‘xXx 3’ Writer Joins Growing List Of People Hired To Adapt ‘Gears Of War’ Video Game As A Feature Film

Video game films have a terrible track record. From laughable messes such as “Super Mario Bros.” to honest efforts to transcend the genre, such as “Assassin’s Creed” and “Tomb Raider,” there has yet to truly be a great videogame film. Universal hopes to change that with their adaptation of the popular Xbox game “Gears of War.”

The Wrap reports that writer F. Scott Frazier has been hired to tackle the highly-anticipated adaptation. “Gears of War” tells the story of a group of soldiers forming the resistance against the Locust Horde, creatures that emerge from beneath Earth’s surface and want to take over the world. Think beefier Space Marines from James Cameron’s “Aliens” with even bigger guns.

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Now, the good news for fans of “Gears of War” is that Universal is still moving forward with the project after optioning the rights a couple years ago. The slightly unsettling news is that Frazier isn’t the first guy hired to tackle the film. A decade ago, Stuart Beattie was hired to pen the film for director Len Wiseman before that fell apart. And just last year, Shane Salerno was hired to script “Gears of War.”

But now, we have Frazier, and frankly, his filmography leaves us a bit cold on the prospects for this film. The writer’s previous works leave a lot to be desired, as he’s probably best known as the man who scripted the films “Collide” (the oft-forgotten action film starring Nicholas Hoult and Felicity Jones) and “xXx: The Return of Xander Cage,” the third film in the superspy/extreme sports franchise starring Vin Diesel.

Sure, there are fans of ‘xXx,’ as box office receipts (particularly in China) will attest. However, no one is mistaking that film as particularly good. It’s your typical stupid action film with an illogical plot, silly one-liners, and over-the-top action set pieces. Honestly, that sounds like it could make for a fairly enjoyable “Gears of War” film. But don’t go thinking that this Xbox adaptation is going to change people’s minds about videogame movies. That being said, Vin Diesel is exactly the type of person who should star.

There’s still no release date for the film, as “Gears of War” is still in the early stages of development. But fans can rejoice in knowing that it is moving forward.