Inside Netflix’s Thriving World of Animated Video Game Adaptations

Video Games have a long history of being adapted into animation for TV. It’s a trend that can be traced back to 1989, a year that saw the premieres of Dragon Quest, King Koopa’s Kool Kartoons, The Legend of Zelda, and The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! And over the past few years, Netflix’s animation division has been quietly continuing this often-overlooked subgenre, including this week’s premiere of Cyberpunk: Edgerunners. During a time when video game adaptations are still often the source of eye rolls and animation doesn’t feel as stable as it once was, Netflix has quietly done the incredible and transformed these adaptations into must-watch TV.

It started with Castlevania. Produced by Frederator Studios, the series was technically Netflix’s second video game adaptation to be marketed as an original behind the Spyro-focused Skylander’s Academy. However, it was the first of its highly specific kind to generate critical attention. Led by Adi Shankar, a longtime fan of the series, Castlevania averaged a 94 percent on Rotten Tomatoes — an impressive number in its own right, but one that is even more so when you account for how often video game adaptations and animation in general are overlooked.

“To this day, I’ve got people going back to Castlevania [and saying] that’s just a great Dracula story,” John Derderian, the Head of Animated Series for Netflix, told Decider. Derderian was there from Castlevania’s first pitch. “They don’t even know what Castlevania is, which you’re like ‘Wow, that’s a real win.'”

When asked what Netflix looks for when considering creating or distributing a video game adaptation, Derderian emphasized “a story with a lot of great characters, a great journey, a lot of heart.

“You look at a lot of the failures, and they were films that didn’t really get the game enough. It was like IP left the hands of the game company, and it was someone who doesn’t really understand the game hiring writers who didn’t really understand the game. You’re only going to find success if it’s fused with the spirit and the soul of the game. And being close with the game company is a good cheat code. It helps us get a little bit closer and a little bit faster.”

That is especially true of Arcane, Riot Games’ series based on the lore of League of Legends. Out of the show’s five 2022 Emmy nominations, Arcane took home four of them. That victory lap included an Emmy for Outstanding Animated Program, an award Arcane took over two-time winner Rick and Morty. Rather than an anomaly, Arcane’s victory stands as proof of Netflix’s longtime dedication to video game adaptations.

Derderian revealed that Netflix often uses the term “undeniable” to describe especially strong programming. That was the word that was used to describe Arcane from its very first image. Created by Christian Linke and Alex Yee, the series was produced by then French animation studio Fortiche with Riot Games supervising and was distributed by Netflix. A passion project for the duo, the series took six years to develop. It’s that long lead time and care that has contributed to how video game adaptations have shifted, especially in the world of animation.

“I think we’re now getting to this point where people in the professional world are kind of seasoned enough to even do something like really adapt games. We can actually have people who grew up with it, now we’re kind of seasoned enough to actually take on something like this,” Linke said in an interview with Metro. “I mean, I think the reason why you get something like Lord of the Rings or so is because Peter Jackson liked that shit.”

This creator and fan-first approach to crafting adaptations is part of a larger trend that Chad and Jared Moldenhauer, creators of the game Cuphead and executive producers of The Cuphead Show!, have noticed. Roughly three months after the duo released their game in 2017, Netflix approached them about a possible TV adaptation. When the series finally premiered in 2022, it spent at least three weeks on Netflix’s top 10 TV shows list and was watched by an estimated 11 million hours, according to the streaming giant.

“I think it has been quite a renaissance from Netflix. Just compared to what came out of the mid-to-early 90s, it’s been insane,” Chad Moldenhauer told Decider. “I think it’s just people growing up — this is my assumption — people growing up in those eras, and then they become writers and showrunners and all these different things. And they say, ‘Listen, we have to do something amazing with these IPs instead of quickly shoveling something out the door.'”

“I also assume it’s more being in-the-know,” Jarrod Moldenhauer added. “As video games become a larger business, then there are more people who understand what these games are or what they’re building from, which makes studios more interested in using the source material or referencing the creators or other things to get a better sense of where it could go.”

When searching for adaptations to create or distribute, Netflix prioritizes games with universal themes and identifiable characters. This focus ensures that new series can be enjoyed by both diehard fans and people who may not even be familiar with these games. The company is also cognizant that animation, especially animation based on complex source material, takes time. Derderian emphasized that it was more important to make sure these series feel tonally in line with their games than to rush anything. 

“[Fans] spend hundreds of hours playing these games. That’s also a reward and a risk,” Derderian explained. “If you get it really wrong, that’ll come back to you too. For us, it’s getting infused with that passion of the game fan, while also keeping an eye toward really great universal storytelling.”

These collaborations between Netflix and gaming companies have allowed for some interesting tie-ins. For example, Riot Games’ Valorant offered a collectible gun buddy based on Arcane. Similarly, Season 1 of The Cuphead Show! introduced audiences to Ms. Chalice, a playable character who later appeared in the Cuphead DLC, The Delicious Last Course. Details like these have gone a long way in making these universes feel connected and showing that these series are more are more than the cash-grab one-offs that once defined this subgenre.

It’s clear how these thoughtful adaptations benefit Netflix. The popularity of a show like Arcane led to more people watching Netflix, which is nearly always the goal in the age of streaming. But these collaborations also benefit game creators. After Season 1 of The Cuphead Show! was released on Netflix in June, the Moldenhauer brothers noticed that there was an increase in sales before the release of their DLC.

“We’ve noticed little bumps when it first came out and kind of just trending towards more than usual but it isn’t something where we’d both be like, ‘Wow! This is like a hundred times different,'” Chad said. “But it definitely shows that more people are playing and possibly people have played the game before and got reignited to go back to maybe beat some of the expert mode challenges, that kind of thing.”

When you look at Netflix’s upcoming slate, it seems as though we’re only in the early stages of this trend. This August saw the premiere of Season 3 of DOTA: Dragon’s Blood, Season 2 of The Cuphead Show!, and the premieres of Tekken: Bloodline and Angry Birds: Summer Madness. September will mark the premiere of Cyberpunk: Edgerunners. That’s without mentioning the upcoming Castlevania: Nocturne spinoff or the upcoming Tomb Raider show, Splinter Cell, Captain Laserhawk: A Blood Dragon Remix from Adi Shankar, the Far Cry series, and Sonic Prime. That’s a big investment in animation during a time when that’s not necessarily the norm.

Netflix’s support of these shows feels especially important when it comes to the current state of the animation industry. In August, Warner Bros. Discovery made headlines when 36 titles were removed from HBO Max. Many of those shows were animated, and previously ordered animated movies like Driftwood were canceled. Not only has Warner Bros. been a longtime home to animated content, but it’s also the parent company of Cartoon Network and Adult Swim, two of the biggest markets for animation out there.

Netflix also had its own animation scandal this year. Back in April, it was revealed that several high-profile animated projects either weren’t renewed or were canceled, including the anticipated adaptation of Jeff Smith’s Bone. Most of these projects were part of Netflix’s children and family entertainment division, which typically doesn’t include Netflix’s more adult video game adaptations. But the long list of upcoming shows indicate Netflix is still interested in pursuing this subgenre.

“The world is spending more time with gaming. I think that’s great. Those worlds are richer and more prominent, so there’s probably a lot more to mine there. It’s exciting. But once again, it’s got to be an idea that can work and really thrive in our format,” Derderian said. “We’ll continue to look at it as a great place to build shows, but once again doing it with a great authenticity to the game. Something that captures the spirit of the game, but also is just outside of the game a great universal story that a lot of people can understand.”