Bad video game adaptations aren't just for the movies! Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the most disappointing, disastrous adaptations of video games in TV history.
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00:00 - I got a bad feeling about this.
00:02 - Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down
00:06 our picks for the most disappointing,
00:08 disastrous adaptations of video games in TV history.
00:12 - Bad things happened in the past.
00:15 You know you were there.
00:16 - Number 10, Street Fighter.
00:20 - No high-tech bombs to defuse, no terrorist army to stop.
00:24 This time your enemy is a virus.
00:27 - I hate colds.
00:29 - Capcom's revolutionary Street Fighter franchise
00:32 didn't have much luck with American adaptations.
00:35 In 1995, the show was part of the USA Cartoon Express block
00:39 on Saturday mornings, but was far from a knockout.
00:43 - I hate when that happens.
00:45 - The premise of an international,
00:46 undercover martial arts squad keeping the peace
00:49 partially took from the game's live-action film adaptation
00:52 from the same era.
00:54 The show was simple-minded in its stiff animation
00:57 and even stiffer writing.
00:59 Even the iconic Ryu and Ken were seldomly seen
01:02 and mostly used for painful comic relief.
01:05 - Are you sure you don't wanna hang out?
01:07 I hear Tierra del Fuego's got some killer waves.
01:11 - Waves?
01:12 Wait a minute, you said there was work.
01:14 - Street Fighter the cartoon may have lived
01:16 to fight a second season, but audiences were left fatigued
01:20 by another attempt at the fighting game's staple
01:22 that lacked stamina itself.
01:25 Number nine, Captain N, the Game Master.
01:28 One of Nintendo's first IP crossovers
01:30 followed a teenage gamer who's transported
01:33 into his game console.
01:34 There, he and the N team ventured through some
01:37 of Nintendo's most popular realms
01:39 to prevent the cunning mother brain
01:41 from conquering Video Land.
01:42 - Where am I?
01:44 - Well, you're in Video Land.
01:46 The ultimate warp zone brought you here.
01:48 - You mean like Warp Zone 4 in Super Mario Brothers?
01:51 - It was an interesting premise,
01:53 but in execution, Captain N was just another
01:56 typical Saturday morning action cartoon.
01:59 The stories and animation were silly,
02:01 with obnoxiously over-the-top humor,
02:03 characters, and voice acting.
02:06 - That was a real cool move, Coveticus.
02:09 - I agree.
02:09 - Thanks!
02:12 - The show lasted three seasons
02:14 and was reworked for syndication,
02:16 but with no real creativity or faithfulness to the games,
02:19 it was eventually game over for Captain N, the Game Master.
02:23 - Well, it was very nice of you to drop by.
02:24 Do come back and visit us soon in, say, 20 years.
02:28 - Number eight, Sonic Underground.
02:30 Of all of the loose TV adaptations
02:32 of the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise,
02:34 Sonic Underground is perhaps the boldest.
02:37 In a dystopian world, Sonic reunites
02:40 with his long-lost siblings of royal roots
02:42 to thwart Dr. Robotnik's tyranny with the power of music.
02:46 ♪ Where's your bottle gone? ♪
02:50 This was a bold idea that caught plenty of viewers' attention
02:54 across 40 episodes in just one season.
02:57 Jaleel White deserves some credit
02:59 for his vocal range as the three hedgehogs.
03:01 Unfortunately, the plot was a cacophony of big ideas
03:05 that never quite jammed.
03:07 - Hedgehog, you're defeated.
03:10 - Admit it!
03:11 - Only if you catch me.
03:12 - The animation and cheesy writing
03:16 didn't have much rhythm either.
03:17 Sonic Underground admittedly has its place
03:20 in '90s kids' nostalgia,
03:21 thanks to everyone's favorite blue hedgehog,
03:24 but it simply did not rock.
03:26 - And here's to the day
03:27 when we can all toast to freedom together.
03:30 - Number seven, The Legend of Zelda.
03:33 - Another beautiful day in the magical kingdom of Hyrule.
03:37 Boring place.
03:38 - At least this short-lived Nintendo game cartoon
03:41 got the basic concept of Link and Princess Zelda
03:45 defending the kingdom Hyrule from Ganon right.
