The Best (and Worst) Video Game Comics

I was born in 1984. The first dollar I had to spend bought me a comic book. When people would ask me what I wanted for my birthday, I always told them video games. As I got older, I thought I would outgrow such childish pursuits and find adult hobbies, like sexy parties and putting model ships into bottles. I’m 26 now and well, see for yourself. While I have attended a sexy party or two, I’m still very much into comics and video games.

That said, I rarely find my two interests amalgamating in a good way. Video games based off comic books usually suck. As for video games adapted into comic books, I haven’t bought one since Valiant published those Legend of Zelda comics in the early 90s. So, with the recent release of Assassin’s Creed: The Fall, I felt it was necessary to go back and look at all the books I’ve missed out on.

I present to you every video game comic book I could get my hands on, reviewed and ranked from worst to best:

Darkstalkers

Absolute dreck. I have to assume there’s better fan fiction out there. Skip it. Or find yourself a copy and burn it, for the sake of comics fans everywhere.

tl;dr: Kill it with FIRE.

Devil May Cry

This book is the greatest thing I’ve read this year, if only because it proves to me that I have a chance of breaking into writing comics. In fact, now I’m pretty sure anyone can create a video game adaptation, including small woodland critters. Even die-hard fans of the franchise won’t be able to look past the inane dialog, shoddy story-telling and page after page of clichés. Skip it and save yourself from the greatest evil ever known.

tl;dr: Skip it.

Starcraft

It’s hard to find someone who doesn’t appreciate Blizzard. I’ve always been a fan of the Starcraft mythos and was pleased to see a comic based off the series. That was until I read it. While the creators do a good job with the setting and attention to detail, the story feels like it was crafted by way of dartboard. A bunch of… thwack… mercenaries… thwack… seek freedom… thwack… by assassinating some guy. Except you can’t say “some guy”, so how about Jim Raynor? People know him from the games, right? The book, while it could have been so much more, comes off as a poorly-executed cash-grab.

tl;dr: Skip it.

Modern Warfare 2

Unlike the previous comics, I didn’t have to force myself through this one. That’s about the nicest thing I can say about Modern Warfare 2: Ghost. While a lot of the flashbacks are well done and interesting, this series read more like a failed attempt at telling the back-story of a Punisher villain. The overabundance of macho swagger aimed at pandering to Call of Duty fans poisons what might have been a good book. Fans of the character should be able to tolerate it, but as for everyone else, skip it.

tl;dr: Skip it.

Fallout: New Vegas

A decent book, but I had a hard time getting my hands on it. For something so rare, you’d think that the book would be amazing. Then, you find yourself reading a short prequel to the game, including little to no new information for fans. There’s so much that could have been done with a New Vegas graphic novel. All Roads is a failure, if only because it accomplishes nothing new. If you’re a big fan, can’t live without it and you can easily find it, pick it up. Otherwise…

tl;dr: Skip it.

Star Wars: Force Unleashed 1 & 2

The first graphic novel is exactly the same thing as the first Force Unleashed. It’s decent, but not great. Star Wars fans will enjoy it. However, you can force throw the sequel into a sarlaac pit without a second thought. I don’t know what it is about pre-New Hope stories, but they always seem to transform characters into one-dimensional, whiny fussbudgets. (Spoiler: Boba Fett skips out on a lucrative assassination job to have a good cry in his ship.) If you want more of the same or missed out on the first game, find yourself a copy of the first book. For everyone else, shun the dark side and skip both.

tl;dr: Probably skip it.

Mass Effect

I’m a big fan of the Mass Effect series. When I heard that the lead writer of the game was going to do a comic to bridge the gap between the two games, I got really excited. So, that might be why I felt so underwhelmed by what was a pretty mediocre story. While it isn’t terrible, it doesn’t do much for the series. The art is good, but I felt like a seasoned writer, someone like Hickman or Fraction, could have done a better job than anyone from Bioware. That said, it’s still a must-have for fans of Liara or anyone who really liked the Shadow Broker DLC. (I’ll admit things made more sense in Shadow Broker after I read the comic.) Without the video game series to back it up, this comic wouldn’t be seeing much success.

tl;dr: Skip it unless you’re a fan.

Dante’s Inferno

I can’t believe this ranked so highly on this list either. I was ready to lump this book in with Darkstalkers without a second thought. However, I remembered how important it is to have someone you don’t know telling you what to think about comics you couldn’t care less about. As it turns out, it’s a charming story with interesting art and in some weird way, it does the source material justice. (I’m talking about the epic poem, not the game.) If it wasn’t adapted from a video game, I could see a lot more people checking it out. I feel like a complete nutjob typing this, but it’s not awful. Give it a read if you liked the game, or happen to have some strange affinity for Italian poets from the Middle Ages. (Or if you liked The Crow. Again, I feel like a complete nutter, but that made sense to mention.)

tl;dr: Skip it unless you’re a fan.

