It's easy to let a series of failures cast a shadow over real potential.
一朝被蛇咬，便很容易三年怕井绳。
That's exactly what has happened when it comes to movie adaptations of popular video games. Our industry has been burned too many times by critical and commercial disasters without enough success stories to dull the pain. When it comes to video game films, no approach seems to really click. The campy approach failed (see Super Mario Bros.), the serious approach failed (see Silent Hill and Final Fantasy:The Spirits Within), and a heavy emphasis on action scenes hasn't been wildly successful either (see Max Payne and Need for Speed).
Even Disney, the studio with the best track record when it comes to launching billion-dollar properties, couldn't get Prince of Persia to work. Currently, 2001's Lara Croft: Tomb Raider is the strongest domestic earner with a $131.2 million cume. Yet if video game adaptations were truly living up to their potential, we already would have seen one of them hit $131 million during the opening weekend alone, just like our best superhero films do.
当流行的视频游戏做电影改编时正会发生这种事。我们的行业遭受了多次重大商业性灾难的蹂躏，但却没有足够的成功案例来减轻痛苦。当涉及视频游戏电影时，似乎没有百试不爽的灵丹妙药。装模作样的方法失败了（见《超级马力兄弟》），严肃的方法也失败了（见《寂静岭》与《最终幻想：灵魂深处》），大玩动作场面也一直未见多大成功（见《马克思·佩恩》与《极品飞车》）。即使是有着发行十亿美元作品的最佳业绩记录的工作室迪士尼，也无法令《波斯王子：时之刃》成功。目前，2001年的《古墓丽影》以1.312亿美元高居（北美）国内影片累积票房榜首。然而，如果视频游戏改编能真正挖掘其所有潜能，我们早该看到其中之一仅在首周便能打破1.31亿美元票房，就像我们最好的超级英雄大片那样。
It's not that crazy to compare the potential of video game adaptations to superhero films. After all, both genres have one big thing in common: they have massive established fan bases made up of the same key demographics that can help a film deliver huge numbers globally. It's also important to remember that
superhero films only started to become really common after 2000’s X-Men. Up until that point, the major successful characters were Batman and Superman. Today the genre has gained so much mainstream appeal that Disney can confidently launch lesser-known properties such as Ant-Man with great results. Why can't video game adaptations connect in such a way?
2016 is poised to be a turning point for the genre. There are some very highprofile adaptations that could turn into blockbusters, starting a big rush to adapt more titles.
拿视频游戏改编与超级英雄电影相提并论并非那么不着边际。毕竟，这两种类型都有一大共同点：他们有相同关键人群构成的大量现成粉丝基础，这有助于电影带来全球性的巨额票房。同样重要的是记住，超级英雄电影仅是在2000年《X战警》之后才变得真正普及。直到那时，真正成功的角色只有蝙蝠侠与超人。今天这一类型已经拥有主流的票房号召力，迪士尼完全可以自信满满地推出《蚁人》这类不太出名的影片并取得不俗业绩。那么视频游戏改编为什么就不能如法炮制呢？
Families could turn Angry Birds into a viable film franchise
家庭能将《愤怒的小鸟》转变成一部可行的电影系列
It's easy to dismiss an adaptation of such a mindless game, and many on the Internet have already done just that. Perhaps the game's huge mobile presence makes it difficult for some to imagine a leap to the big screen. Whatever the case may be, it's hard to be snarky when you look at the sales figures: according to
video game market research company DFC Intelligence, the Angry Birds property has amassed over 3 billion downloads worldwide across all titles and platforms. Yes, that's billion, not million. If Sony, the film's distributor, can hit even a small percentage of the game's audience, then they'll be in great shape. The May 20, 2016, release date is a clear vote of confidence on Sony's part.
