After thefailure of last year’s Paramount+Halotelevision series, where both fans and critics were disappointed on a number of levels, many became convinced that you can’t make good TV with video games. But now those same many have changed their minds due to this year’s HBO Max hitThe Last of Us, which has received nothing but praise from fans and critics, and is cited as some of the best video game-inspired content ever. Now bothHaloandThe Last of Ushave proven thatvideo game adaptations still have a place in TV.
Now we look to other video games that should also get a video game adaptation. An underappreciated one that deserves it most is the multi-studio action-adventure video game calledReCore. The game didn’t make that big of a splash when it dropped and received mixed reviews upon release, but it has been praised for its compelling characters and immersive story.
A New and Familiar Kind of Universe
The premise ofReCoreis the staple sci-fi trope whererobots rebel against their human creatorsand are the dominant power, but the game has taken the classic conflict between man and machine and turned it into something more.
Joule Adams is an engineer in cryosleep on the planet Far Eden who wakes up after centuries to fix the towers which are terraforming the planet for human habitation, yet to find that all the terraforming towers are not just broken but destroyed. As her whole team is gone and the robotic workforce is missing, she sets off with trusty dog-like corebot companion Mack and begins her adventure to save humanity from extinction. It’s a quiet and solitary journey, following just one soul and her artificial companions that she makes. With deep lore, the world ofReCoreis vast and imaginative, emphasizing the relationship between natural and artificial. AReCoreadaptation would feel like a classic episode ofStar Trekbut expanded into its own story and would be an enthralling tale of intrigue set in a familiar universe with lovable characters.
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A Unique Action Style
This is the biggest selling point, as a delicious blend ofMetroid PrimeandMega Man(not surprisingly, since it wasby the same developers),ReCorehas a unique action style that would set it apart from all other video game adaptations. Each corebot has a spherical colored core in the center, which serves as their power source, heart, and brain. The core colors represent different energies, so Joule must adapt to their different abilities and weaknesses. In addition, she must coordinate her corebots to strike at enemies in tandem with her colored-charged shots to effectively fend off any threat, allowing many powerful enemies and complex battle scenarios.
Of all the highly demanding high-stack combos and combat modifiers, the most famous and satisfying action move is the simplest; where after Joule and her corebots systematically manage to weaken their enemies, Joule whips out her long cord to hook at the enemy’s core and if successful in a brief but desperate struggle for the robot’s heart, rips out the core in a slow-motion instakill move straight into her hand, it’s utterly fun and satisfying.ReCorefeatures a unique and enjoyable action style that would be sure to be a highlight of any adaptation.
Changes Old Sci-fi Tropes
Almost all time inReCoreis spent with corebots, fighting corebots, repairing corebots, corebots being the only other form of life (even if artificial) on the desolate planet. Even though Joule is the protagonist, an adaptation would be robot centric. These corebots can think, feel, and decide for themselves. Joule is alone on the planet, finding old logs that recount the terrible tragedy of the corebot rebellion after humanity fled Earth. She only meets one other human for a brief time and fights rogue corebots everywhere she goes in the harsh lifeless world. Her only friend is Mack, a dog-like corebot.
Dog has always been man’s best friend, the tamed beast helping its master to survive in a symbiotic relationship. Here, Mack and the other corebots are Joule’s friends and only source of aid. Mack is literally a dog, emphasizing that robots will become man’s new best friend in the future of space exploration. Joule’s relationship with each of her rescued corebots is enchanting, speaking to each personally. They all unashamedly respond in an untranslated binary language, like how Luke speaks to R2-D2 in Star Wars.
Despite the Corebots' lack of human speech and facial expressions, they impart tremendous personality through their behavior and interactions with Joule.ReCore’scharacters, natural or artificial, are easily among the greatest we’ve seen in the gaming world recently, and a properReCoreadaptation would change the classic video game dynamic of man and machine.
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An Adaptation Could Work In Any Medium
Mostvideo games are too difficult to adaptbecause the game’s story and style were not designed to work for film, but the story ofReCorecan be told through any medium, anything from a live-action movie to an animated series.
The genre can be very fluid as well, meaning that the core story can work through any interpretation becauseReCorecan be anything, from an adventure-drama where Joule tries to solve the mystery of Far Eden with her robotic buddies to a horror-thriller where Joule and Kai must use all their resources, knowledge, and wits to survive the alien world and Victor’s corrupted corebots.ReCorecan reach a large audience with a wide variety of options to tell the story. Because of this, after the first success, we can return to the world ofReCoreagain and again to expand the story, becoming the next popular television franchise.
With the surprise and suddenappearance of the gameonce again on social media,ReCoredeserves the chance to shine on the screen again through any medium or interpretation. No matter what happens, it’s certain to be a hit.
