novel adaptations
Trying to avoid more indirect adaptations, i.e. ones based on a movie/tv adaptation rather than the book itself, ones based loosely around a famous character rather than a specific story, ones that are just a sequel to a previous video game adaptation (unless they're based on a particular sequel novel). I'll fudge those rules where I feel like it though.
198 Games
Parasite Eve (Hideaki Sena, 1995)
Metro 2033 (Dmitry Glukhovsky, 2002)
Inferno (Dante Alighieri, ~1320)
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (Lewis Carroll, 1865) and Through the Looking-Glass (Lewis Carroll, 1871)
The Witcher Saga (Andrzej Sapkowski, 1994-1999)
The Invincible (Stanisław Lem, 1964)
Water Margin (Shi Nai'an, late 1300s)
Journey to the West (Wu Cheng'en, 1592)
Around the World in 80 Days (Jules Verne, 1873)
Chaos Legion (Tow Ubukata, 2003)
The Hobbit, or There and Back Again (J.R.R. Tolkien, 1937)
Never Deal With a Dragon (Robert N. Charrette, 1990)
The Riftwar Cycle (Raymond E. Feist, 1982-2013) (subsequently novelized as Krondor: The Betrayal (1998))
Below the Root (Zilpha Keatley Snyder, 1975)
Romance of the Three Kingdoms (Luo Guanzhong, 1300s)
Rainbow Six (Tom Clancy, 1998)
Animal Farm (George Orwell, 1945)
Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde (Robert Louis Stevenson, 1886)
Romance of the Three Kingdoms (Luo Guanzhong, 1300s)
Digital Devil Story trilogy (Aya Nishitani, 1986-1988)
The Final Scene ("Carolyn Keene", ed. Anne Greenberg, 1994)
The Secret of the Old Clock, The Hidden Staircase, The Bungalow Mystery, & The Mystery at Lilac Inn (Mildred Wirt Benson (as Carolyn Keene), 1930)
Shōgun (James Clavell, 1975)
The Name of the Rose (Umberto Eco, 1980)
Tai-Pan (James Clavell, 1966)
Neuromancer (William Gibson, 1984)
The Broken Anchor (Sharon Wagner (as Carolyn Keene), 1983)
A Song of Ice and Fire series (George R.R. Martin, 1996-2011)
Death by Design ("Carolyn Keene", ed. Anne Greenberg, 1988)
Tai-Pan (James Clavell, 1966)
From the Earth to the Moon (Jules Verne, 1865), Around the Moon (Jules Verne, 1870) & The First Men in the Moon (H.G. Wells, 1901)
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (Lewis Carroll, 1865)
The Swiss Family Robinson (Johann David Wyss, 1812)
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (Mark Twain, 1876)
Flight from the Dark (Joe Dever & Gary Chalk, 1984)
Azure Bonds (Kate Novak & Jeff Grubb, 1988)
Brave Story (Miyuki Miyabe, 1999-2001)
Evil Under the Sun (Agatha Christie, 1941)
Water Margin (Shi Nai'an, late 1300s)
Stay Tuned for Danger ("Carolyn Keene", ed. Anne Greenberg, 1987)
How to Be a Complete Bastard (Adrian Edmondson, Mark Leigh & Mike Lepine, 1986)
Murder off Miami (Dennis Wheatley, 1936)
Dragonflight and sequels (Anne McCaffrey, 1968-1979)
The Way of the Tiger series (Mark Smith & Jamie Thomson, 1985-1987)
Shōgun (James Clavell, 1975)
Mystery Train ("Carolyn Keene & Franklin W. Dixon", ed. Anne Greenberg, 1990)
Griffin and Sabine: An Extraordinary Correspondence (Nick Bantock, 1991)
Romance of the Three Kingdoms (Luo Guanzhong, 1300s)
Peril at End House (Agatha Christie, 1932)
Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There (Lewis Carroll, 1871)
The Thirteenth Pearl (Harriet Stratemeyer Adams (as Carolyn Keene), 1979) & Tour of Danger ("Carolyn Keene & Franklin W. Dixon", ed. Anne Greenberg, 1992)
The Phantom of the Opera (Gaston Leroux, 1910)
The Lord of the Rings (J.R.R. Tolkien, 1954-1955)
The Secret of Shadow Ranch (Mildred Wirt Benson (as Carolyn Keene), 1931)
To Hell With the Ugly (Boris Vian [as Vernon Sullivan], 1948)
Politika (Jerome Preisler, Tom Clancy & Martin Greenberg, 1997)
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (Douglas Adams, 1979)
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (L. Frank Baum, 1900)
Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas (Jules Verne, 1870)
Damiano trilogy (R.A. MacAvoy, 1983-1984)
Investiture of the Gods (Xu Zhonglin, late 1500s - early 1600s)
Moving Pictures (Terry Pratchett, 1990) & Reaper Man (Terry Pratchett, 1991)
Seas of Blood (Andrew Chapman, 1985)
Treasure Island [aka Sea Cook: A Story for Boys] (Robert Louis Stevenson, 1883)
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (Lewis Carroll, 1865)
The Colour of Magic (Terry Pratchett, 1983)
The Awakening (L.J. Smith, 1991)
