It’s an age-old question: why do so many video game adaptations suck? Some might point to the fact that the lion’s share of shooters and open-world RPGs — the ones that tend to get put on the screen, both big and small — are so popular preciselybecausethey put the player behind the wheel. You don’t get that with movies, nor shows. And even though you can do a lot with the form of screen media — you might tell a given story from a number of new perspectives, or shoot it in innovative ways — many (read: almost all) choose to play it safe.
Fortunately, that doesn’tlookto be the case withHalo, Paramount+’s big budget adaptation of the sci-fi adventures of Master Chief, beginning all the way back on the original Xbox two decades ago. The trailer released yesterday teased a tantalizing visual point of view, while maintaining good fidelity to the design and aesthetic of the games that made us fall in love with them in the first place: indeed, all signs suggest this one could be a hit. Now, we have more images fromHalo, and they only serve to reinforce the great expectations we’ve built.
They tease a lot of the designs and visuals transplanted from the game franchise that we’d expect, but rendered in innovative and intriguing ways. Take one close-up shot of Master Chief, which sells his iconic helmet in all of its green-and-gold glory: the costume design is fantastic, no doubt amalgamated with clever digital effects, giving the gruff hero a gritty, realistic, but altogether powerful look. Elsewhere, we get new looks at AI helper Cortana, along with some sweeping landscape shots of some striking locales and a menacing Covenant Elite. And most importantly: it looksgood.
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Check out the new images below.Halocomes to Paramount+ on March 24, available in the U.S. and all international markets where you can access the streamer. It starsPablo Schreiberas the Master Chief,Natascha McElhoneas Dr. Halsey, andJen Tayloras Cortana. Additional stars includeBokeem Woodbine,Shabana Azmi,Natasha Culzac,Olive Gray,Yerin Ha,Bentley Kalu,Kate Kennedy,Charlie Murphy, andDanny Sapani.Ryan McParland,Burn Gorman, andFiona O’Shaughnessyjoin the series as original characters.
A press release from Paramount+ notes the following: “Haloreinvented how people think about video games and has grown into a global entertainment phenomenon, having sold more than 82 million copies worldwide and grossing more than $6 billion in lifetime total sales revenue.”
