Nerds tend to gravitate to all of the cool stuff in the media.
Video games, graphic novels and comic books, board games – you name it. So when we consume one of those types of media, we can’t help but think about what other great media could spawn from it. I read a lot of graphic novels. They’re faster to read than books and I love discovering fantastic artists so I’ve thought a lot about what graphic novels would make great video games.
This list contains a handful of fantastic graphic novels that could make really good video games if the possibility ever came to fruition.
Lumberjanes
When you hear me talk about graphic novels I’m almost always going to bring up Lumberjanes. This graphic novel series follows a group of girls named Mal, Ripley, Molly, April, and Jo. They all attend a summer at scout camp where strange things start to happen to them that involve the supernatural.
Lumberjanes would make an excellent adventure game in a similar vein to Telltale Games, where players explore the scout camp and make dialogue choices based on what happens. It could also be a pretty great RPG where each of the Lumberjanes has their own abilities and skills they can use to take out the many strange creatures that gravitate to the camp.
Saga
Saga is another series I haven’t shut up about since I first read it. It follows Marko and Alana, two people that found each other amidst a war. The problem is that they’re on opposite sides of the war. Very much like a Romeo and Juliet story. The two fall in love and have a baby named Hazel and the story takes place from Hazel’s point of view.
Because Saga has so many interesting characters, it would only be fitting for it to be a big open world adventure game. Players could explore the dozens of planets that Marko, Alana and Hazel travel to. They could fight off the bounty hunters that are constantly chasing after them for “betraying” their people. There could even be some mini-games inside their ship where they perform maintenance to keep it going. The possibilities are endless.
Fence
As you can probably ascertain, Fence is a graphic novel about… fencing. The story follows Nicholas Cox who wishes to become a fencing champion like his father who was previously a U.S. fencing Olympic champion. The other main character in the story is Seiji Katayama, a fencing prodigy with a bit of a bad attitude. Nicholas is determined to make it in the dog-eat-dog world and the story follows his path to greatness.
Fence could be great as a story-heavy fighting game. During the downtime sequences players could attend class, get to know their fellow classmates and train for fencing. And then the biggest moments of the game would involve competing in fencing tournaments to try and make it to the top. It could be a really great chance to have a fighting game with some fantastic story elements.
Spill Zone
Spill Zone is a wonderfully spooky graphic novel that was released in two parts. The story follows the citizens of Poughkeepsie where a strange phenomenon affected the town three years previous to when the story takes place. Strange manifestations of monsters, animals and more show up around town and are lethal to anyone that encounters them. Addison illegally rides into town to take pictures of these phenomena for money in order to support her and her sister who lost their parents three years ago when strange things started happening.
The concept of Spill Zone in general sounds like it would make such a cool video game. During the day you could refuel and get yourself ready for your work at night where you ride into town and stealthily take pictures of the creatures. You could even choose the work that you want. Not ready to take on the huge creature in the town square? No worries, there’s a smaller job available that can get you a few bucks at least. I need to play this game.
Kim Reaper
Kim Reaper is an adorable comic book that I randomly came across in my local comic shop a few years ago. I fell in love with the art style from the get-go. The story follows Becka who has a huge crush on the adorable, gothic-looking girl named Kim. Little does Becka know that Kim is a part-time grim reaper. Kim is just trying to get her job done, but Becka really wants to ask her out. The novels follow their crazy underworld antics.
I think this comic series could work great as a visual novel. It would follow Becka as she pines over the beautiful Kim. They get on with some fun shenanigans and eventually start dating. It’s romantic, silly and a brilliant concept if I do say so myself.
Nailbiter
This graphic novel series is a brilliantly violent story that was collected into six creepy volumes. Nailbiter is set in the town of Buckaroo, Oregon which has inadvertently produced sixteen of the world’s most horrifying serial killers. The most recent killer is Edward Charles Warren, also known as “The Nailbiter.” The story follows Nicholas Finch, an investigator who is tasked with finding his friend, fellow investigator Charles Carroll, who went missing during an investigation of Buckaroo.
Nailbiter would make the perfect detective game. I’m thinking Phoenix Wright but much, much darker. Nailbiter is gory and horrifying and its video game adaptation would follow that format. You could play as Finch and question people around town while dodging some of the creepy folks that don’t want you there – including The Nailbiter himself.
