If you know where to look, you can watch full-length, real-world movies inside video games. Whether it would be a good viewing experience is up for debate, but at least now you know that if you somehow lose access to all streaming services and Blu-rays, you can boot up these games for some cinematic entertainment.
4
High on Life
High on Life is one of those games where trying to explain the plot makes you sound like you’re rambling through a fever dream—but I’m going to try anyway. You play a fresh high school graduate who teams up with a group of talking alien guns to embark on an epic space adventure. Your mission? Stop an alien cartel that wants to turn the entire human race into raw materials for their drug supply.
Wacky, I know. There’s plenty of chaos to get up to in the game, but if you ever want a break, you can actually kick back and watch full-length movies—five of them, to be exact.
At your home base, you’ll find a TV where you can watch old horror movies, including Tammy and the T-Rex, Vampire Hookers, Spookies, and Blood Harvest, complete with hilarious introductions and bizarre alien commercials. And if you manage to track down the in-game cinema, you can unlock an achievement called “We Paid for the Rights to Put a Whole Movie“ as well as sit for a full screening of the 1990 cult horror film Demon Wind.
There’s also a fun Easter egg hidden in the cinema. During the Demon Wind screening, three aliens in the theater will talk through the entire movie. Those aren’t just any random aliens—they’re actually Mike, Jay, and Rich from Red Letter Media, a popular movie-reviewing YouTube channel.
3
The Darkness
The Darkness is a horror-action-adventure game released in 2007, where you play as Jackie Estacado—a hitman for a crime family and the unwilling host of a powerful supernatural entity known as The Darkness. Your goal is to take control of the family from your treacherous uncle while trying to resist the sinister influence of the entity inside you.
Fans of the game praise its storytelling and incredible attention to detail, especially when it comes to the immersive world. One standout moment happens early on—you and Jackie’s girlfriend, Jenny, are cuddled up on the couch watching a movie, and if you choose to stay put, you can actually watch To Kill a Mockingbird in its entirety.
But that’s not the only film you’ll find. If you come across a TV during your explorations, you can flip through the channels and watch a surprising number of classic films, including Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror, Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe, and Shuteye Popeye.
2
Destroy All Humans
Destroy All Humans is an open-world action-adventure game that first launched in 2005 and was remade in 2020. It puts you in the (alien) shoes of Crypto-137, an extraterrestrial invader on a mission to harvest human DNA, terrorize the government, and generally wreak havoc on these puny Earthlings.
If you manage to beat the game, you unlock a fun little bonus—a drive-in theater where you can watch actual B-movies, like Teenagers From Outer Space and Plan 9 From Outer Space. Both movies pair perfectly with the game, and it’s the best way to cap off your intergalactic conquest.
1
Vein
Vein is a passion project of a game developed by a small team called Ramjet Studios. In this multiplayer zombie apocalypse survival, you attempt to gather supplies, explore ruins, and rebuild civilization with your friends.
The game is in early access, so it’s still very bare bones, but what’s notable about it is that while exploring, you can find DVDs, and if you put them in a player, you can watch actual movies. So far, only one movie is available—Night of the Living Dead, but presumably, the collection will expand as the developers improve the game.
Some Games Make Their Own Movies
Instead of paying for the rights to put movies in their games, some studios further the immersion by creating their own movies and TV shows.
For example, in GTA V, you can head to the cinema to watch three different short movies—The Loneliest Robot in Great Britain, Capolavoro, and Meltdown. In Control, you can watch a deranged puppet show called Threshold Kids.
And in Red Dead Redemption 2, you can see silent films at the Imperial Theater.
Some other games deserve an honorary mention because they have storylines so compelling that they could give Hollywood a run for its money. Story-driven games like The Last of Us, The Walking Dead, and Detroit: Become Human deliver gripping, emotional narratives that rival even the best films. These are the kinds of games you might enjoy watching more than playing and are just as captivating as any blockbuster movie.
