5 Best Video Game Movies Ranked Ahead of Street Fighter

Anthony NashThu, October 15, 2026 at 5:00 PM UTC

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Credit: Warner Brothers

Video game adaptations in the world of movies have been a thing for over 40 years now, and have mostly been hit or miss. For some time, the thought of a video game being adapted into a movie was enough to send gamers into a panic.

Now, however, things have changed. With more and more video game adaptations coming out, and more filmmakers who grew up with games in the industry, we’re seeing a bit of a renaissance in the genre. That continues in 2026, with the upcoming Street Fighter, a new live-action adaptation based on Capcom’s iconic fighting game franchise.

Ahead of Street Fighter’s upcoming premiere, we’re taking a look at some of the best video game movies to release. To make it easy, we’ll be looking at just movies here, and no TV shows. So things like Fallout, The Last of Us, and Arcane won’t make the cut here.

5 best video game movies ranked5) The Super Mario Bros. Movie

The Super Mario Bros. Movie, not to be confused with 1993’s Super Mario Bros., gave fans a brief moment of pause when it was revealed that Chris Pratt would be voicing the iconic plumber. Despite the odd choice, it turned out not to matter too much, as The Super Mario Bros. Movie was a smash hit. The movie retained a ton of the charm of the games, and was jam-packed with tons of references, Easter eggs, and more.

While casting choices like Pratt left many confused, decisions like Jack Black as Bowser were huge successes. Nintendo’s involvement with the film also likely played a role in the film feeling so sincere and not phoned in, and even though the film’s Mario Galaxy-themed sequel wasn’t as great, the franchise is on the right track when it comes to movies.

4) Sonic the Hedgehog 3

The Sonic the Hedgehog movie franchise feels almost like a “capturing lightning in a bottle” moment. The first movie went through a ton of ups and downs, particularly due to the way Sonic initially looked. After the film released, though, it quickly became a hit, and spawned off a number of sequels. Paramount played it smart, as well, slowly introducing new Sonic characters into every movie, with the second bringing Knuckles (played by Idris Elba) and the third Shadow (Keanu Reeves) to round out the iconic cast of the games.

However, where Sonic really excels in its Dr. Robotnik. Jim Carrey returns to the franchise for every movie, a rarity for the actor, and absolutely captures the role of Robotnik in all his wacky glory. The movies also aren’t afraid to lean into the absurdity and fun of the Sonic games, and feature a ton of the chaotic situations the legendary hedgehog finds himself in on the big screen.

3) Mortal Kombat II

The Mortal Kombat franchise has had its fair share of movie adaptations, most of which have been…not great. While the 1995 movie does have a ton of charm, the 2021 reboot of the movies got much closer to the games. However, infamously, that movie featured no “mortal kombat” to speak of, as the titular tournament was pretty much left out of the film in its entirety.

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2026’s Mortal Kombat II fixed all that, though. Warner Bros. heard all of the complaints about the 2021 film, and introduced a ton. Not only did the movie really lean fully into the “fighting tournament” of it all, but we also got a video game accurate Johnny Cage in the form of Karl Urban’s outlandish and perfectly brash portrayal. Unfortunately for WB, the movie ended up not being as successful as the first, casting doubt on the future of the franchise.

While it’s a shame there might not be a third Mortal Kombat in this run of movies, the second one did finally give fans what they wanted out of a proper adaptation.

2) Pokémon Detective Pikachu

Pokémon has been a franchise that’s had its fair of movies, and many of them are great. However, a live-action take on the iconic Nintendo franchise had never been really attempted before 2019’s Pokémon Detective Pikachu. Instead of trying to adapt any of the main games into a movie, the film actually took a different path, and was much better for it.

Detective Pikachu is largely based on the 2016 game of the same name, and takes place in a world where Pokémon roam amongst humans in society. The plot follows a Pikachu that’s a detective, and joins up with his partner, a human named Tim Goodman who can understand him, as the pair try to solve the mysterious disappearance of Tim’s father.

What makes Pokémon Detective Pikachu such a fun adaptation is in how it presents the world of the games its adapting. Seeing Pokémon roaming about and doing odd jobs in the world of Ryme City is an awesome concept, and one that’s done great. It’s a creative way to include a ton of Pokémon outside of battling, and also have it make sense for them to be around. Sadly, we’ve never gotten back to the adventures of Pikachu, as a sequel was planned but hasn’t had much updates on it.

1) Resident Evil

Yep, that’s right. 2026’s Resident Evil, which came out just a month or so ago, is really that good. For those aware (or maybe for those not so aware), director Zach Cregger is a huge Resident Evil fan. Before he was one of the horror genre’s new masters, Cregger would talk about his love for the franchise (and video games as a whole) on his podcast with his fellow Whitest Kids U Know cast members. It’s not too surprising, in that regard, to find out that Cregger’s take on Capcom’s iconic horror franchise is, simply put, the best video game movie ever.

Yes, the movie doesn’t really adapt any of the game’s stories. Yes, it does tweak the weather of Resident Evil 2, the game the film is trying to run parallel against. Does any of that matter, though? Absolutely not. Cregger delivers a movie that not only feels exactly like what playing one of the Resident Evil games is like, but one that’s an actually great standalone movie as well.

Of course, Resident Evil is packed with Easter eggs and throwbacks to the games. However, what makes it so special is its ability to convey a sense of the games its adapting. For anyone who’s played the Resident Evil games, they know just how tense it can be scouring a house for items, or coming across a dark sewer entrance you don’t want to explore, but know you have to. Fans of the games may have critiqued the story, but even Capcom hasn’t been afraid to portray the Resident Evil series in different ways over the years, and Cregger following in those footsteps resulted in something special.

Originally posted on Coming Soon

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”