Sony Pictures are no strangers to video game adaptations; yet their announcement regarding God of War, Horizon Forbidden West, and Gran Turismo series suggests they are committing like never before.
Sony Pictures already have a bunch of video game related projects in the works; The Last of Us (HBO), Ghost of Tsushima, and a sequel to this year’s Uncharted. However, their recent announcement, initially phished from an investor briefing and confirmed by senior Sony figures, demonstrates they are going all-in.
Reportedly, Sony Pictures have approved the development of series for the following acclaimed IPs: God of War, Horizon (Horizon Zero Dawn and Horizon Forbidden West) and Gran Turismo. This suggests they continue to see value in video game adaptations, despite their spotty reputation with critics and audiences alike.
The God of War adaptation has been rumoured to be in the works for a good deal of time, and the engaging narrative and cast of characters undoubtedly have potential. Epic battles between mythical heroes and villains plays well in Hollywood, and Amazon Prime appear to be committed to bringing Kratos and crew to life.
Meanwhile, Sony Pictures have teamed up with Netflix to develop a series based on the world of the Horizon video games. Similarly, this one will have a lot of fans excited, but is a risky project nonetheless.
Sony IR – 3 positives in the presentation 1) Horizon (Netflix), God of War (Amazon) and Gran Turismo in TV development 2) 2 live service games coming in FY3/23 are not Destiny and 3) PC gaming revenues will surge 3.8x in FY3/23 (which I think relates to live service games) #sony
— David Gibson (@gibbogame) May 26, 2022
The world of Horizon is extremely lush, and would cost a huge amount (like an Avatar amount) to translate to the silver screen. Because of this, many are assuming it will be an animated series similar to Netflix’s Arcane.
The oddest of the bunch is, without question, the Gran Turismo adaptation. There aren’t really any characters, so to speak, in Gran Turismo – a game exclusively about track racing. So here’s hoping they do something a bit outrageous, either in the vein of Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby or Pixar’s Cars.
Either way, it appears Sony Pictures are buying into the video game adaptation trend in a big way.
