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People might lament the amount of recycled or reimagined material in entertainment, but it’s not always a bad thing. Sometimes a spin-off can add to the source material or produce something that even outshines the original to become a firm favourite. These are some of the best spin-offs in entertainment.
“Remember !” (CC BY 2.0) by GeekShadow
Portal
This incredible puzzle-platform game developed by Valve takes place where the portal gun is developed, the Aperture Science Laboratories. Aperture Science exists as a rival to Black Mesa in the same virtual universe as the Half-Life series. While Portal is a spin-off only in terms of references found throughout the two wonderful games series, the unique gameplay and dark humour established Portal as one of the most innovative games ever.
Players begin the game by getting to know the portal gun with helpful guidance from GLaDOS and this serene beginning provides no hint as to the epic journey you are about to embark on. With the gradual unravelling of manipulative AI comes satisfying puzzles, engaging action and great wit. The game retains a huge fanbase to this day and stands up as one of the best puzzle games ever.
Slingo
While bingo itself has experienced a renaissance online to become popular again, its spin-off, Slingo has been booming for a while now. With a numbers grid and a reel, Slingo is essentially a hybrid of two beloved casino games, bingo and slots. The slots element allows game developers to create appealing titles such as Slingo Rainbow Riches, Slingo Super Spin, Slingo Fortunes and numerous titles with TV show or blockbuster movie tie-ins. The bingo feature of Slingo gameplay is simple to understand and has attracted many players that would previously have stuck with the classic format.
Basically, Slingo is seen as the best of both worlds and therefore the popularity isn’t difficult to understand. Slingo appears to be more heavily promoted and produces more distinct titles than bingo, indicating that it has become integral to the success of online casinos.
“Deadpool 2 Japan Premiere Red Carpet: Ry” (CC BY 2.0) by Dick Thomas Johnson
Deadpool
This one is actually a spin-off of a spin-off as Wade Wilson’s alter ego appeared on the big screen first in the much-maligned X-Men Origins: Wolverine, which was a spin-off from the original X-Men series. Ryan Reynolds’s arrival as the “Merc With a Mouth” was massively disappointing as the studio executives decided to dispense with any connection to the source material and we saw a mute Deadpool, without his signature red-and-black ensemble, replaced with laser eye beams and the ability to teleport.
Thankfully, after some back-room hullaballoo, a project that stuck to the character’s core, with a tendency to break the fourth wall and slapstick tone, was green-lit. Still considered one of the best movies in the franchise, both Deadpool and Deadpool II are immensely entertaining, full of profanity and raucous additions to the X-Men series.
A few reasons not to grumble when you hear news of another spin-off in production and fingers crossed we’ll see more like the examples above and fewer poor instances such as the poor Halle Berry Catwoman movie or the disappointing Metal Gear Survive game.
