With the utter mediocrity that came along with Modern Warfare 2: Ghost #1, it got me thinking about comic books based on video games: it’s an idea that seemingly goes hand in hand, yet the majority of the time these books wind up being atrocities against the digital realm (again, see our review of Modern Warfare 2: Ghost #1). There are exceptions of course – the Silent Hill comics come to mind – but for the most part, video game comics often befall the same tragic shortcomings that video game films do.
But what if mere pipe dreams could become realities? What game franchises could be brought over to the monthly comic book format, and what are the dream teams that would go along with them? Imagine a universe in which there is peace on Earth, social unity and New Jersey has been set adrift, for that is the universe in which these books could ever exist.
10. God of War
Written by Gail Simone
Art by Tony Daniel
When it comes to Greek mythology, the possibilities are relatively endless. With a writer like Gail Simone aboard, who has shown her affinity for mythology in her current run on Wonder Woman and would be a prime candidate to tackle Kratos and his world, this book would thrive. With multiple gods to battle, lands to explore, and things to destroy, a God of War monthly title is certainly feasible.
For art duties, Tony Daniel would make a fine pairing for Kratos and his complete and utter badassery. As we’ve seen him do with Batman, Daniel is more than capable of both telling a story visually and constructing an aura of kick ass around his central characters.
9. Max Payne
Written by Matt Fraction
Drawn by Eduardo Risso
For a game that’s based around the graphic novel format, it’s a shock to me that there hasn’t been a comic yet. Shitty movie, sure, but no comic. Noir-extraordinaire Matt Fraction could step in and take the reigns of a monthly book that can showcase the melodrama of the series and give readers some hard boiled, dirty cop action.
And of course, Eduardo Risso is familiar with such themes from his time on 100 Bullets with Brian Azzarello, and is a perfect fit to tackle Max Payne’s crap-filled world.
8. Braid
Written and drawn by Chris Ware
Who better to take the lead on a comic book based on the most depressing game of all time than the creator behind the most depressing comic of all time? It also helps that Chris Ware’s unique art style seems strangely fitting to the Braid world. While I’m not as confident that this would work as a monthly series, it’s definitely got the potential to be a heart wrenching, genre bending comic book experience.
7. BioShock
Written by Steve Niles
Art by Danijel Zezelj
And my arousal for BioShock continues. Think of the possibilities! The untold stories of Rapture, its citizens and its monsters. Hell, the book could even be a series of done-in-ones focusing on various parts of the submerged city, along with different periods in its history. And with a fantastic horror writer like Steve Niles on board, you could count on the series to not only make you poo your pants, but also give the various characters a weight that most horror comics fall short on.
Danijel Zezelj, whose previous comics work on Loveless and Luna Park has shown his talent for depicting the horrors of war upon a society, tackling a BioShock book would give him the chance to stretch his wings a bit while applying his skills to better the BioShock universe.
6. Sneak King
Written by Garth Ennis
Art by Gabriel Ba
I’m not sure this one needs much further explanation. Sneak King, though only a Burger King promotional game, was one of the most awesome/f*cking creepy games of 2006. With extremist writer Garth Ennis behind the wheel of this thing, God knows what kind of crazy stuff the Burger King could get into whilst on his mission to deliver delicious BK meals to an unsuspecting public.
Sneak King would be incomplete without Gabriel Ba on board; his quirky, surreal style would be perfect for the King’s strange world. All you need to convince you that Ba is the man for the job is to check out any scenes feature Hansel and Cha-Cha from Umbrella Academy: Dallas. For whatever reason, merciless killing by assassins equivilates in my brain to Burger King marketing. It must be the huge dome pieces.
5. Metroid
Written by Brian Michael Bendis
Drawn by Alex Maleev
Even though the erection-inducing super-team of Bendis and Maleev have already done a video game book, Metroid isn’t a franchise suffering from overexposure like Halo. Plus, with their current run on the awesome Spider-Woman, the duo has proven they have an ability to tell a story with a strong female lead. In addition, we know that Bendis can handle not just the grit of Daredevil, but also the super sci-fi of New Avengers.
And in my opinion, Alex Maleev can draw just about any god damn book that he wants to.
4. Katamari Damacy
Written by Grant Morrison
Art by JH Williams III
Did your head just blow up? Are you scraping the innards of your brain off your computer’s monitor?
Katamari put through the prism of Grant Morrison’s mind is probably too much for our primitive caveman brains to handle, but combine that with JH Williams III’s artwork and it becomes absolute lunacy. Imagine the King of All Cosmos coming to Earth and wiping out the stars. Obviously, the only way to fix things is to make a huge ball of stuff stick together. Now imagine the mind behind The Flith and the artist of Promethea telling us the tale.
Ka. Boom.
3. Uncharted
Written and drawn by Darwyn Cooke
Uncharted is a prime candidate for a monthly series, given its old-school serial premise. With Nathan Drake being a treasure hunter and adventurer, there will never be a shortage of tales to tell, and even less so if Darwyn Cooke is at the helm. Much like his twelve issues on The Spirit, an Uncharted series by Cooke would be high on the wit, beautiful women, and of course, plenty of popcorn crunching action.
2. MadWorld
Written by Brian Azzarello
Art by Frank Miller
Okay, so it’s a long shot, but MadWorld is so obviously inspired by Miller’s Sin City that no one else should be allowed to touch the comic version. Stark black and whites with only red for blood, MadWorld is a highly stylized ordeal that should go straight to the source of its inspiration.
As for Brian Azzarello, well, come on. With such a rough-and-tumble world rife with cursing, killing, and all around no-good people, who better to translate it to the comics medium?
1. The Legend of Zelda
Written by Bill Willingham
Art by Ryan Kelly
Bill Willingham = Fables/Shadowpact. Ryan Kelly = Northlanders. It’s simple math really, Fables/Shadowpact + Northlanders = Zelda with a remainder of f*cking awesome.
Seriously, a Zelda book is long overdue, and with the built-in sequel device of each Zelda game being a "different cast of characters", the perfect formula is already there to have a non-consequential but canon story that fans can either accept, or… not. But trust me, if Willingham was writing, everyone would be on board.
