The 10 BEST PS2 Movie Tie-In Games
“Batman Begins” (2005)
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Although it would be completely overshadowed by Batman Arkham Asylum only a couple years later, there is still quite a lot to appreciate about the Batman Begins video game and much of what made the Arkham games so iconic, particularly the use of stealth and fear takedowns, is present here as well. By using many of Batman’s iconic gadgets, players can intimidate the many enemies in their way with environmental distractions raising their fear level and making them much easier to subdue. While the combat wasn’t at the same level as the Arkham games (and frankly, what is?) the game is still a standout for its production values AND getting nearly the entire cast of the film to reprise their roles. Batman Begins even featured a drivable Batmobile a full decade before Rocksteady.
“The Punisher” (2005)
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For a character seemingly perfectly designed for video games, it’s strange that the vengeful gun toting anti-hero has had so few outings in gaming. Loosely based on the 2005 movie of the same name and featuring Thomas Jane reprising his role as Frank Castle, The Punisher made a name for itself with its over-the-top gunplay, executions and interrogations mechanics. Using the game’s environments, Frank can “convince” his enemies to cooperate and give up the information he needs. Originally branded with the dreaded “Adults Only” rating due to these coercion mechanics, the developers at Volition took a page out of Quentin Tarantino’s playbook and made the more graphic scenes black and white to skirt the censors. Although the rest of the game was your standard 3rd person shooter, these clever innovations helped The Punisher score a bullseye with fans.
“From Russia With Love” (2005)
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When it comes to video games, Bond doesn’t have quite the same success rate he does with the ladies. For every Goldeneye, there’s a 007 Legends. From Russia With Love managed to fall into the former category and delivered a solid Bond video game based on one of the most iconic films in the long running franchise and even managed to bring back the OG Bond himself Sean Connery for one last go as the famous double O. Due to legal issues, SPECTRE is now OCTOPUS, but the title still managed to hit many of the most important aspects of the classic film’s storyline allowing players to use Bond’s wealth of gadgets, firearms, vehicles and even good old fisticuffs to bring down OCTOPUS before it can carry out its nefarious plans. Grab a shaken not stirred martini and enjoy one of Bond’s greatest adventures in film and gaming.
“The Matrix: Path of Neo” (2005)
All of the entries on our list seek to recreate the worlds of the films they’re based on, the Path of Neo takes things a step further and was actually written and directed by the series’ creators the Wachowskis themselves. Recounting the events of the original trilogy of films, players become The One and are finally given control of Neo and all the bullet time powers that come with him. Along with a revamped martial arts engine and Neo’s aforementioned bullet time and acrobatic abilities, players are also presented with choices where the outcome can differ from the film entirely. And while the end of the trilogy was marred in deep melodrama about the nature of destiny and the choices we make, the Path of Neo lets you battle a skyscraper-sized Agent Smith, so there’s that too.
“Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets” (2002)
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Until the likes of Hogwarts Legacy finally releases, Chamber of Secrets is the closest we may ever come to actually attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. While the game still follows closely to the movie it's based on and does an admirable job maintaining the light hearted nature of Chris Columbus’ early films in the franchise, it also manages to pull content from the source material and let players explore sections from the novel not realized in the film. In between major story beats, players will attend classes to learn spells and can also take their broomstick out for an open flight around the castle grounds, making the world feel all the more realized as players get more freedom than ever before to explore the world of Harry Potter. Hagrid was also thankfully given an upgrade as well from his PS1 counterpart.
“The Thing” (2002)
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While many games on this list are faithful adaptations of their source material, The Thing is the only one that can be considered a canonical sequel. After a U.S. Special Forces team is sent to Antarctica to uncover what happened to the research team stationed there, players once again encounter the titular Thing and must manage not only resources in the harsh frigid landscape but also their team’s trust and moral or else they’ll turn on one another suspecting everyone to be one of the aliens in disguise. Maintaining your team's trust is only half the challenge as each member has a specific skill set necessary to make progress into certain areas or heal team members after a battle. The Thing video games answered questions players had after the conclusion of John Carpenter’s 1982 classic, such as what happened to McCready after the end of the movie. Hint: it’s not good.
“Spider-Man 2” (2004)
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The impact of Spider-Man 2 on all the wallcrawler’s adventures after this 2004 movie adaptation cannot be understated. Not only did the title revolutionize Spidey’s swinging mechanics for generations to come, it also expanded on the narrative of the movie, allowing players to take on members of Spidey’s rogues gallery not in the movie, such as Vulture and Mysterio. However it was definitely Spidey’s swinging that helped this title rise above not only its predecessor but also tie-in games in general. Webs needed actual surfaces to stick to in order for Spider-Man to swing around, making traversal far more realistic, and with numerous side activities to take part in such as pizza deliveries, random crimes and… saving a child’s balloon (not all of them can be winners), there was no shortage of things to do while Spidey effortlessly swung between the skyscrapers of an enormous New York City map.
“Peter Jackson’s King Kong: The Official Game of the Movie” (2005)
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Beyond one of the most unnecessarily long titles for a movie adaptation, no one does movie to game tie-ins like Peter Jackson as you’ll see later on our list. Not only innovative for the dual perspectives where players take control of both leading man Jack and the titular Kong himself, the game featured no HUD whatsoever and players had to rely on Jack counting the number of bullets left or become part of the jungle’s circle of life. Switching between the powerhouse Kong and the lowly human Jack attempting to survive the jungle consistently felt more like an interactive version of the film than many other adaptations. Impressively cinematic to match its film counterpart, there was also an unlockable alternate ending in which players can save Kong from the attacking planes when he’s atop the Empire State Building and eventually send him back to Skull Island.
“The Warriors” (2005)
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Remember back when Rockstar used to make games other than Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption? Wild times, we know. While no one’s first pick for an adaptation (the movie had come out over 25 years ago by the time of release), no one could have predicted it would end up being not only one of Rockstar’s best titles but also one of the best film to game adaptations ever. Featuring some impressive and balanced combat mechanics far above anything Grand Theft Auto had at the time and expanding on a nearly one-to-one retelling of the classic film as well as managing to recruit many of the actors to reprise their roles for the game, The Warriors went above and beyond and managed to recapture the feel and atmosphere of its source material in ways that have yet to be replicated even today.
“The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King” (2003)
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Although some would argue The Two Towers adaptation is the superior title, we have to give the nod to The Return of the King for expanding on the film upon which it’s based, with more playable characters and better environmental interactions. Rather than retelling the entire movie like most tie-in games, Return of the King sought to let players relive some of the film's most important moments with them in full control. Whether battling at the Gates of Mordor or climbing to the top of Mount Doom, the open level design and game’s attention to detail is spot on when compared to its film counterpart. Its Gauntlet-style hack and slash gameplay is deeply rewarding and engaging. A clear labor of love for the films, they just don’t make them like this anymore and possibly never will again.
