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License to thrill
Isnt it nice when a gripping piece of theatre is allowed to stand on its own two feet? Likewise gaming. Expansive titles like The Last of Us really can't be improved by a two-hour trip to the cinema, and yet producers the world over are becoming increasingly anxious to nail down these proven properties - yanno, in between all of the cocaine and caviar binges. Of course, the reverse situation is also true. What good does it do a solid piece of cinema to half-heartedly embrace a medium beyond its comfort zone? The resulting tie-in will almost certainly be 'toilet-contents terrible' and may even sour some fans on the original IP. Double KO.
Far Cry 3 with the LOST license
Gadzooks! Has it really been a decade since Oceanic flight 815 first graced our humble screens? Where does the time go, ey? Backwards? Forwards? A little bit further backwards!? Who's to say? LOST was that kind of show - routinely jumping the shark but sticking the landing, eliciting sympathy one minute only to invite fan derision the next. A tattoo episode, LOST? Really? How dare you take time out from 'the new adventures of attractive people' to tell the tale of some uneventful ink! Wait a tick, that almost sounds like Far Cry 3!
Assassin's Creed 4 with the Pirates of the Caribbean license
You'd think that a franchise adapted from an amusement park ride would be more receptive to tie-in licensing. As it is, Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean series has done little more than fire off a few damp squibs - before sailing into a squall and surrendering itself to the Lego Empire. The resulting effort was - unsurprisingly - the franchise' best game to date, with the folks at Traveller's Tales doing an admirable job as Disney's proven privateers. Of course, as any salty sea veteran will tell you, the only real difference between privateering and piracy is one all-important license.
Elder Scrolls: Skyrim with the Game of Thrones license
To paraphrase a wise old adage 'Be careful what you wish for, you might just end up with a bigger mess than Oberyn Martell's jam doughnut face Yes, thanks to the folks at Atlus and the aptly named Cyanide studios, fans of the brand have already had to endure one painfully poor GoT RPG. Suffice to say it stank like Reek and ran like Bran, with a rep that fell faster than that of a Westerosi wedding planner. Of course, all of that did nothing to dent fans' enthusiasm for a truly Skyrim-esque adventure. Now if only Bethesda themselves could be brought on board
FTL with the Battlestar Galactica license
This entry practically writes itself, so just let me grab my coat aaand I've been locked in Well I guess a quick refresher couldnt hurt, could it? Battlestar Galactica follows the adventures of Galactica, a sentient star with sweet ninja abilities aaand I'm being directed towards Wikipedia... Oh, okay, it's actually about a crew of stranded civvies and soldiers all banding together to avoid the complete annihilation of humanity. Cue much hyperspace jumping, locker room humping and bits of the ship exploding at inopportune moments.
Fight Night Champion with the Rocky license
The Italian Stallion's already appeared in his fair share of video game count-outs. Unfortunately, what most of these titles tend to forget is that Rocky fans crave more than just a big southpaw swing. They want his feuds, his foes, his rock-bottom lows. They need to see him hand out and be on the receiving end of some truly inspirational speeches, to montage his way through crazy training regimes and rival Top Gun itself for a 'Most homoerotic beach scenes' award.
NCAA 15 with the Friday Night Lights license
As any hometown fan will proudly attest, sport means that much more when you have a personal stake in the action. Maybe you're friends with a few of the athletes, or the team means a great deal to your community. Whatever it is, being able to see the human side of 'red' v 'blue' or 'Pistons' versus 'Rabies-addled Ducks' can transform even the most uneventful of match-ups into a truly unforgettable experience. NBC's Friday Night Lights took that exact same premise and ran with it - turning every viewer into a militant devotee of the fictional Dillon Panthers. Fans cared about Matt Saracen, Tim Riggins, and to a far lesser extent Landry Clarke. You were engrossed in their struggles and wanted them to win.
L.A. Noire with the True Detective license
Retro cops with conflicting opinions pursue a mystery killer. One case in particular takes years to unravel, with both men irrevocably changed by the experience. Oh and someone has the word 'Cole' in their name. Or 'Cohle'. Whatever, it's all relevant... Of course, as any 'authentic investigator' will have no doubt deduced, the preceding description applies to both Rockstar's L.A. Noire and HBO's True Detective. Together they're gritty, personal 'procedurals' - with all of the crime, adultery and outrageous chalk budgets that the moniker entails.