不去理会这个无脑游戏的改编是很容易的，许多人在互联网上已经这样做了。或许游戏庞大的手游存在令一些人难以想象其在大银幕上的飞跃。无论是哪种可能的情况，当你看到销售数字时很难继续刻薄：根据视频游戏市场研究公司DFC的情报，《愤怒的小鸟》作品在所有游戏和平台的全球累积下载量超过30亿。是的，是数十亿，而不是数百万。如果电影发行方索尼能打动其中甚至很小比例的游戏用户，那么他们就可以稳坐钓鱼船。2016年5月20日的电影发行日是索尼方面投下的毫不含糊的信任票。
Warcraft Is not to be underestimated
《魔兽世界》不可低估
Universal is jumping into the world of fantasy films on June 10, 2016, with Warcraft, an adaptation of the popular World of Warcraft role-playing game series. Over 100 million people have created WoW accounts since its launch in 2004. While that may not be Angry Birds-level big, it's certainly enough to make any studio exec drool. WoW is in good hands. Universal's 2015 global tally will easily pass $6 billion--a mark no other studio has ever hit--and a lot of that success is the result of a marketing team that's firing on all cylinders. The
campaigns for Fifty Shades of Grey, Pitch Perfect 2, Minions, Furious 7, Jurassic World, and Straight Outta Compton helped those titles shatter expectations. There's no reason to think that Universal won't use what they've learned in 2015 to help Warcraft maximize its potential.
环球影业将于2016年6月10日发行《魔兽世界》，挺进奇幻电影世界，这是一部风靡的《魔兽世界》角色扮演游戏系列改编剧。自游戏2004年推出以来已有1亿用户创建了《魔兽世界》账号。虽然这数字没有达到《愤怒的
小鸟》那种级别，这当然足够令许多工作室高管们垂涎欲滴。《魔兽世界》正在很好的掌控之中。环球影业2015年全球票房合计将轻松突破60亿美元——没有工作室能达到这个记录——大量的成功源于其营销团队火力全开的结果。《五十度灰》、《完美音调2》、《小黄人大眼萌》、《速7》、《侏罗纪世界》和《冲出康普顿》的宣发活
动助力这些影片打破预期。没有理由不相信环球影业不会拿出2015年学到的所有法宝来挖掘出《魔兽世界》的最大潜能。
Will Assassin's Creed succeed in a coveted December release spot?
《刺客信条》会在梦寐以求的12月发行点成功吗？
With over 80 million units sold, the Assassin's Creed franchise comes with tons of potential, and 20th Century Fox is clearly taking the property seriously. The studio hired the core team behind the 2015 adaptation of Shakespeare's Macbeth--director Justin Kurzel and stars Michael Fassbender and Marion Cotillard--to tackle this crucial project. With that kind of pedigree, it's likely that moviegoers who aren't familiar with the games will give Assassin's Creed a chance. There's no reason to be concerned about the film moving from an August 7,
2016, release date to a December 21, 2016, release. Release date changes are not always a kiss of death.
拥有超过8000万册的销量，《刺客信条》系列有着海量的潜力，而20世纪福克斯显然也郑重应对。工作室聘请了2015年莎士比亚改编剧《麦克白》的幕后核心团队——导演贾斯汀·库泽尔、明星迈克尔·法斯宾德与玛丽昂·歌迪亚——来着手应对这个关键项目。拥有这样的阵容，很可能那些不熟悉游戏的观众也会给《刺客信条》一次机会。电影从2016年8月7日的上映日推后至2016年12月21日，我们也没理由因此而担心。发行日的改变并不总是死亡之吻。
2016 Is only the beginning ...
2016年仅仅是个开始⋯⋯
If Hollywood can finally crack the formula to make successful video game adaptations, then the sky’s the limit. If properly executed, any of the films mentioned above can result in lucrative franchises, and that will only scratch the surface when it comes to available content. Here’s hoping that 10 to 15 years from now the video game equivalent of Ant-Man is released and greeted with a strong reception at the global box office.
如果好莱坞能最终打造出成功改编视频游戏的公式，那么未来将无可限量。如果实施到位，上述任意电影都能带来获利丰厚的系列电影，而当涉及到可用的内容时，这还只是个开头。这里希望从现在起的10至15年内，视频游戏如《蚂人》发行一般，在全球票房上赢得强烈反响。