Founded in 1960, Sega is one of the most recognizable names in gaming. Beginning life as an arcade machine manufacturer, the company eventually branched into the home market, releasing such consoles as the Genesis, the Saturn, and the Dreamcast. After failing to achieve success selling consoles relative to the competition, the company now instead focuses on just developing games.

RELATED: 7 'Sonic' Characters From The Animated Series Who Need To Be In The Movies

With the recent release of Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Sega is smashing the box office, claiming the biggest opening weekend for a videogame adaptation ever. With a legacy as long as theirs, Sega is sitting on a potentially lucrative pile of IP, and here are 10 of their games that are begging to be adapted.

Yakuza

Kiryu Kazama in Yakuza
Image via SEGA

Spanning eight mainline games, plus several spinoffs, Yakuza is inspired by the real-life criminal organization based in Japan. Most of the games follow Kazuma Kiryu, a lowly Yakuza member who is thrown into enough conspiracies and double-crosses to make James Bond jealous.

A movie based on the first game was released back in 2007, directed by the legendary Takashi Miike. However, a new film could ideally focus on where the game's story begins, with the beloved Yakuza 0. Its epic saga is a perfect fit for a modern Yakuza film, combining tense crime family operations with over-the-top martial arts action.

Streets of Rage

Adam, Axel, and Blaze in Streets of Rage

Working on the basic premise that a small group of ex-police officers has turned vigilante, Streets of Rage follows these characters as they fight their way through their city. A film adaptation should take cues from modern masterpieces The Raid and The Night Comes for Us by focusing on unrelenting action.

RELATED: 'The Raid' Remake in the Works From Michael Bay, Gareth Evans, and Patrick Hughes

With a city full of goons in their way, the motley crew of Axel, Adam, and Blaze would struggle to find a moment to breathe as they punch, grapple, and jump kick their way to victory. A synth soundtrack reminiscent of the games should accompany our heroes in their never-ending brawl.

Ecco the Dolphin

Ecco the Dolphin

Seemingly a serene game about exploring the ocean, Ecco the Dolphin soon develops into a wild plot involving aliens and time travel. One look at the game gives the impression it is for children, but the image of the final boss, the Vortex Queen, is potent nightmare fuel that has been haunting 90s kids for decades.

A film adaptation should be animated, and the game's combination of kid-friendly visuals and mature storytelling means a movie can be appealing to the whole family. Please just simmer down on the terrifying alien imagery.

Golden Axe

Golden Axe poster

An arcade classic that is still waiting in the corner of vintage pizza parlors to steal all your coins, Golden Axe is a side-scrolling beat-em-up with a medieval setting. The plot follows a small group of warriors as they quest to defeat the evil Death Adder and recover the fabled Golden Axe.

RELATED: 7 Lessons Learned from Geralt of Netflix's 'The Witcher'

While playing similar to Streets of Rage, Golden Axe has more lore put into its world, making it more suited to an epic story rather than just extended action sequences. Several films or even a television series could be developed based on the source material, taking cues from such IPs as Conan the Barbarian and The Witcher.

Panzer Dragoon

Panzer Dragoon Saga poster

A rail-shooter similar to Nintendo's classic Star Fox series, Panzer Dragoon swaps out fighter ships for dragons. Following the plight of a hero/heroine as they battle an evil empire aboard their trusty dragon on a post-apocalyptic planet, the series has released six games since 1995.

While most rail shooters sacrifice their plot in favor of non-stop action, Panzer Dragoon fleshes out its setting to create a sense of immersion. This mixture of fantasy and sci-fi storytelling would be perfect for television, with Amazon seeming like a good fit after their recent Wheel of Time and The Expanse adaptations.

Phantasy Star

Phantasy Star Online 2

Another combination of science fiction and fantasy, Phantasy Star is an RPG franchise that has released over twenty games. The series is Sega's answer to Final Fantasy, though it has not achieved the same success in the Western world.

RELATED: The Best 'Final Fantasy' Games, Ranked

The original turn-based series takes place in the Algol Solar System, which contains four distinct planets. With a massive world and deep lore already packed into the franchise, there is no reason the games cannot be adapted into an epic film series, similar to Dune. Like that classic novel, Phantasy Star incorporates magic and technology to tell an epic story amongst the stars.

Jet Set Radio

Jet Set Radio poster

Combining Tony Hawk's Pro Skater with graffiti art, Jet Set Radio follows a gang of teenage hooligans in Tokyo. Roller skating around the Japanese city, players spray graffiti, evade police, and challenge rival gangs. The game is famous for its striking cel-shaded art style, being one of the first games to use such an art direction.

The game's distinct visuals are what sets it apart, so an adaptation would have to be animated. An anime reveling in the game's sense of 90s counterculture could go a long way to resurrecting the beloved series, which has been dormant for far too long.

Bayonetta

Bayonetta in Bayonetta 3
Image via Nintendo

Sega's answer to the Devil May Cry series, Bayonetta shares the same creator (Hideki Kamiya) as Capcom's popular hack-and-slasher. The series follows the title character, a gun-toting witch who fights using her hair. This magical hair is also used to form her outfit.

RELATED: 'Devil May Cry' Anime Will Star Dante and Vergil, Span Multiple Seasons

A film adaptation was rumored a few years ago, with Lady Gaga being courted for the lead role after she revealed her love for the series. Casting an actress of Gaga's standing would help legitimize an adaptation of a game that favors over-the-top action as bullets, spells, and demons fly all over the screen.

Crazy Taxi

Crazy Taxi poster

Another hit in the arcade, Crazy Taxi is a racing game with a twist. Rather than simply reaching an endpoint as quickly as possible, players are forced to pick up passengers and deliver them to their destination in the allotted amount of time. With no story to speak of, enjoyment is instead found as players launch their taxi over ramps while their customers scream and shout in the back, desperate to get to Pizza Hut.

This lack of an established plot would allow any potential filmmaker to put their spin on the game. Perhaps the film follows the day in the life of a cabbie, as their fares become increasingly more bizarre. A Netflix series could also be created, with each episode focusing on a different passenger's unique requests.

Persona

Persona 3 poster

Persona is one of the biggest franchises in the role-playing genre. Each entry in the series focuses on a new cast of characters, but they are always a small group of high schoolers in modern-day Japan. After discovering a realm parallel to ours that features creatures known as Personas, the teens use these Personas to combat the evil members of society.

RELATED: 'Persona 3': Every SEES Member, Ranked

Several anime series based on the games have been produced, though they have been of varying quality. The plots of the games are too dense to fit into a single film, so a live-action television series could be the way to go. This would allow enough time to focus on both the supernatural action and the social bonding between the characters that is the heart of the franchise. Fans might be wary of the material landing on Netflix, as the streaming service does not have the best track record of adapting beloved Japanese properties.

NEXT: 'Sonic 2' Ending Explained: What's Next for the Blue Blur?