2019’s Joker movie has been imagined as an open-world game. Considering the award-winning movie took a different approach to comic book movies, following the likes of The King of Comedy and Taxi Driver in its story and tone rather than following more classic comic book movie fare like the DC movies that came before it, it’s the last movie anyone would expect to be adapted into a game, and yet it looks visually impressive.
TeaserPlay, who is known for their impressive concept trailers for series like Grand Theft Auto or imagined remakes of titles such as Bully or Need for Speed Underground, has made one for the film Joker using Unreal Engine 5.
The visuals capture the cinematography, locations, and costumes used in the film, with major set pieces such as the subway shooting, stairway dance, and the Live! with Murray Franklin talk show.
As impressive as TeaserPlay’s trailer looks, an open-world Joker game probably wouldn’t work in practice. The story of the movie followed Arthur Fleck as he spiraled into becoming the Joker, and was full of social commentary on various topics such as childhood trauma, the media’s portrayal of tragedy, and the help available – or lack thereof – for mental illness. These topics wouldn’t work in a fast-paced, Grand Theft Auto-esque title where Joker is allowed to shoot up the city, and would likely be criticized for glorifying the violence, rather than what the film did, where it used those moments sparingly to give an impact and make them more disturbing.
It’s unlikely that there will ever be a Joker-led game in the future, as the character works better as a villain or as part of an ensemble where his twisted actions can’t be glorified as much. Most recently, a version of Joker has appeared as a playable character in Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League‘s much-maligned first post-launch season, although here, he is intended as part of a team of villains and anti-heroes and is kept in line by Amanda Waller.
TeaserPlay is clearly aware of this, as they point out that the Joker video was created “purely for fun” and “definitely won’t be released.” in the video’s description. It’s worth noting that players were able to experience a story in which they were responsible for creating the Joker through Telltale’s Batman: The Enemy Within. Telltale’s story worked as it showed a younger, more inexperienced Joker known as John Doe, who wanted to befriend Bruce Wayne while idolizing Batman. As a result, players’ choices as either side of the alter-ego would influence him, ultimately leading to a tragic conclusion where, instead of helping him get the help he needs, they can inadvertently transform him into a monster, and feel the weight of doing so.
Source: TeaserPlay/YouTube