The grindhouse Italian film that was released 40 years ago is courting controversy, once again. | Source: Fantastico Studios
- Cannibal Holocaust has been called one of the most controversial films of all time.
- A new game is being planned which will continue the legacy of that film.
- This idea is only going to end in disaster.
2020 has been a rough year. The new decade has started out with bush fires, celebrity deaths and a deadly virus sweeping the globe. Many gamers are turning to things like Minecraft and Animal Crossing for a bit of escapism in these dark times. Now someone has decided to make a game based on the most controversial (probably) film of all time, Cannibal Holocaust .
Making an adventure game out of a movie literally accused of being a snuff film when it was released seems like a great idea to me. Especially at a time when a lot of people could use some cheering up. Nothing is more cheerful than hyperrealistic murder, torture, and cannibalism after all.
Cannibal Holocaust Was Barely Watchable In The First Place
Cannibal Holocaust is a bit of an odd film honestly. It’s one of the most disgusting pieces of cinema that you can actually sit through. Yet, it’s not without at least some merits. It did basically invent found-footage as a genre. Not only that, but there was at least some attempt made at having a point, even if the over-reliance on gore did undermine it somewhat.
The issue with trying to turn that into a game in the modern day is just how stomach-churning the film was in the first place. Consider scenes like the infamous ‘impalement’ scene. They were so close to reality that the film’s creator was accused of airing an actual death on-screen.
Now that means one of two things. Either the game is going to shy away from that level and be a pale imitation of the original Cannibal Holocaust. Or, the game is going to go that far and be so unpleasant that it’s almost unplayable to everyone who isn’t a sociopath. Neither of which seem like good options.
It’s One Thing to Watch, It’s Another to Take Part
The main issue with a Cannibal Holocaust game is that unlike the movie it has to be interactive. While the level of horrific realism was just about manageable as a passive observer, once you’re in there taking part it’s probably going to be a lot harder to get through.
Even if this Cannibal Holocaust game has a similar social commentary to the film, what’s the point? If the game is so unpleasant to play then no one is going to be able to stomach it long enough to get your ‘message’.
Of course, this is all a moot point until the game actually comes out. It’s apparently going to be a 2D game anyway, so how horrific can it actually be? The developers are working with the original director. So, it’s going to be interesting to see how much like Cannibal Holocaust this turns out to be.
Either it’s going to be somehow horrific, or it’s going to be too take to be Cannibal Holocaust and will feel like a failure.
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of CCN.com.
