Summary
Marvelis on a hot streak in the entertainment world right now. The comic book franchise has steadily become the most successful movie series in history, and the games' developer, Insomniac, has been working hard to bring some of these characters to game consoles. They have already had success with Spider-Man, and they are expected to bring the Wolverine and Venom games out soon. Plus, both Blade and Black Panther are going to receive big-budget console games in the near future.
However,Marvelhas a large pantheon of characters, some of whom haven’t had a solo game in a long time. Hopefully, some of these superheroes get a new video game soon, as it would be great to see general audiences and gamers alikeembrace new heroesthat don’t just web swing.
The first and only solo video game to feature Thor was released in 2011 to coincide with the release of the character’s debut movie. The game included a story that loosely followed the film’s plot, and the game’s combat featured hack-and-slash combat similar to theGod of Warseries. Unfortunately, these fighting mechanics were less polished than its influences, and many people have forgotten that this movie tie-in even exists.
Thor has not received another solo video game since, which is strange given that the character has gone on to star in three more solo movies in the MCU. The nine realms are the perfect setting for a large open-world game, and Thor is a popular enough character now to support a big-budget title.
The Punisher is an iconicMarvelantihero who has appeared in plenty of movies and has even had his own Netflix TV show. Sadly, the character hasn’t appeared in a solo video game since 2005.The Punishergame for the PS2 was released in 2005, and it was a gritty third-person shooter. Part of the fun of this game was the fact that players could interrogate or kill enemies using specific environmental tools.
Since The Punisher is such a violent character, game studios may be nervous about finding success with a video game based on the character. However, both theGTAseries and the upcomingBladegame are expected to find success with a more adult tone, so it is a mystery as to why The Punisher has been missing on consoles for so long. Perhaps, it’s his anti-heroic nature andlack of hesitation to kill.
The Fantastic Fourmovies have not always been beloved by fans. Despite this, both of the movies based on the team of explorers received licensed tie-in games. This means that they have not featured in a solo video game since 2007’sFantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surferfor the PS2. Both these video games allowed players to switch between the four team members to use their specific powers to defeat enemies and solve puzzles.
With The Fantastic Four set to feature in an upcoming movie in the MCU, perhaps now is the time to give them a new spotlight in their own game, especially when they have been teased multiple times within Insomniac Games’Spider-Manuniverse with the Baxter Building.
The last time The Hulk was seen in a solo video game was when he appeared in a licensed tie-in game for his debut movie in the MCU. However, most video game fans remember The Hulk from his PS2 game,The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destructionin 2005. This open-world sandbox game let players control The Hulk to cause chaos in a city or desert setting, and shows just how much fun playing as The Hulk in this way can be.
Even in theLEGO Marvelgames, The Hulk is fun to play as in the open world. That makes it all the more confusing as to why there has not been a new solo gamefeaturing the killing monsterin over ten years.
Marvel’smutants come in many different shapes and sizes. That may be why there have been countless movies, animated shows, and video games featuring either the X-Men or just one of their ranks. However, the last time fans saw the mutants highlighted in a video game of their own was in 2011 withX-Men Destiny. This choice-based video game left a lot to be desired, and so Xavier’s School For The Gifted has been shelved by video game developers ever since.
Fortunately, Wolverine is set to receive a new solo game for the PS5 in the near future. Hopefully, Wolverinebrings alone some of his most loveable companions and Mutantsfor the journey, to open the door for a potential X-Men game in the future.
It may seem strange, but Daredevil has not had much mainstream success outside the comics. The blind crime fighter’s first solo movie was received poorly, andhis own solo video gamefor the PS2 was scrapped by the studio when Marvel disapproved of the game’s direction. If it wasn’t for the hitNetflixTV show, Daredevil may have ended up being a superhero who remained one too tricky to adapt outside the comics. As such, this past has meant that the ninja’s only solo video game came in the form of a licensedGBAgame, released to coincide with the movie in 2003.
This fact does nothing to exemplify what a great video game character Daredevil can be. His acrobatic skills mean that traversal in an open-world setting would be fun, and his combat skills could be used to bring back the style of fighting fans loved in theArkhamgames. Let’s hope a video game developer realizes this potential soon, so fans don’t have to wait another twenty years for a Daredevil video game.
