by The Matt
No.1 Mass Effect
The plot:
The first human recruited for the interspecies Spectre corps must hunt down one of their own who’s gone rogue. Along the way he’ll discover that the galaxy’s time is running out, as The Reapers, biomechanical monsters from beyond the edge of the universe, are returning after a 50,000 years absence to cull all sentient life. He’ll need a team. A damn good one.
Why it could work:
Possessing what is perhaps the most standard plot of all the games on this list, Mass Effect never feels like a video game. It’s 100% pure science fiction goodness in the tradition of Star Wars. A mostly typical hero’s journey, Mass Effect’s Shepard must overcome anti-human sentiment from the rest of the galaxy’s races, gather a team of specialists for what might just be a suicide mission and, eventually, save all life in the universe. Plus, it’s only the first chapter in a trilogy. And Hollywood loves trilogies.
Why it might not work:
To truly bring the world of Mass Effect to life you’d probably need the single largest budget in the history of movies. There are relatively few human characters in Mass Effect. From the gigantic Krogans to the environment suit-wearing Quarians to… whatever the heck those flying jellyfish are. Spectacular ship battles, dozens of different worlds each with its own unique landscape and over 20 main characters, not even counting the supporting roles… It’ll be a minor miracle if even half of what makes Mass Effect so great survives the translation to the big screen.
Who should be involved:
Casting Mass Effect is surprisingly easy. Most of the characters have real-life counterparts, which they also resemble. Seth Green is Joker. Keith David is David Anderson. Chuck’s Yvonne Strahovski is Miranda. Martin Sheen is The Illusive Man. It goes on and on. Also, since most of the alien members of Shepard’s crew are destined to be CGI, you already have the perfect voice actors for the roles. As for Shepard himself, fan favorite Matthew Fox of Lost seems to be the perfect choice.
Jack Shephard as Mass Effect’s Shepard? Hell, yes!
The potential:
Stellar. Ensemble, science fiction epic with amazing special effects? Cha-ching!
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