Cult-classic Beetlejuice has had a few adaptations over the years, most notably a Broadway musical and animated TV show. Michael Keaton's Beetlejuice/Betelgeuse has had some foray into video games too, though these adaptations were less successful. While the aesthetic and atmosphere of Beetlejuice could make for a great game, there's not a whole lot of options for playing as the "ghost with the most."
The continued popularity of Beetlejuice means it could be appealing for the current trend of remakes and reboots in cinema, but most would agree the original film has a special kind of magic. The animated series that followed was successful, but does not hold the same cult status as the film. While Beetlejuice games draw visual inspiration from both the film and the animated series, they are mostly products of a time when video game technology was in its infancy. While a potential sequel to the film is currently shelved, there's always room in video games to bring back the beloved character.
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Adventures of Beetlejuice: Skeletons in the Closet (1990)
The first Beetlejuice video game was released in 1990, and from a quick overview of available Beetlejuice games, their temporality becomes apparent. Adventures of Beetlejuice: Skeletons in the Closet is based on the animated show rather than the film, and was released for the MS-DOS. Lydia features heavily, but in a slew of other game adaptations of animated shows, Adventures of Beetlejuice was largely forgotten.
Beetlejuice (1991)
Fans of Sea of Thieves and Battletoads may be surprised to learn developer Rare made not one, but two Beetlejuice-themed games. The first of which, simply titled Beetlejuice, was an adaptation of the film and released for NES. It was a short and fairly clunky platformer, and certainly not Rare's finest performance. However, the timing of release explains some of this, due to limited processing power and a desire to capitalize on the success of the film. As the only game that based its aesthetic on the film, it is a pity this game didn't perform better.
Beetlejuice: Horrific Hijinx from the Neitherworld! (1992)
Rare's second Beetlejuice game borrows aesthetics from the animated show. It was released for the Nintendo Game Boy and played a little smoother than the previous Beetlejuice game. Lydia again appears in this game and plays a big role in the plot. It is not a particularly well-remembered game since the Game Boy had so many massive titles, but it is certainly considered the better of the two Rare Beetlejuice games.
LEGO Dimensions: Beetlejuice Fun Pack (2017)
While not a full Beetlejuice game, a pack for LEGO Dimensions featured the titular ghost. LEGO Dimensions is fun and cutesy, and the Beetlejuice character and figurine show a slightly different visual style to the Tim Burton character. This game is definitely the best playing game with Beetlejuice content available today.
The fact that LEGO Dimensions' fun pack is the most recent gaming iteration of Beetlejuice is of note. With three games released in the early 90s, and one expansion pack for a 2017 game, Beetlejuice hasn't had the most successful video game career. The character is well-loved though, and so there's always room to have him appear in other franchises. Whether there should be a modern Beetlejuice game depends largely on the quality and inventiveness of the game, as while Keaton's character is great, his dark charm hasn't been enough to launch any majorly successful games as of yet.
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