Although 2026 has been a pretty mixed year for adaptations, these kinds of projects are only getting more popular as time goes on, which is why there are so many. Just this year, several adaptations have hit the big screen, and while some of 2026’s video game movies rank far better than others, the subgenre is clearly still thriving.
That said, television is where these stories really shine, with Cyberpunk: Edgerunners 2 and Fallout season 2 being among the best shows of the year. While these projects certainly deserve praise for faithfully adapting their source material and telling original stories, Prime Video’s Secret Level is arguably even more impressive.
By no means is it the best gaming series ever created, but it is easily the most ambitious, as it doesn’t just adapt one game, but instead over 15 in a row. Debuting in late 2024, the anthology series featured one-off tales focusing on various different video games, with every episode ranging anywhere from 8 to 19 minutes.
Each entry is fairly short and has varying degrees of success, yet there is no denying that the show was an overall success, explaining why it was renewed for a second season. It paid homage to classic games like Pac-Man, gave big franchises such as Mega Man and Warhammer 40,000 adaptations, while also featuring some more obscure titles too.
An idea this complicated had all the potential to go seriously wrong, yet Secret Level broke the rules of video game adaptations and created something truly special. Thankfully, with so many games out there, the ideas for this show are endless, meaning it could run for years so long as it retains an audience.
Prime Video’s Secret Level Is The Most Ambitious Gaming Adaptation Yet
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Taking any game and attempting to make the transition into TV or film is always a risk. We saw plenty of failures throughout the 90s and 2000s, seemingly putting an end to these types of productions for the most part until a resurgence in the late 2010s. Now though, they’re everywhere, and feel like a much safer bet.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie and its sequel have each grossed over $1 billion despite facing plenty of criticism, proving a large IP can be a bit of a cheat code. Secret Level doesn’t quite have this hook though, instead relying on fans of gaming in general to be interested in the show, since there are so many properties involved.
While there are episodes for fans of Sifu, Spelunky, and PlayStation as a whole, Secret Level took a big gamble by including games like Concord and Exodus, which were completely unproven entities. Despite this, Prime Video managed to tell mostly interesting stories, with some highlights coming from titles people wouldn’t expect.
Going from one episode to another also involved switching universes entirely. This meant transitioning from a heavy, action-filled thriller like Warhammer 40,000 to the more mysterious Pac-Man episode, or a big sci-fi world like Exodus to something more charming and light-hearted like Spelunky.
These constant changes in tone could’ve been off-putting for some viewers, yet they worked a treat, making Prime Video’s Secret Level the perfect one-sitting binge. The show also secured some big actors like Keanu Reeves, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Claudia Doumit, and Kevin Hart, confirming there was a big investment in Secret Level.
With the streaming platform already having a major hit with Fallout alongside other big gaming projects in the works, it could’ve been easy to avoid a gamble like Secret Level. Instead, it proved to be the start of an exciting new anthology series, one which a second season could make even better.
What To Expect From Secret Level Season 2
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Details on Secret Level season 2 remain limited, but it is officially happening. When exactly is anyone’s guess, as it has already been close to two years since the first installment dropped, but we did get a pretty significant update about season 2 back in June, as Supervising Director Dave Wilson revealed some big news in an interview with Collider.
Wilson confirmed that the team has been working on season 2 for 18 months, suggesting the next batch of Secret Level has been in development since the first was released. Additionally, he explained that it still had a ways to go, but that the show is going even bigger this time around, both in terms of the games it will adapt and the stories themselves.
This is undoubtedly positive news, as it points to Secret Level season 2 improving upon the first outing, which is what most fans would expect. There’s simply no way of knowing what games will be involved, but with Prime Video being a massive platform and the series having some credibility, we can look forward to seeing some of the most iconic IPs on-screen.
With Warhammer 40,000 getting an animated show on Prime Video that will act as a spinoff to the Secret Level episode, it will also encourage more companies to lend their games to this series, knowing they could get a similar treatment. Therefore, season 2 will likely have even more recognizable properties, longer episodes, and better quality.
Season 1 was definitely a trial run for this project, but with plenty of time and effort being put into the follow-up, expect Secret Level season 2 to be massive, and if it turns out to be a success, it will no doubt be the start of a long-running hit for Amazon.
Secret Level
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