Godzilla is no stranger to the varied world of media, with 38 movies already dedicated to history’s most famous Kaiju. He was one of the first giant movie monsters, and alongside Kong, he’s stood the test of time as one of the most impressive and appealing. Yet, despite his titanic success, Godzilla has never really had a video game befitting his stature.
Of course, there have been many attempts to bring the King of the Monsters to video games, with more than 30 titles including him in one form or another. These include fighting games, party games, and guest appearances, each of which tries to put its own spin on the giant's potential. None have yet lasted the test of time or received broad acclaim, which made us wonder why.
Supersized Challenges
There are several big problems facing any Godzilla adaption into video games, the first of which stems from his power. Godzilla, as per his name, is the King of all monsters. He's the strongest, and while he does face challenges, he still stands supreme at the top of the mountain. Like Superman, this can be difficult to translate into a satisfying title. Godzilla isn’t really an underdog, and this limits the tension a Godzilla game can present.
"First Official Look at GODZILLA: KING OF" (CC BY-SA 2.0) by AntMan3001
Then there’s the issue of enemies. Godzilla doesn’t fight many enemies, because there aren’t many enemies that can match him. While many brawlers will have you moving down hordes of opponents, Godzilla focused more on one-on-one combat. The only video game genre that really lends itself to this kind of gameplay is the fighting game genre. Fighting games are also incredibly difficult to balance, even when managing human characters. Enter monsters into the mix, and releasing a quality product becomes that much more complicated.
Finally, we need to take into account the graphics. Godzilla is a big boy, notorious for leaving a huge amount of carnage in his wake. Rendering this carnage and the physics behind it is another significant challenge. It’s necessary for a Godzilla game to feel authentic, but it also doesn’t really affect gameplay, so it’s difficult to justify the time and financial investment such destruction effects require.
Going Small
Ultimately, the best way to deliver a quality Godzilla might come from iGaming, rather than the realm of video games. Consider an NJ casino app and its licensed titles as an example. Titles like The Lost Boys and Ted might not follow the films closely, but they do use inspiration to lean into the strengths of the slot genre. Also, available on Android and Apple devices, this approach increases accessibility while avoiding all the issues video game adaptions imply. Ultimately, it could be smaller releases that prove the most viable.
"GODZILLA HEAD" (CC BY-ND 2.0) by amika_san
Not all media is equally suitable for all mediums, and there's nothing wrong with that. Sure, Godzilla titles might not ever stand at the top of gaming, but for fans, they also don’t really need to. They can still be fun for the right people, and there are still avenues in other forms of entertainment left for the Godzilla to explore. Whatever the case, we always have the films to turn to, and in that, we’ve entered another golden age.
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