Netflix’s Near-Perfect 2-Part Sci-Fi Series Is So Good, It Saved Video Game TV Adaptations

Intuitively, video games seem like an easy medium to seamlessly adapt to the screen, but many projects in the past indicate otherwise, including some of the Mortal Kombat films in the '90s or the more recent Resident Evil adaptations. The primary issue is the interactivity of video games, which is completely stripped during the transition, as writers have to pick and choose which elements to commit to the screen. So, even if there is a lot of lore and visual elements to draw inspiration from, the trick is to choose the suitable ones while also building on them enough to sustain a runtime, all while honoring the source material and fanbase. Since many adaptations struggle in this, movies and shows based on video games didn't become mainstream until 2021.