Netflix’s Choose Or Die is better than expected. Not so much because of what was shown before its release, as the trailer(s) certainly piqued our interests. It's because the film’s premise is steeped in the world of video games, and there are numerous difficulties associated with creating a noteworthy video game adaptation. Game-based movies that aren’t tied to an existing property, like Choose or Die, are problematic as well. The main issue being the believability of an interactive experience. Put simply, they usually don’t look or feel like the real thing.

Horror movies--the type that has its cast pulled into a game or made to interact with one that affects reality--are especially prone to this problem. For instance, 2006's Stay Alive missed the mark due to its killer game being unrealistic, among other things. Because of this, it's genuinely surprising how well Choose Or Die circumvents this issue by creating one of the most authentic gaming experiences found in film.

The film’s "villain" is the game CURS>R. Modeled after old text-based adventure games found on the ZX Spectrum--an 8-bit home computer, comparable to the Commodore 64, released in the UK back in 1982. The thing is though, despite being created for the film's purposes, CURS>R looks just like a game from that era. This fact was compounded by how well the cast played up the DOS-based elements; it was easier to suspend disbelief given how what was happening, though supernatural, was grounded in something that seemed tangible.