Video Games
Video games are becoming more than interactive entertainment. They are increasingly inspiring movies, television series, and other forms of storytelling. Now, two multiplayer games, ARC Raiders and THE FINALS, are joining this growing trend.
On October 6, 2026, game publisher Nexon announced a partnership with Chernin Entertainment to develop film and television adaptations based on both games. Embark Studios, the developer behind the two titles, is part of the project through its creative collaboration with the production company.
The announcement brings exciting possibilities for fans, but the projects are still in development. No release dates, casts, directors, streaming platforms, or specific formats have been confirmed.
So, what makes these games interesting choices for the screen, and why are video game adaptations attracting so much attention?
ARC Raiders Could Bring a Post-Apocalyptic World to Life
ARC Raiders is a multiplayer extraction adventure set on a future Earth threatened by dangerous machines known as ARC. Players take on the role of Raiders, venturing to the surface to collect valuable resources while facing mechanical enemies and other players.
Its setting offers several possibilities for a film or television story.
A screen adaptation could explore how humanity reached this dangerous future, how survivors organize their communities, and what motivates people to risk their lives outside relative safety. It could also introduce new characters and conflicts that go beyond the missions players experience in the game.
A television series might have room to explore different survivor groups and gradually reveal more about the world. A film, on the other hand, could focus on a single dangerous expedition or a major confrontation.
These are potential creative directions, not confirmed storylines. Nexon and Chernin Entertainment have not announced the plot or format of the adaptation.
The game’s combination of survival, exploration, machines, and human conflict nevertheless gives filmmakers several storytelling elements to work with.
THE FINALS Offers a Different Kind of Gaming World
While ARC Raiders focuses on survival in a dangerous future, THE FINALS builds its identity around a televised virtual combat competition.
The multiplayer shooter features contestants competing in elaborate arenas where destruction plays an important role. Its presentation resembles a futuristic entertainment show, complete with energetic commentary, sponsors, and a competition built around spectacle.
This concept could translate into a screen story in several ways.
A movie might follow a contestant trying to become a champion, while a series could explore rival teams, personal ambitions, corporate interests, and the entertainment industry surrounding the competition.
Another possibility would be to examine the relationship between the competition and the people who watch it. What happens when entertainment becomes more important than the contestants themselves? Could someone challenge the system behind the show?
These ideas are speculative, but they illustrate why THE FINALS has a different adaptation opportunity from a conventional military shooter.
The challenge will be creating characters and a compelling narrative that work for viewers who have never played the game.
Chernin Entertainment Is Leading the Projects
Chernin Entertainment will lead the development of the film and television adaptations. It operates under The North Road Company, the entertainment business founded by Peter Chernin.
The production company has worked on films including Hidden Figures, The Greatest Showman, and Ford v Ferrari. Its experience across different genres could be relevant when translating the distinct worlds of ARC Raiders and THE FINALS into screen entertainment.
Nexon selected Chernin Entertainment to lead the projects, with Embark Studios’ creative team expected to work closely with the production company.
That collaboration matters because adapting a game involves more than using its name, characters, or visual style. The creative team must understand what makes the original experience distinctive while developing a story that works in a different medium.
For fans, one important question will be how closely the adaptations preserve the atmosphere and identity of the games.
However, the partnership announcement does not yet reveal who will write, direct, star in, or distribute the projects. Those details will need to be confirmed through future announcements.
Why Are Video Game Adaptations Becoming More Popular?
The interest in ARC Raiders and THE FINALS reflects a wider opportunity for entertainment companies: successful games can provide established worlds, recognizable identities, and communities that already care about the source material.
Video games can also offer storytelling possibilities that extend beyond a single plot. Their fictional worlds may contain histories, factions, locations, conflicts, and characters that can inspire new stories.
Adaptations give studios an opportunity to reach audiences who may not own a gaming console or play games regularly. At the same time, they can introduce existing players to new interpretations of familiar settings.
But adapting a game is not a guaranteed success.
A movie or television series needs engaging characters, a coherent plot, good pacing, and a clear reason to exist beyond promoting the original game. Copying gameplay mechanics onto the screen is rarely enough to create a satisfying story.
The strongest adaptations understand what fans love while making the experience accessible to newcomers.
For ARC Raiders, that could mean preserving the tension of survival and exploration. For THE FINALS, it could mean capturing the energy of its competition while giving viewers characters worth following.
What This Means for Gamers and the Entertainment Industry
The development deal creates opportunities for both franchises to reach people outside their existing player communities.
For gamers, an adaptation could expand the fictional worlds they already enjoy and introduce new stories that complement the original games. For entertainment companies, the projects offer a way to develop established gaming properties across multiple formats.
There is also an opportunity for the games themselves to attract renewed attention when further details emerge. Screen adaptations can encourage audiences to discover the original source material, although the scale of that effect depends on the eventual quality and reach of each project.
Still, fans should keep their expectations realistic. Both adaptations are at an early stage, and development plans can change before a movie or television series reaches production.
At present, there is no confirmed release window, cast, trailer, or streaming service for either project. It is also not yet clear which game will receive a film and which will receive a television series.
For now, the announcement signals an intention to take both game worlds beyond interactive entertainment rather than a guarantee of when viewers will see them on screen.
Final Thoughts
The planned ARC Raiders and THE FINALS adaptations show how video games can provide inspiration for stories across movies and television.
ARC Raiders offers a world of dangerous machines, resource gathering, and human survival. THE FINALS brings a futuristic competition built around spectacle, rivalries, and destructible environments. Both have distinctive concepts that could support different approaches to screen storytelling.
Their success will ultimately depend on the creative teams, the stories they choose to tell, and how well they balance the expectations of existing fans with the interests of new audiences.
For now, gamers will have to wait for further announcements before knowing what these projects will look like.
Which game would you rather see adapted first: ARC Raiders or THE FINALS? And would you prefer a movie or a television series? Share your thoughts with the Altas Gaming community.
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