A reader shows how to customise current games to include your favourite superheroes and details his dream Overwatch style Marvel game.
With the current version of the Marvel Cinematic Universe coming to a close, and dominating 10 years of cinema and culture, now would be a good time to consider the position of Marvel and the effect it can have on the gaming landscape.
Phase 1 – The games we have (or can create yourself)
Other than Spider-Man, if you want to play a Marvel game today the official options are limited. Marvels Ultimate Alliance game design is showing its age, Lego Marvel is very much a game set to a formula, and Marvel Vs. Capcom: Infinite was a disappointment. In my opinion the best option out there is Disney Infinity. However, this comes with the caveat that the barrier to entry may be large in terms of price and availability of the toys to life.
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Fear not though, as there are other options if you get creative. My favourite Marvel games of recent years include XCOM 2, Salt And Sanctuary, and to a lesser extent Red Dead Redemption II. I have recently begun Divinity: Original Sin II but you could try to convert any game with a flexible character creator.
In order to convert games into Marvel games you need to follow a few rules;
1) The most straightforward is to create the character that looks like your favourite Marvel hero (or villain).
2) Plan out character classes and upgrades in advance to best match the character to the game world. In XCOM 2 Iron Man was a specialist, as they have access to advanced equipment such as a drone, then you can add an exosuit with a wrist-mounted rocket launcher. Want a Spider-Man? Make a sharpshooter, give him a grappling hook for web-swinging, and the face-off ability so he can hit every target in view to mimic him web-shooting his enemies.
3) Make sure you are consistent with what you know about the character in terms of skills and personality but beware: this can make the game more difficult. Playing through Salt And Sanctuary using only a bow and arrow, the Hawkeye method, made the game much tougher.
The Hulk run was seriously fun though, with him able to do massive damage, but I didnt allow him to wear any armour. In Original Sin II I went all in on Thor, starting with two lightning powers and a skill called battlestomp. The icon for this skill is a hammer striking the ground, so I had no choice.
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Give it a go for yourself and see what other games can be great Marvel games.
Phase 2 – The games we could have
After the success of Spider-Man, Marvel should now seek out third party developers that can create a variety of games of different genres and scale. The acquisition of Fox also opens the door for even more characters to be used. The Iron Man VR game has been announced for PlayStation VR and there is the known but not shown Avengers game from Square Enix. but what else could be done with Marvel characters and who could do it? Heres a few suggestions Id love to see that veer away from the big open world model…
- X-Men meets XCOM developed by Firaxis
- Dr Strange meets Portal
- Daredevil meets Superhot
- Black Widow meets Shadow Complex
- The Marvel Super Smash Bros. game
There must be so many developers out there with a good idea for a game and mechanics that could fit nicely with a Marvel property, who would love a bit of Disney money. What other games spring to mind?
Phase 3 – the big one; the Marvel hero shooter
Anyone who has played Overwatch and loves Marvel could put two-and-two together and come up with a game that would print money: Marvels live game (please let this be the Square Enix game!). Regular events could tie in with the films or comic events, bringing new skins, new maps, and new modes. The issue, however, is loot boxes and monetisation. Doing this without being greedy and charging £20 for a skin or new character could be too much to resist for any publisher.
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Lets imagine that they follow a model that is not exploitative. What would the game look like? How would it play? First or third person? Would it be free to play? Id love a game similar to Overwatchs cartoony style and first person perspective. However, it may have to go third person as not every character would easily fit into a first person game. Maybe a mixture of the third and first person depending on the skill used.
Ive given this a lot of thought (too much!) and went and designed character abilities for almost 50 heroes and villains, suggested locations, and sourced images for skins. So heres a few suggestions for how characters would work. Ive described some skills in the context of Overwatch abilities to give a clearer idea of how it could work:
Captain America
Primary: Shield melee
Secondary: N/A
Ability 1: Charge. Sprint with shield protecting torso and neck, restricted view.
Ability 2: Shield plant. Extends a breakable shield in a 3-metre radius, cannot move while shield is deployed; shield can absorb 1000 damage.
Ability 3: Shield throw. Cap throws his shield horizontally. Can hit multiple targets in a straight line. Shield does not return or need to be picked up; it respawns on his back. Short cool down, 3-4 seconds.
Passive: Shake it off. Cap slowly recovers health ovRead More – Source