03:47 But it exhausted that concept with repetitive action
03:51 and a tacked-on romance,
03:52 while missing much of the game's classic aesthetics.
03:55 It also had a hammy comedic tone.
03:58 - Oh!
03:59 - Ta-da!
04:00 Saved your life again.
04:02 Kiss me.
04:03 - Link's infamous turn from the definitive silent hero
04:06 to an irritable stalker is considered a legendary travesty
04:09 amongst video game adaptations.
04:11 Gaming culture is especially haunted by his catchphrase,
04:15 "Hey, excuse me, Princess,"
04:18 whined 29 times in just 13 episodes.
04:23 At least the episodes were mercifully short,
04:25 airing as part of the variety show
04:27 that takes the next spot on our list.
04:30 Number six, The Super Mario Bros. Super Show.
04:33 In 1989, Nintendo's plumbing duo
04:36 first hopped onto the small screen
04:38 with a haphazard variety show.
04:40 Each episode introduced the Mario Brothers
04:42 in a live-action sitcom starring two pro wrestlers,
04:46 which was even cheesier than it sounds.
04:49 - What do we always say, Mario?
04:50 - Hey, you slob, that's my pizza.
04:52 (audience laughing)
04:53 - When the cartoon rolled,
04:55 it featured cheap animation and random creative liberties.
04:58 The genre and scenery of the Mushroom Kingdom
05:00 kept randomly changing,
05:02 not that that brought much variety
05:04 to 52 episodes of the same basic adventure,
05:07 gags, and Italian stereotypes.
05:09 At least the show maintained the video game sound effects.
05:13 (upbeat music)
05:15 The Super Mario Bros. Super Show
05:19 is now considered a Kemp classic,
05:22 which spawned several seminal YouTube memes.
05:24 But mama mia, is it not super at all?
05:28 (upbeat music)
05:30 - Yo, I need a doctor.
05:32 I need a pizza.
05:34 - Number five, Tack and the Power of Juju.
05:37 After producing three sleeper hit games in the Tack franchise,
05:41 Nickelodeon gave the novice shaman
05:43 his own CG animated show in 2007.
05:46 - You're wasting our time.
05:47 - It was technically ambitious,
05:49 with long production intervals
05:51 that definitely didn't help its low rating.
05:54 Unfortunately, Tack's magical adventure
05:56 failed to dazzle fans of the game's more dynamic energy.
06:00 - I defeated the Woodies.
06:03 - You sure about that?
06:05 - Help me!
06:06 - While the short-lived series polarized critics,
06:09 audience felt more cursed than enchanted.
06:11 Even now, gamers who grew up with Tack and the Power of Juju
06:15 hold little nostalgia for what some consider
06:18 one of the worst shows in Nickelodeon history.
06:21 - I told you he's got a big head.
06:23 - Number four, Resident Evil.
06:25 - Day 167 of observation,
06:28 PAC 2426 still shows no sign of leadership structure
06:33 or higher brain function.
06:35 After several cinematic experiments
06:37 with Capcom's Resident Evil,
06:40 Netflix sought to reanimate the franchise's original vision.
06:44 Chronically the outbreak
06:45 of the Umbrella Corporation's apocalyptic virus,
06:48 the show had a faithful core concept,
06:51 but was tonally inconsistent.
06:53 Sometimes too serious, sometimes too freely,
06:57 the writing was just too busy.
06:59 - It was an unimaginable tragedy,
07:02 horrible accident that no one could have seen coming.
07:04 - Resident Evil gamers were particularly harsh,
07:07 and it wound up being one of the worst rated series
07:10 in Netflix history.
07:11 Timing was admittedly not on the show's side,
07:14 coming amid zombie genre fatigue
07:17 and right after a dismal movie reboot.
07:19 - Stop this.
07:22 - Cancelled after just one season,
07:27 Resident Evil was dead on arrival.
07:30 Number three, Donkey Kong Country.
07:32 - DK's back and outta here.
07:34 (laughing)
07:37 This is too easy.
07:39 - Based on the groundbreaking video game franchise
07:42 of the same name,
07:43 Donkey Kong Country also broke ground
07:45 as one of the first CG animated series.
