If you want to read something, but don't know where to start, try our recommendations. Here's a list of ten games based on books that can be fun, lift your spirits, and make self-isolation more comfortable and bearable. 
Inspiration for a game project can come from anywhere, but books are one of the best sources for compelling stories. Unlike film industry professionals, game masters do not often take literature as a basis.
The game offers more interactivity, freedom, and it is simply difficult for it to fit into the format of a separate work. But this is not to say that it is impossible to do this. In fact, many games already position themselves as “game cinema”, offering a very linear and limited path. Other developers take a detour and are content with the book’s universe or release its sequel, and in some cases, a prequel.
And don’t forget about the interest (or fixed fee) that will have to be paid to the author of the work or another holder of its license. In such cases, we are talking about very substantial sums, and not every company will dare to take such a step. Well, how can we forget about the fans who are ready to tear apart the developers if they don’t fit into the images or deviate greatly from the original source?
In some cases, it is much easier to create your own universe and write a story than to take on finished material. We should not forget about individuals who simply cannot come to terms with the inability to work on their favorite work. They take their favorite books as a basis and draw inspiration from them, and sometimes even openly copy them.
“Top 10” or its equivalent is a category that is exclusively subjective, and the opinion of the author does not always coincide with the opinion of the editors. The format has a numerical limit indicated in the title, so many things are left out. If you think that some game is missing, be sure to write about it in the comments!
10. Parasite Eve 
Parasite Eve's main character, Aya Brea, is an NYPD trainee who battles Eve, a demonic parasite in the form of a woman. The deadly monster tirelessly strives to conquer the world and only Aya is able to resist him.
The game's plot is partially based on the novel Parasite Eve. Its author was a graduate of the University of Tokyo, Hideaki Sena. He wrote the book while still a graduate student and was shocked by the popularity of his debut.
The idea for the story didn't just come out of nowhere: Sena had a background in pharmacology, and his routine involved testing mitochondria with various drugs for their ability to convert fatty acids into energy. A TV documentary he watched made him think that mitochondria have a will of their own, and they don't want to go along with the end of their symbiotic relationship. This is how “Parasite Eve” was born.
In 1997, a film based on the novel was released in Japan, and a year later the game was also released. The latter was undertaken not by just anyone, but by Squaresoft itself, the company behind the release of the Final Fantasy series.
9. BioShock 
BioShock plunges the player into the depths of the Atlantic Ocean, into a dystopia known as the city of Rapture. The plot begins with the fact that the main character is lucky twice: after a plane crash, he miraculously survives, falls into the ocean and finds himself next to the entrance to a mysterious metropolis. However, the surprises do not end there - Rapture is literally teeming with various mutants and ghosts.
Much of the world of BioShock is inspired by themes and ideas developed by American writer Ayn Rand. In her book Atlas Shrugged, she first introduces the philosophy that Rapture's dystopia focuses on. Rand considered this book the main work in her literary career.
8. Metro 2033 
The game takes place in post-apocalyptic Moscow, mainly in the metro. In these dark stations and tunnels, the people left behind by nuclear war continue to fight for survival. Supernatural anomalies and mutants don't make things any easier.
The game's story is entirely based on the original science fiction novel "Metro 2033" by Dmitry Glukhovsky. Unlike a number of other games based on books, Metro 2033 follows the story fairly closely. When the project appeared in the West, a translated version of the work was published along with it.
The game's creators perfectly captured the bleak, desperate atmosphere of the book and featured some of the most advanced graphical advancements at the time of its release. A later version (Metro: 2033 Redux) improved both graphics and gameplay. This is exactly what we recommend for passing.
7. Assassin's Creed 
Almost every Assassin's Creed game tells the story of a trained assassin, a member of the Assassin Order. Gameplay centers around the main character navigating the environment and finding his target by using special abilities to his advantage.
The video game assassin was inspired by Vladimir Bartol's novel "Alamut", the story of which is very close to the plot of the first Assassin's Creed. Also in this book there is a famous phrase “Nothing is true; Everything is allowed".
6. Dark Souls 
Let's cheat a little: Dark Souls is inspired by manga. What is manga? These are comics or graphic novels created in Japan or by humans, using the Japanese language and following the style developed in Japan in the late 19th century. Like books, they are a written or printed work consisting of pages glued or stitched along one side and bound together with bindings. That is why manga is allowed in the meaning of “comic books”.
5. Dante Inferno 
The plot centers on a knight who must fight his way through the seven circles of hell to save his love. The idea of the game is based on Ada, the first song of Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy.
