watching when I was a little kid was He-Man and occasionally The Herculoids (old 1950's/1960's cartoon) whenever it came on.

Another alternative to using the BG storyline for a movie would be using the Planescape: Torment storyline. PS:T has some of the most well-developed characters I've seen in any RPG, and the game itself reflects it. Instead of the emphasis being on combat (such as in the BG and IWD series), the emphasis is on inter-party dialogue and NPC dialogue. Vhailor is easily my favorite character in the entire game, though Morte and Nordom come in a close tied-second (Morte for his personality; Nordom for the fact that he's a robot of sorts). The Nameless One is cool, but that's to be expected, considering he's the protagonist.

I still say the Baldur's Gate series would make the best movie ever made, assuming the writers don't (didn't? I'm not sure about the grammar right there :huh: ) butcher the storyline like they typically do. It would blow LOTR out of the water, at any rate. Of course, that's assuming the writers choose a Good-aligned party, and cast a Paladin as the primary character. After all, Bhaal is evil. Why not have the protagonist be the very embodiment of all that is good and right? ^_^

[Taem]

Yes, but LotR is based on a novel, not a video game. I personally would like to see the Dragon Lance Chronicles in a movie trilogy format. Then Legends. That would be epic...

[--Pete]

Hi,

It would blow LOTR out of the water, at any rate.

Why? Because of the simple linear story? Or perhaps because of the well developed word that keeps getting bits and pieces tacked on every time some DM wants to do something different.

Sorry, LotR (the book) is a masterpiece. LotR (the movies) are a not half bad effort at making the story into a movie. The Forgotten Realms don't have an iota of the thought behind them that Middle Earth does.

And the envisioned projects are always greater than what's actually been done. But when (if ever) BG or Diablo becomes a movie. look for something like D&D not LotR. Because that's about the quantity and quality of the material they have to work with. And, yes, I loved both the games. But they are *games* not novels or even novellas. They are too shallow to support a good movie. If a movie does come from either, the screen writers will have to do the whole job -- only the name will survive.

--Pete

[CrescentWindX]

Oh, how I would love to see a Planescape movie.

I've been playing that campaign setting for years, and never tire of it. Too bad WoTC discontinued it to work more on FR, which IMHO doesn't compare to Planescape :)

In the absence of a Planescape movie, however, I'll pick Baldur's Gate. Seeing Minsc in a movie format would rock more than I can express in words.