Beyond Mario! 10 Great Game Adaptations

This spring, all eyes will be on Illumination’s much-anticipated The Super Mario Bros Movie, which is one of the biggest animated features based on a video game. But let’s not forget these 10 other fantastic small-screen adaptations of our favorite titles!

Arcane. Created by Riot Games’ Christian Linke and Alex Yee and animated by the genius team at French studio Fortiche, the first season of the show debuted on Netflix in 2021 and was a huge hit with audiences and critics alike. It also went on to win Annie Awards and Emmys. A second season is in production.

Carmen Sandiego. Based on Broderbund’s game, the latest animated adaptation of the game was developed by Duane Capizzi and produced by WildBrain and Houghton Mifflin. Gina Rodriguez voiced the famous jet-setting thief, which also inspired the famous PBS game show Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego back in 1991. The animated show ran on Netflix from 2019 to 2021.

Castlevania. Created by Warren Ellis, this adult dark fantasy was produced by Frederator Studios’ Kevin Kolde and Fred Seibert and was based on the Japanese video game by Konami. The series first aired on Netflix in July 2017 and ran through May 2021.

The Cuphead Show! No classic cartoon fan can resist the charms of this sterling adaptation of the popular game, created by Chad and Jared Moldenhauer and Dave Wasson, and produced by StudioMDHR and King Feature Syndicate for Netflix. The show premiered in Feb. 2022 and three seasons have streamed to date.

Digimon. Digital Monster fans have had no shortage of animated shows and movies to enjoy since the first series produced by Toei Animation premiered in 1999. Nine different shows (512 episodes in total) and 19 movies have been produced to date! Toei released Digimon Adventure: Last Evolution Kizuna (directed by Tomohisa Taguchi) in 2022, and a new feature (Digimon Adventure 02: The Beginning) is in the works.

Dragon’s Lair: The Series. Based on Rick Dyer and Don Bluth’s beloved sword-and-sorcery video game, this impactful Ruby-Spears production debuted in the fall of 1984 on ABC and ran for only 13 episodes. It chronicled the adventures of Dirk the Daring in the kingdom of King Ethelred.

Kirby: Right Back at Ya! The anime series based on Nintendo’s popular franchise was first released in 2001 and adapted for global audiences in 2022. Created by Masahiro Sakurai, the show follows a pink, spherical Star Warrior who has the ability to take on magical powers temporarily by sucking up their owners! Ted Lewis voiced the villainous King Dedede and his henchman Escargoon!

Pokémon. Created by Satoshi Tajiri, this phenomenal Nintendo game spawned the never-ending animated show by OLM with over 20 seasons (1,228 episodes) since its introduction in 1998. It has also inspired 23 animated features and the popular 2019 live-action hybrid feature Detective Pikachu starring Ryan Reynolds as the lead! In the words of Meowth of Team Rocket, “We do have a lot in common!”

Skylander Academy. Produced by Blizzard Studios and TeamTO, this CG-animated show based on the Blizzard game debuted on Netflix in Oct. 2016. Overall, three seasons of the show featuring Spyro the Dragon, Stealth Elf and Eruptor were made. The voice cast — which included Justin Long, Ashley Tisdale, Jonathan Banks, Bobcat Goldthwait, Catherine O’Hara, Fred Tatasciore, Norm Macdonald and Harland Williams — was as impressive as the animation.

Sonic the Hedgehog. Sega’s speedy blue hedgehog captured everyone’s heart when it first debuted in 1991, so animated shows and movies were inevitable. Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog premieres in syndication in 1993, followed by Sonic the Hedgehog (1994), Sonic Underground (1999), Sonic X (2003-2005), Sonic Boom (2014-2017) and Sonic Prime, which premiered on Netflix last December. Of course, we can’t forget the two recent hybrid movies directed by Jeff Fowler, which were such huge theatrical hits that a third movie is in the works for 2024! ◆