Age range: 13+
Rating: T
Genre(s): Science Fiction, Superhero, Action/Adventure
Platforms: Stadia, PC, Playstation 4, Playstation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X
Brief summary: This game is an action adventure game with some RPG elements featuring characters from the Marvel Comics universe. The game does draw on characters and concepts that players may be familiar with from the comics and/or the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but this is a self-contained story that has no direct connections to either source. The main single player campaign is a story that has the Avengers dissolve in disgrace after a disaster (that is shown in the tutorial) occurs under their noses followed by them being found and inspired to reform by a young fan, the fantastic Ms. Marvel. Outside of the main campaign there is significant replayability in missions to perform and explore to continue improving the skills and gear of various heroes.
Evaluation and Gameplay: Gameplay is nicely divided into discrete missions that make the story nicely episodic with convenient points to stop and rejoin the narrative as time permits. As one might expect from a game in the superhero genre there is a considerable amount of “beat-em-up” violence, though the violence is relatively sanitized and, at least in my playing, there has not been any overtly sexual references that might be problematic Controls are a relatively simple button mashing system that is not too challenging for people that have difficulty with intricate or overly sensitive control schemes.
Different heroes reward different playstyles and help keep the game fresh for people who like to
explore a variety of playstyles or allow players to select and keep using a character that they enjoy
playing. Alongside the single player campaign and content there is significant ongoing multiplayer
online content, though this may require additional subscriptions depending on the platform.
Verdict: This game is likely to be a good choice for any library that maintains a game collection focused on teenagers and even adults. The popularity of superheroes, the easy fun action of the game, and engaging storyline are likely to make this a popular choice for patrons.
Learn more about the game by clicking here.
Joshua Newport is a Math and Science Librarian at Illinois State University. He is an avid video-gamer and Magic the Gathering player and longtime GameRT member. He is currently serving on GameRT’s Membership & Promotion Committee.