As a longtime fan of the Borderlands franchise, I’ve seen my fair share of highs and lows. The movie bombing was undoubtedly a low point, but it didn’t break the spirit of the game or its dedicated community. In fact, if anything, it seemed to reignite the flame for some fans who wanted to revisit the world of Pandora.
Despite the Borderlands movie not being a box office hit, it wasn’t entirely detrimental for Take-Two Interactive. Given that Borderlands is one of the most significant gaming franchises, it has been consistently popular and pertinent since its debut in 2010 as a highly acclaimed cooperative shooter on Xbox 360, PS3, and PC. It wasn’t long before we began to see sequels, downloadable content, spin-offs, and the announcement of a cinematic adaptation. Unfortunately, the Borderlands movie faced an extended period of development limbo, with numerous writers attempting to bring the beloved video game series to the big screen over a decade.
The screenplay that eventually resulted in the production of the film is attributed to Joe Crombie, an author with no previous credits who may be fictitious. Some believe that “Crombie” is a pen name used by a writer unwilling to associate themselves with the film due to its poor quality. Although rumors suggested Craig Mazin, the showrunner of The Last of Us, was behind the pseudonym, Mazin has since debunked these claims. Regrettably, the Borderlands movie turned out to be a catastrophe. It underperformed at the box office with worldwide earnings of $33 million against an estimated budget of over $110 million. Critics and fans of the franchise alike panned the film, with it receiving a 10% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. This places Borderlands not only among the worst films of 2024, but also among the poorest blockbusters and gaming adaptations in history.
Take-Two Interactive, the company responsible for Borderlands, was quite discerning about adaptations. Their CEO, Strauss Zelnick, expressed disappointment with the final product when interviewed by IGN, but he also acknowledged that the franchise still saw some benefits. Zelnick pointed out that the launch of Borderlands boosted game sales significantly, so Take-Two managed to emerge from this situation with a small victory under their belt.
He expressed his disappointment with the movie, but on the flip side, it turned out to be a sales success. This means it didn’t do any harm, and perhaps even provided a slight boost. It does underscore a challenge I’ve often discussed: the complexities involved in transitioning our intellectual property into different formats.
On previous occasions, similar events have taken place. The popularity of The Last of Us video games surged when the series started airing on HBO, bringing in a fresh crowd for PlayStation. Not only did some viewers decide to play the original game following the show, but many others opted for the sequel to continue following Joel and Ellie’s tale without having to endure years of waiting for another season. Fortunately for PlayStation, this was a more advantageous situation compared to dealing with an infamous adaptation failure and boosting sales.
Among Take-Two’s notable series, BioShock is also being adapted for Netflix, though its journey to live-action has been rocky with several development versions that didn’t pan out. Previously, Zelnick mentioned that a Grand Theft Auto movie isn’t likely because it would require full creative control from a studio and self-financing – something that seems impractical when compared to the immense profits Grand Theft Auto VI is expected to generate.
Take-Two Interactive has had less than satisfactory experiences with previous adaptations, such as the movie version of Max Payne, which deviated greatly from the beloved Rockstar Games and Remedy Entertainment shooter series. There are whispers that another Max Payne adaptation might be under development, potentially for television, but so far, there’s been no substantial confirmation on these reports.
Regarding the future of Borderlands, it’s looking like no new sequel might be coming our way. But here’s some good news: Borderlands 4 is definitely happening and is expected to launch on modern gaming platforms and PC in the year 2025.
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2024-11-07 09:39