One of the internet’s most anticipated games of E3 2019 has to be Marvel’s Avengers. Developed by Crystal Dynamics and Eidos Montréal (of Tomb Raider reboot and modern Deus Ex fame), Marvel’s Avengers is an action game that aims to serve not only as a full game but as a platform for future Avengers video game stories. Our closed theater presentation of the game soothed my concerns about the game’s gameplay and visuals, making Avengers one of my most anticipated titles for next year.
The premise for Marvel’s Avengers is pretty original: On a day meant to celebrate the Avengers and all they do for the world, an experimental helicarrier is sabotaged by longtime Avengers villain Taskmaster and his mercenaries. It crashes, does a ton of collateral damage, and seemingly kills Captain America. The Avengers disband, and that’s about all we know. Hank Pym (the original Ant-Man) gets involved somehow, but that’s pretty much everything we know about the plot. The plot seems pretty promising, and I’m interested to see who was behind Taskmaster’s attack, and how the rest of the Marvel universe will play into this.
“It’s clear that Crystal Dynamics understands these characters and the way they move/fight, as well as who they are in relation to the greater Marvel universe.“
During the presentation, we got to see each Avenger’s unique gameplay in action. It’s a bit reminiscent of Marvel’s Spider-Man, though each Avenger clearly has their own strengths and weaknesses. The Hulk plowed through vehicles and enemies alike, while Black Widow’s combat section focused more on guns and close-quarters fighting on a more equal playing field. Cap’s gameplay really got me excited, as it seems like Crystal Dynamics has figured out how to make his physics-defying shield work in an action game, as it bounces between foes and objects like a lethal air-hockey puck. Thor plays like a lightning-charged Cap, with the very God of War-esque twist of being able to throw and recall Mjonir to decimate foes and environmental obstacles. Iron Man is like a one-man wrecking ball, capable of using missiles, lasers, and his iconic unibeam. Gameplay looks fresh and fun for each Avenger, so I can’t wait to get my hands on each different style. Especially if Hawkeye is added. Please add Hawkeye asap.
The visuals in the E3 trailer have understandably made some folks on the internet antsy. The faces do look a bit rough in the trailer, but the gameplay demo I saw looked far better, surprisingly enough. Normally trailers look better than games, not the other way around. Still, I’ll take it, since I think it looks great. The voices will take some getting used to, however. I love Nolan North, he’s one of my favorite voice actors, but his take on Iron Man just sounds like Nathan Drake. I’d say most of the Avengers have this problem, with Travis Willingham being the best of the lot. Again, none of these remarkably talented actors are bad at all, it just sounds like their natural voices, which makes it difficult to get immersed in this iteration of the Avengers. We haven’t seen much of the game, so they could be far better in the full game, but we’ll have to wait and see.
It feels good to say this: we could finally be getting a great Avengers game. It’s clear that Crystal Dynamics understands these characters and the way they move/fight, as well as who they are in relation to the greater Marvel universe. While Marvel’s Avengers isn’t out until May 15th, I’m going to hold out hope that this could be the next Marvel’s Spider-Man— an excellent comic-based game that takes full advantage of its source material.
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