Popular Video Games Franchise That Launched 25 Years Ago Is Developing Into A Fantasy Show For The First Time

Published Oct 4, 2026, 7:49 PM EDT Liz Declan is a Lead Writer for ScreenRant, primarily covering movies. She is a massive fan of Star Wars, the MCU, and Supernatural. In addition to writing, Liz loves attending and covering conventions and interviewing actors. Find her on TikTok and Instagram @va.va.vera Fantasy gamers just got a massive update 25 years in the making. Popular video games being turned into movie or TV show adaptations are far from new, though they do seem to be having a moment lately. With The Last of Us season 3 currently underway, a God of War series in the works at Prime, and myriad others coming this year and beyond, this genre doesn't seem to be going anywhere anytime soon. Now, a beloved 25-year-old game is being added to the mix, a new report reveals. Variety reported that RuneScape will get its own fantasy TV series adaptation. Lyrical Animation, game developer Jagex, and creator Charlie “MoistCr1TiKaL” White will collaborate to bring the project to life, though details remain limited for now. The upcoming series was only announced yesterday at RuneFest in the UK, and there's no expected release date yet; in fact, the creative minds behind the project have reportedly indicated that they hope to release additional details in 2027, suggesting that it will likely be quite some time before this new series hits the screen. Nevertheless, this is an exciting update, and it comes at a time that makes sense for the developer. At the same event this weekend, it was confirmed that, 13 years after RuneScape 3, RuneScape 4—a title that the official website indicates might change at some point—is finally in the works. Considering that it's been more than a decade since the most recent iteration was released and now there have been two major announcements back-to-back for the franchise, it seems the video game series is having a bit of a renaissance, and it will be fascinating to see what form that takes in the show in particular. Among the more pressing questions is how the game will translate into a series. Unlike previous games turned into shows, such as The Last of Us, RuneScape doesn't have a specific, pre-established main character with a built-in personality and physical traits, nor does it have one clearly defined linear narrative arc that can easily be adapted into a show. The game is intended to be extremely customizable. In that sense, the story is much more open-ended, which will presumably mean a lot more heavy lifting when adapting the game into a series. However, that might actually be good news for this upcoming show. One major potential pitfall of video game adaptations, whether movies or TV shows, is that audiences often come in with very specific expectations. When there's a clear narrative arc and recognizable protagonists, they often already know what they want the characters to look and sound like, how they want the world to appear on-screen, and what they're open to in a story. Too many deviations or creative liberties risk backlash, and that's unfortunately fairly common in this genre. With something like RuneScape, though, there might be less room for that, which could give it a leg up compared to its many video game adaptation counterparts. Perhaps audiences won't be as specific about what they are looking for and will therefore be more open to giving it a chance. That remains to be seen, however, and at this point, it seems likely that it will be quite some time before that outcome is revealed. As with RuneScape 4, the release of this upcoming RuneScape series is expected in a few years. Systems Released January 4, 2001 ESRB t Developer(s) Jagex Publisher(s) Jagex Engine runeTek 5 Multiplayer Online Multiplayer