it might adapt elements from some of the following novels as well, not quite sure, but it far predates the TV series
it might adapt elements from some of the following novels as well, not quite sure, but it far predates the TV series
Death on the Nile (Agatha Christie, 1937)
To Kill a Mockingbird (Harper Lee, 1960)
The Count of Monte Cristo (Alexandre Dumas, 1844)
The Hidden Staircase (Mildred Wirt Benson (as Carolyn Keene), 1930)
The Warlock of Firetop Mountain (Steve Jackson & Ian Livingstone, 1982)
Fire on the Water (Joe Dever & Gary Chalk, 1984)
Journey to the West (Wu Cheng'en, 1592)
Dracula (Bram Stoker, 1897)
Rebel Planet (Robin Waterfield, 1985)
Nansō Satomi Hakkenden [aka The Eight Dog Chronicles] (Kyokutei Bakin, 1814-1842)
The Canterbury Tales, (Geoffrey Chaucer, ~1400)
Journey to the West (Wu Cheng'en, 1592)
The Death Gate Cycle (Margaret Weis & Tracy Hickman, 1990-1994)
Demons Don't Dream (Piers Anthony, 1993)
The Witch Tree Symbol (Harriet Stratemeyer Adams (as Carolyn Keene), 1955)
False Impressions & The Clues Challenge ("Carolyn Keene", ed. Anne Greenberg, 1990 & 2001)
Mystery on Maui (Elizabeth Nugent (as Carolyn Keene), 1998)
Moderato Cantabile (Marguerite Duras, 1958)
Ringworld series (Larry Niven, 1970-2004)
Romance of the Three Kingdoms (Luo Guanzhong, 1300s)
The Mardi Gras Mystery ("Carolyn Keene", ed. Anne Greenberg, 1988)
Congo (Michael Crichton, 1980)
The Pillars of the Earth (Ken Follett, 1989)
The Fellowship of the Ring (J.R.R. Tolkien, 1954)
Whispers in the Fog ("Carolyn Keene", ed. Anne Greenberg, 2000)
The ABC Murders (Agatha Christie, 1936)
Kâbus (Alev Alatlı, 1999)
Seasons of Heaven (Nicolas Augusto, 2016)
The Fourth Protocol (Frederick Forsyth, 1984)
The Wheel of Time series (Robert Jordan, 1990-2005)
And Then There Were None (Agatha Christie, 1940)
The Bike Tour Mystery ("Carolyn Keene", ed. Anne Greenberg, 2002)
Callahan's Crosstime Saloon (Spider Robinson, 1977)
11 Comments
thanks! I think it came up when I was getting the list together but I was having a hard time figuring out which specific Kenji Miyazawa works it was pulling from and whether it might be better suited for my other list, for games based on short stories? I should look into it further
Hmm yeah possibly the short stories list would be a better fit – I haven’t found much info on the specific stories it’s adapting either, and am not familiar with Miyazawa’s work
I love your list! There are novels that I didn't even know had a game.
Definitely need "I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream" on here!
"I Have No Mouth" is based on a short story so it's on this list instead https://www.backloggd.com/u/jakobvongunten/list/games-based-on-poems-short-stories-and-songs-1/
You missed Shannara when it comes to Legend Entertainment book adaptions.
There's also the Discworld adventure game trilogy and the Infocom Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy interactive fiction game. Also Pilgrim: Faith as a Weapon and Return of the Phantom
Finally I think the Dune RTSes by Westwood would count, unlike the original Cryo adventure game which was clearly based off the Lynch film.
There's also the Discworld adventure game trilogy and the Infocom Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy interactive fiction game. Also Pilgrim: Faith as a Weapon and Return of the Phantom
Finally I think the Dune RTSes by Westwood would count, unlike the original Cryo adventure game which was clearly based off the Lynch film.
have added a few of those but Shannara, Discworld Noir, and the Westwood Dune games are all original plots within the setting of their respective series afaik. Not sure why Hitchhiker's wasn't here already, perhaps when i made the list I thought it was primarily based on the radio series?
The Atlus Megami Tensei isn't actually a direct adaption on the novel, it's a sequel the the first 2 novels (before the 3rd novel released and went in a different direction). I don't know too much about the Telenet one but I believe it's a side story rather then an adaption of the novels.
I am glad someone else already did the work of compiling these. Thanks For Making it. Recently this game called "To Hell With The Ugly" was released, which is a direct adaptation of the Boris Vian novel of the same name, if you wouldnt mind adding it.
thanks! (for both the appreciation & the tip)
TeN
3 years ago