Each week throws off several new video game lists ranging from the humorous to the trivial. What's better? A list of those. Here's a roundup of the rundowns out there.
?Eight Games That Should Never Become Movies [The Kartel] I think the fundamental problem with this genre is that no one has ever written or filmed anything that obscures the fact you're looking at a 90-minute advertisement for a game. You go in knowing that, and it makes all its flaws even worse. So, here's a list of great games that would be utterly ruined by a process that has turned out nothing but disappointments. Mass Effect, Fallout, Grand Theft Auto are the top choices. I'd like to add a movie that never should have been a game or a movie: Wanted: Weapons of Fate.
?The 15 Most Influential Games of the Decade [Wired] Spoiler alert! The Sims is No. 1, Grand Theft Auto III is No. 2. Halo is No. 6, a bit low for such a groundbreaking title.
?The Five Worst Video Game Marketing Campaigns of 2009 [Set on Stun] The keystone kops who ran Dante's Inferno's publicity can't even fail into the top spot here. That's reserved for Evony, an online game I've never played but apparently run by people who couldn't find their own ass with both hands and a map. Modern Warfare 2 was No. 4 thanks to the FAGS video, which probably falls outside the scope of official marketing. And I think, on the whole, the game sold rather well despite that.
?Top 10 Celebrities That Look Like Video Game Characters [VGChartz] Oooh! Oooh! I can play this too! Was Bib Fortuna in a video game? Because that sucker is a dead ringer for Jack Thompson. Also, separated at birth: Uncharted 2's Nathan Drake and former SMU running back/college football analyst Craig James.
?Top 10 Video Games That Almost Never Happened [Ask Men] I'm calling bullshit on No. 1. Grand Theft Auto IV? Really. Because, what, it's a boutique brand that can't recoup its development cost? No, it's because the franchise is such a media pariah and Hot Coffee was such a scandal. Uh huh. We're talking about a company that just infuriated investors and analysts by not announcing plans for Grand Theft Auto V in 2010. If it failed to produce GTA IV, Take Two would have been sold well before now.