Summary
In a wild west turn of events, a classic yet notoriously different computer-based educational game is being adapted into a movie. TheOregon Trailhas been scooped up byAppleand being turned into an action/comedy musical, set in the same vein as 2023’sBarbie. Originally created in 1971 by Don Rawitsch, an eighth-grade history teacher, as well as help from fellow teachers Bill Heinemann and Paul Dillenberger, the game’s purpose was to teach schoolchildren about the hardships, history, geography, and decision-making of the 19th-centuryOregon Trail,a 2170-mile wagon route in the United States.
Proving to be a huge hit, the Minnesota Educational Computing Consortium (MECC) followed up on the success of theOregon Trailwith similar titles that included the likes ofThe Yukon TrailandThe Amazon Trail. In 2021, an updated version of theOregon Trailarrived on Apple Arcade, which was developed by Gameloft, and featured multiple playable characters, but, more importantly, improved its representation of indigenous people in an attempt to remove stereotypes and historical inaccuracies.
The Oregon Trail Is Getting Adapted Into a Movie by Apple
According toThe Hollywood Reporter, Apple has snatched up the rights to adapt the 1970s gaming classic, theOregon Trail, and turn it into a full-blown action comedy musical. Comedy pair Will Speck and Josh Gordon are set to direct and produce the film, while EGOT composers Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, the duo behindLa La LandandThe Greatest Showman, will provide an original score for the film. The Lucas Bros., the co-writers and co-producers behindJudasandBlack Messiah,will team up with Max Reisman on adapting the screenplay. TheOregon Trailis considered to beone of the hardest games ever madedue to how realistically difficult it was to keep people alive, with characters often succumbing to a bout of dysentery or a cart breaking down because actually feeding the ox a few towns back became an afterthought.
Even though theOregon Trailis one of the oldest games ever created, it’s still just as important today as it was over 50 years ago. Providing a great source of historical events that can often get forgotten about among the latest must-haves on the market, TheOregon Trailretells the endless cycle of survival that pioneers went through and, even though it doesn’t allow for multiplayer, the decision-making aspect of the game as the party departs on its journey could provide some real key friendship defining moments. However, what theOregon Trailis largely remembered for today in pop culture is its endless source oficonic gaming memes, especially regarding ones about dying of a certain disease.
Last year, mobile game developer Gameloft announced that theOregon Trailwas heading to the Nintendo Switch and PC. This was great news for those who still didn’t get a chance to play the classic game and a fantastic idea to reach not only a wider audience, but to bring a touch of nostalgia to those who enjoyed it back in the day. As yet, theOregon Trailmovie adaptation doesn’t have a release window as it’s still in early development.