World of Warcraft

The worst thing I can say about it is that it can read like an encyclopedia. The best thing I can say about it is that it is set in a world so robust and extensive it could fill multiple encyclopedias. I only rummaged through the first few issues, but what I saw was more than adequate. While I doubt I’ll read any more of the series, I get the feeling it can only get better as it goes on. This is the sort of adaptation I’d love to see achieving greatness, the type of success on par with Jeff Smith’s Bone series. However, based on the first trade, I have to say this is stuck in fans-only territory. Luckily, I don’t feel bad saying that, seeing as how that applies to over 12 million people. (I’m a former WoW player, myself. Been clean for three years.)

tl;dr: Skip it unless you’re a fan.

Halo

I didn’t know where to start with this one, so I tried to read everything. Big mistake. While die-hard fans of the franchise may talk up the books, let’s get something straight: there wouldn’t be Halo comics without Halo video games. From the downright awful (Uprising) to the barely passable (Helljumper), the comic adaptations come off as respectful to the medium as getting tea-bagged. The only reason I put this so high on the list is because of Fred Van Lente and Francis Portela’s offering, Halo: Blood Line. Skip all the other books, but check out Blood Line. It’s a great book and I feel like it’s the best story they could have told, given the source material. (That’s especially true after forcing myself to read Uprising.)

tl;dr: Skip, sans Blood Line.

Prototype

It wasn’t until reading Prototype that I got the feeling that anyone in the comics world cared about video game adaptations. Most video game comics are written by people I’ve never heard of before. This comic miniseries was not only written by people I know of, it was written by people I have seen in person and deeply respect. Sadly, I can’t also say that those same people brought their A-game to this project. Or maybe they did. There’s only so much that can be done with a comic based off a game that features a player-controlled abomination eating people and surfing down Broadway on corpses. (A game which I enjoyed, I might add.) Jimmy Palmiotti, Darick Robertson and Justin Gray are some of the best guys in comics (if not the world), so maybe nothing could have saved this book from being anything but a comic for fans only. I know that I’d be honored to have them sign my copy, but I can’t assure you that you’d feel the same way.

tl;dr: Maybe, maybe not.

Gears of War

Whether it’s the comic or the book series by Karen Traviss, the Gears stories may benefit from distancing themselves from the video game series. As a fan of the franchise, I can definitely see why people dismiss Gears as a juvenile power fantasy. There’s something about a big guy carrying a chainsaw gun that destroys any chance any story can be taken seriously. I’ll admit that while I’ve read everything branded with that COG symbol, I’ve rarely recommended any of it for that very reason. However, if you can look past the flaws, there’s some great work being done in the Gears universe. With Karen Traviss taking over the writing duties for both Gears 3 and the ongoing comic series, I feel a lot more confident saying that this is a must-have for fans and maybe, just maybe, worth the time of non-fans.

tl;dr: Must-have for fans, weak maybe for non-fans.

Mirror’s Edge

I could repeat a lot of what I just said about Gears when it comes to reviewing Mirror’s Edge. While this comic is a solid effort, it’s held back by the game it’s based on. For a story about a girl running everywhere, the creators did a great job using the medium to convey Faith’s movement across an urban labyrinth. The plot is sparse, seeing as how it’s yet another “origin story,” but the art more than makes up for it. Again, a must-have for fans and probably worth checking out otherwise.

tl;dr: Must-have for fans, strong maybe for non-fans.

Left 4 Dead

This is exactly what a comic adaptation of a video game should be. It gives us important information about characters we love. It tells a great story that fits in well with the game. It could stand on its own as a great comic. (It’s also free.) The art and dialog are spectacular, easily on par with the best of what the game has to offer. This set the standard I judged all the other books by. While it pains me not to own this in print format on my shelf, I’m ecstatic to be able to share it with all of you.

tl;dr: It’s free, go read it.

Dead Space

The goal I had in mind when reviewing these comics was to bring my passion for the medium to you, the video game fan. If one of you picks up a comic, any comic, because of this, it will make me smile. That said, I hope you believe me when I write I would never tell you to buy anything I didn’t believe to be worth your time and money. I hope you also believe me when I say Dead Space is the best video game comic I’ve ever seen. Not only can this book stand on its own, it rightfully deserves an ongoing series. With the upcoming release of Dead Space 2, I can hope Johnston and Templesmith are asked back to do more. (I have never played Dead Space. I’m not a fan of survival horror games. I am still in love with this book.) While I could only find the book in hardcover, I still recommend it as a must-buy for video game and comic fans alike.

tl;dr: Worth buying.

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If you have any suggestions as per what I’ve missed or would like to see more comics-related content on Piki Geek, please leave a comment. It was a massive pain in the ass doing this, but I can’t say I didn’t enjoy it. Thank you so much for sticking with it (all 2,000 words of it) and make sure to check back soon for my review of Assassin’s Creed: The Fall.