Cross over content from one form of media to the next is becoming more common. This affects the video game industry in both directions: games getting made into movies, or movies/television getting turned into games.

In this day and age, while Hollywood movie budgets are getting bigger, so too are our demands from modern cinema.

It is no wonder, then, that the poor folk in Hollywood are beginning to run out of ideas, so much so that they’re turning to other forms of media to make their next biggest blockbuster. Sometimes it works; sometimes, it does not – here are just a few examples of the biggest wins and fails of multimedia adaptations.

Subject: Game of Thrones

Verdict: Win

Based on the epic fantasy novels by George R.R. Martin, HBO hit Game of Thrones burst onto our screens in 2011 and has entranced viewers every since. Telling the story of the mythical seven kingdoms, the series took the books to a whole new level.

It has become so popular in the modern day that it has even spawned its own slot game at cad.SpinPalace.com, and with ratings going up every season, it doesn’t look like this adaptation is going to show any signs of slowing down any time soon.

Subject: Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas

Verdict: Win

Based on the novel by Hunter S Thompson, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas was just as much of a hit on screen as it was on the page. Of course, as one of Johnny Depp’s pivotal roles, it would have not been the same without its stellar cast, which also included the inimitable Benicio del Toro. Telling the story of a drug-induced trip through America, Fear and Loathing re-defined popular culture in the 90s.

Subject: Tomb Raider

Verdict: Fail

It’s always a risky move for video games to be made into movies – for example, the Resident Evil franchise may have started out promisingly but ultimately turned into a dead horse which was tired of being flogged.

Sadly, despite an optimistic cast with Angelina Jolie and Daniel Craig, Lara Croft: Tomb Raider failed to make quite the mark on cinema audiences as it did gamers. Perhaps it was just poor dialogue or Jolie’s additional ‘padding’, but something didn’t quite make the mark.

This is a bummer because I actually liked the movie.

Subject: Spiderman

Verdict: EPIC WIN

Of all of Stan Lee’s multi-million dollar Marvel empire, one super hero who has done better than any other is of course, your friendly neighbourhood Spiderman. In his early days as a comic book character, he could never have dreamed of spawning a huge movie franchise, video games, clothing and much more. In fact, of all the Marvel characters, Spiderman has been named the most profitable  – in 2013 alone, more than $1.3 billion of Spiderman merchandise was sold.

Subject: Fifty Shades of Grey

Verdict: EPIC FAIL

It’s attracted more column inches than the royal wedding, and was actually named the highest grossing 18-rated film in the UK ever, and yet, by all accounts, Fifty Shades of Grey was a cinematic bomb. Of course, it doesn’t help that it had a pretty awful novel as a basis; but its dialogue was terrible, the acting was painful and the PR has been a shambles. There is some saving grace however: rumour has it that Jamie Dornan has pulled out of the sequels, if director Sam Taylor Johnson can bring herself to make any others!