A desperate warrior must fight his way through the circles of hell, each of which represents the sins of lust, gluttony, greed, laziness, anger, envy and pride. In some circles, real-life historical figures can be found, and players can either curse them or absolve the sins of defeated enemies. Dante Inferno is not the most accurate representation of the Divine Comedy, but the game undoubtedly helped introduce the classic narrative poem to those who had never heard of it.
4. Dune 
Frank Herbert's 1965 Dune is considered one of the greatest works of science fiction. It's a potent mixture of giant sandworms, destroyed ecology, mysticism and a futuristic feudal society that has banned AI and become addicted to drugs.
Local spice prolongs life, improves consciousness and gives the gift of foresight, which is incredibly important for interstellar travel. “Whoever controls the spice rules the universe,” as they say.
Dune has spawned a stunning film and television miniseries, but its influence goes far beyond that. Tatooine from Star Wars was based on Arrakis; Tremors is probably inspired by Dune's sandworms - the list goes on.
The first game based on it appeared in 1992. It was received fairly well, but did not have a significant impact on the gaming industry. 1993's Dune 2: Battle for Arrakis was a very different product, being the world's first RTS game and the spiritual ancestor of the Command and Conquer series. This was followed by a partial remake of Dune 2000 and its sequel, Emperor: Battle for Dune.
3. The Legend Of Zelda 
The Legend Of Zelda franchise has been around for decades and tells the story of the brave knight Link who must save Princess Zelda and the kingdom of Hyrule. To date, many different games have appeared in the series, but most of them have retained the classic concept.
In the mid-1980s, Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto needed a name for his new Nintendo heroine, and Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald had exactly what he needed. “She was a famous and beautiful woman all around, and I liked the sound of her name,” Miyamoto said. He also loved her novel “Save Me the Waltz.”
Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald is an American writer, dancer, artist, wife of the famous Francis Scott Fitzgerald (author of The Great Gatsby). Unfortunately, her fate is much more tragic than the stories of the princesses from The Legend Of Zelda.
2. S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl 
GSC Gameworld's most famous franchise "S.T.A.L.K.E.R." was also inspired by great science fiction. In this case, the inspiration was the 1971 work “Roadside Picnic” by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky.
Several years before the beginning of the story, aliens visit Earth without any warning. They make no attempt to contact or consciously interact with anyone, and then disappear as suddenly as they arrived, leaving humanity scratching their heads as to what just happened and what it all meant.
However, the aliens left their mark either by accident or by design. The areas visited have changed dramatically, and are now characterized by bizarre - and often deadly - anomalous phenomena that turn these areas into no-go zones. However, these areas hold great treasures, equally amazing - and often very useful - items known informally as "swag". "Stalkers" are outlaw adventurers who infiltrate zones to obtain artifacts and then sell them on the black market.
1. The Witcher 
The success of The Witcher on Netflix has sparked a resurgence in the popularity of The Witcher video games. But did you know that before the series and games, there was a book series about the Witchers, and that the Netflix show is based more on the book than the games? Since you're on this site, you're probably aware, and if you're not, well... you'll find out now.
The Witcher characters: in games, books and TV series.
Comparison
The series has already made waves all over the world, and talk about the production of a second season continues. At this time we will take a step back and examine in detail...
In 2007, the Polish company CD Projekt RED released a video game called The Witcher, based on a series of fantasy novels written by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski. Sapkowski's books are about a mutant named Geralt of Rivia, who works as a witcher, a fierce monster hunter who makes contracts to rid the world of all carrion.
Sapkowski's books were popular mainly among Polish readers due to their morally gray and realistic setting. But Mr. Sapkowski owes his worldwide recognition to CD Projekt RED.
Although the first Witcher game was a modest release, it successfully brought to life Sapkowski's fantasy world and won a small but loyal fan base upon its release. The second game, The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings, was released in 2011 and was more ambitious, and subsequently the series gained more attention. The 2015 release of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt was critically acclaimed and is now considered one of the best games ever made.
Although the Witcher books are certainly good in their own way, it is unlikely that they would have enjoyed the popularity that they now enjoy if not for their game adaptation.
If books are one of the oldest forms of entertainment, then games must be one of the newest. The idea of video games was first popularized back in the early 70s with the release of Pong, and with some help from projects like Pac-Man, Tetris and Space Invaders, video games have become a multi-million dollar industry.
The fact is that literature has inspired many game creators over the years, some of whom have achieved significant success. And that's great. Perhaps video games are another lifeline for literature.
What games based on books can you remember?
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