Think of the longest film franchise you've ever seen. For me, the textbook definition of a nerd: it"s Tolkein all the way. Clocking in at approximately 11 hours is Peter Jackson's take on "The Lord of the Rings" saga, forever immortalizing his legacy as a go to guy for high fantasy (which, if you're anything like me, would come into question after the disappointment of 2011's "The Hobbit"). Clearly though, Pete Hines, marketing executive and vice president of Bethesda, holds a great deal of admiration for Jackson. He's the only director Bethesda would be willing to compromise on producing an "Elder Scrolls" blockbuster film. Given 2016's blockbuster flop "Warcraft" and Ubisoft's decision to halt production in favor of the upcoming "Assassins Creed" movie, Finder.com asked Hines if Bethesda was considering bringing Dovahkiin to the big screen. It wouldn't be the first time Bethesda's games went to film production, but given the fate of "Doom," which the gaming giant acquired in 2009, Bethesda has a reason to be suspicious.
They're not the only ones with probable cause to doubt cinema. Video game adaptations seem to consistently fail in the box office and in the minds of critics. "Warcraft" may begin to indicate a change in pattern. Although considered a narrative disaster by critics, it garnered itself a strong audience approval from Rotten Tomatoes . To give "Warcraft" credit, it's worldwide gross dwarfs every other game based motion picture with an international theatrical release despite its horrible domestic debut. And hey, any feature film sharing the same cinema as Finding Dory was destined to come up short.
But it takes a certain type of game to make it into a picture. Major selling points cater to open world environments in which the player can essentially do whatever they want outside of the plot. Developers keep players intrigued by stuffing their worlds with side quests, allowing for maximum immersion and complete customization of the main character. That presents a challenge to Hollywood: how do you make a movie that will universally represent millions of players? In "The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim", players have the opportunity to literally do anything, from following the main storyline of saving Tamriel from the evil dragon god Alduin, stopping--or joining--a coven of vampires, building castles, leading guilds, or just running around catching butterflies. "The Elder Scrolls" also has a strong modding presence, in which players can insert their own code to the game for community made quests, armor, weapons, and NPCs, to name a few products of the modded world.
As a player with multiple play throughs, modded storylines, and about 143 hours of gameplay, "The Elder Scrolls" presents a significant test to the world of cinematography. Of course, this relies on Bethesda giving the green light, which doesn't appear to be in the cards. A motion picture set in the world of Tamriel could only be directed by someone with a reputation for attention to lore specific detail and a penchant for all things Norse. But most importantly, this brave hero must take up a quest befitting dragon slayers: scoring a budget big enough to fit the entire realm of Skyrim.