07:48 It's a dubious distinction,
07:50 considering how crude and downright horrifying
07:52 this animation style was in the beginning.
07:54 Though it improved with a change in studio for season two,
07:58 the show never grew out of silly plots,
08:01 awkward humor, and obnoxious musical numbers.
08:04 ♪ Ship 'round the corner, I'm gonna be a star ♪
08:07 Fans of the games were also irritated
08:10 by the show's many liberties.
08:12 Most infamously, Donkey Kong's catchphrase,
08:15 - Banana slumber!
08:16 - The show gained cult status
08:18 for its surreal visuals and concepts,
08:20 but that's really all that this monkeying around
08:23 on Congo Bongo Island offers.
08:26 Number two, Mortal Kombat, Defenders of the Realm.
08:29 - We need a strategic plan of attack.
08:31 - I got one.
08:32 Kombat time!
08:34 - Given its notoriety for violence,
08:38 Mortal Kombat wasn't an ideal choice to adapt
08:40 as a Saturday morning cartoon,
08:42 but the franchise's success made it somewhat inevitable.
08:46 The series followed the heroes of Earthrealm
08:49 as they faced evildoers from other dimensions.
08:52 In place of violence,
08:53 the show added strange drama full of flat characters,
08:56 one-liners, and wholesome messages for kids.
08:59 - Hey, Sub-Zero's cool.
09:01 - Sorry, he's a warrior of honor.
09:04 - The action that did make it into the show was sparse,
09:07 repetitive, and bloodless,
09:09 even by Saturday morning standards.
09:11 Defenders of the Realm was finished after one season,
09:14 but lives on as a low light in the Mortal Kombat franchise.
09:18 - It's just hard for me to trust anymore.
09:20 - Before we unveil our top pick,
09:22 here are a few dishonorable mentions.
09:25 Double Dragon, a half-baked and cheesy adaptation
09:28 of a beat 'em up classic.
09:30 (laughing)
09:32 - Uh-oh.
09:35 - Mega Man, fully charged.
09:40 This robo-superhero revision of Capcom's hero
09:44 came up low on juice.
09:46 - Thank you.
09:47 - People call me Mega Man.
09:52 - Mortal Kombat Conquest,
09:53 the absurd and poorly produced kung fu fantasy,
09:57 couldn't survive past season one.
09:59 - You killed Peron, and you killed my sister.
10:02 This battle is between us now, to the death.
10:05 - Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures.
10:08 Generic writing and crude animation
10:10 made this Pac-Man adaptation hard to swallow.
10:13 - You, young Pac are the chosen one.
10:17 The future of our civilization depends on you.
10:20 - Then we are in deep back guano.
10:23 - Pole Position, this frantic racing game adaptation
10:27 ran out of gas after one season.
10:30 (upbeat music)
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10:50 (upbeat music)
10:51 Number one, Darkstalkers, the animated series.
10:55 Capcom's Darkstalkers was a ground-breakingly mature
10:58 and ambitious fighting game.
11:00 For it to be turned into a standard 90s kids cartoon
11:03 is a travesty in concept alone.
11:06 - Ugh, monstrous, shocking.
11:10 - Producers took drastic liberties with the source material
11:13 and simplified the story to an alien invasion.
11:16 While creating an annoying child wizard
11:18 to help the heroes fight back.
11:20 - Now, I gotta go to school.
11:22 My mom gets mad if she finds strange cat women in my room.
11:26 So could you just go?
11:27 - Perhaps this premise would have been easier to accept
11:30 if the execution hadn't been full of corny comedy,
11:33 nonsensical writing and subpar animation.
11:36 Darkstalkers, the animated series,
11:38 represents everything wrong with lazy action cartoons
11:41 of its era.
11:42 And as far as adaptations of video games for TV,
11:46 many still consider it the trend's darkest hour.
11:49 - Besides, I can be a big help to you.
11:51 You know, fighting evil and stuff.
11:53 Honest.
11:54 - You have no idea what you're saying.
11:56 - Can you think of terrible TV show adaptations
11:59 that would have been best left on the gaming console?
12:02 Play along in the comments and let us know down below.
12:05 - Well, excuse me.
12:07 - Did you enjoy this video?
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