The latest episode of Doctor Who saw many classic Doctors make brief cameo appearances, including Paul McGann's Eighth Doctor, and this has led to many fans asking for more content starring this iteration of the character. His appearance in The Power of the Doctor marks his third on-screen presence as the character, meaning he has been overshadowed by other actors who have led Doctor Who. While his time flying the TARDIS is long past, he may be a good choice to lead a new series of Doctor Who games.
Doctor Who has been around for almost 60 years, and in that time it has become a staple of science fiction. However, the series seems to always struggle in the video game department. There have been many titles trying to capture the essence of the show, but most have fallen short. Many of them have felt subpar, and were mostly left to gather dust. That has the potential to change if the series gave fans a way to experience adventures with a Doctor who has little-to-no content anyway. There would be few expectations for how it would play out, and the games would be have free-range to tell brand-new stories for the iconic series.
Paul McGann's Doctor Has Very Little Content
Doctor Who was shelved by the BBC in 1989 due to a multitude of reasons, but it would return to the screen in 1996 with a television film. Doctor Who: The Movie was supposed to serve as a backdoor pilot for an American-produced version of the iconic series, and it introduced viewers to a new iteration of the character with Paul McGann's Eighth Doctor. While McGann seemed to be a nice fit for the character, the movie failed to attract an audience. The new series never saw the light of day, and Doctor Who would be shelved again until its 2005 reboot, which brought another new version of the character to the screen through Christopher Eccleston.
Doctor Who: The Movie marks the only big on-screen appearance of the Eighth Doctor, but it was not the last time fans got to see him. He appeared once again in the mini episode The Night of the Doctor before the release of the 50th anniversary. This short saw McGann play the Doctor as he forces himself to regenerate into the War Doctor. It served as a nice bit of closure for fans who wanted to know what happened to this iteration, and they would once again be reunited with him with a brief cameo in The Power of the Doctor.
Outside audio dramas from Big Finish, these three appearances are the only times that McGann has appeared as the character. There have been other mentions of him, and images have flashed throughout the series. However, fans have almost no idea what happened during his time in the TARDIS unless they listen to audiobooks. That leaves so much room for new stories to be told, and one of the best ways to do it would be through video games.
The Eighth Doctor Should Lead a Series of Games
The Eighth Doctor's era has barely been explored through visual media, and that leaves video games to fill in the gaps. Doctor Who games have always been tied down by the timeline of the show. Instead of presenting epic adventures, a lot of the games simply feel like lesser episodes of the TV show. An Eighth Doctor-led video game series could be something very different.
Paul McGann could lead a series of new adventures within the Doctor Who universe, blazing new trails because this version does not have grand stories of his own yet. It could be darker than most, or it could be a lighthearted affair. It could be Earth shattering, or it could simply be a romp through the galaxy. It could take on all sorts of different forms and tell different stories, and it could feel like a long-lost season of the show. Fans would love to explore this iteration, and newcomers may want to give a unique Doctor Who experience a shot as well.