GameCentral runs through all the Marvel inspired video games that are not only fantastic, but easily playable on modern platforms.
It’s never been a better time to be both a Marvel fan and a gamer. Disney’s approach to licensing the Marvel universe to outside studios has not only led to multiple Marvel games a year, but plenty of very good ones too.
By using a multitude of different developers, Disney has increased the chances of a good game, while also matching different ideas and characters to the teams that best suit them.
Admittedly, this hasn’t always translated into sales successes. For as popular as the brand is, most Marvel games, even the better ones, don’t print as much money as you’d think and there have been a couple of infamously big flops in recent memory, including the Square Enix Avengers game.
Despite the failures, Disney and Marvel don’t seem to have been encouraged to play things safe. If anything, they’re more eager than ever to branch out.
Just look at what’s in store for the future, with a Second World War action game starring Captain America and Black Panther, a retro inspired 2D beat ‘em up in Marvel Cosmic Invasion, and the very Japanese fighting game Marvel Tōkon: Fighting Souls.
But for now, these are the best modern Marvel video games that you can play today, on console or PC.
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Lego Marvel Super Heroes 1 & 2 (2013/2017)
You can usually expect a fun time from the Lego games by Traveller’s Tales, but the two Lego Marvel Super Heroes games are amongst the studio’s best work. Ironic considering it’s owned by Disney rival Warner Bros.
While both games are typically geared towards younger players, as evidenced by the uncomplex gameplay, their massive rosters of mainstream and obscure characters will delight Marvel fans of all ages. The second one in particular doubles down on more niche heroes and is our favourite, if only for having an entire Squirrel Girl-based story mission.
Both games are easily available on all current platforms, though do be careful not to accidentally grab Lego Avengers, which is directly based on the movies and is far less fun and with a much smaller roster of characters.
Marvel’s Iron Man VR (2020)
We’ve still yet to see anything of EA Motive’s Iron Man game but, in the meantime, the 2020 Iron Man game from Camouflaj (which also did the excellent Batman: Arkham Shadow) is well worth checking out… so long as you have a PlayStation VR or Meta Quest headset
Its extremely lengthy load times and lack of enemy variety hold it back from being a killer app for PlayStation VR (the Meta Quest port came a couple years later) but the combat, while sometimes repetitive, is a lot of fun and flying through the air works very well in VR.
The whole thing also has a surprisingly solid story, and some decent jokes, and shows a good understand of Tony Stark as a character, making the experience more than just a glorified arcade shooter.
Marvel’s Guardians Of The Galaxy (2021)
Square Enix’s Avengers live service game meant many weren’t exactly jumping for joy when the company announced it would be tackling the Guardians Of The Galaxy, although Deus Ex studio Eidos-Montréal leading development was encouraging.
The game wasn’t a big financial hit, but that’s not indicative of its quality. Unlike Avengers, Guardians Of The Galaxy focuses on a single-player story driven adventure, offering tightly designed, tactical action and some stunning sci-fi visuals.
It also isn’t constrained by the movies, opting to tell an original story that’s far more personal than you might expect, as it tackles the topics of loss and dealing with grief. One thing it does draw from the movies, though, is an excellent 80s inspired soundtrack full of almost every iconic hit from the era you can think of.
All upcoming Marvel video games announced so far
- Marvel Cosmic Invasion (2025) – an original 2D beat ’em up by the studio responsible for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge, at the very least the graphics won’t disappoint on this one.
- Marvel’s Deadpool VR (2026) – A Meta Quest 3 exclusive, this will let you look through the eyes of Marvel’s mouthiest mutant in what looks like a typically wacky and violent adventure.
- Marvel 1943: Rise Of Hydra (2026) – Set during World War 2, Captain America and Black Panther’s granddad must team up to defeat Nazis in this single-player adventure from Uncharted creator Amy Hennig’s studio Skydance New Media.
- Marvel Tōkon: Fighting Souls (2026) – Colloquially described as Marvel Vs. Capcom without the Capcom, this new fighting game is being made by Guilty Gear studio Arc System Works and will launch as a PlayStation 5 and PC exclusive.
- Marvel’s Wolverine (TBA) – After Spider-Man, Insomniac Games is hard at work on its Wolverine game for PlayStation 5. Little info has been shared since the 2021 teaser trailer, but a lot of details were leaked thanks to a severe hacking incident from 2023.
- Iron Man (TBA) – One of three Marvel games in the works at EA, this is being handled by Dead Space remake developer Motive Studio. Nothing’s really known about it, but its choice of writer has us hopeful for a Squirrel Girl cameo.
- Marvel’s Blade (TBA) – Aside from a new Blade movie that’s still in limbo, Marvel wants to bump up the vampire hunter’s profile with a video game from Dishonored and Deathloop studio Arkane. Despite being published by the Microsoft owned Bethesda, you can bet this will release for Xbox and PlayStation.
Marvel’s Midnight Suns (2022)
Like Guardians Of The Galaxy, Midnight Suns was a big flop, and another example of how the Marvel licence doesn’t automatically guarantee huge sales. However, this one’s failure is even more tragic in our eyes as it’s an excellent tactical strategy game from Firaxis, the studio behind XCOM, and led to several high profile exits when it flopped.
The story’s nothing special and the basic graphics make it hard for characters to sell all the melodrama. But its battle system, which makes use of deckbuilding mechanics, is superb, particularly in how it interprets the many heroes at your disposal.
There’s a great deal of depth and customisation that makes Midnight Suns perfect for hardcore strategy nuts, but the game’s not so unapproachable as to ward off casual comic fans, offering the right balance so anyone of any skill level can enjoy themselves to the fullest.
Marvel Rivals (2024)
Overwatch but with Marvel superheroes may sound reductive but it is an accurate description of Marvel Rivals. Not that developer NetEase Games should be offended by the comparison, since it’s not only a brilliant idea but Marvel Rivals is arguably better than in its inspiration and offers some real competition in the hero shooter market.
It does a good job at translating its cast of heroes and villains into a third person shooter setting, despite most of them lacking guns or traditional firearms, and combined with its stylish and fluid visuals, casual sessions with friends are always a hoot.
There are signs that Marvel Rivals is struggling with player retention at the moment, due to poor matchmaking and festering toxicity, and it does have some typical live service game traits that can be off-putting (like its many microtransactions). But NetEase has been churning out new content on the regular, so you’ll never need to wait long for new characters (all of which are free) and maps.
Marvel’s Spider-Man games
There was no way we could write this list and not include the three best Spider-Man video games, all of which come from Insomniac Games and are perfect examples of why people come to PlayStation for its big budget single-player adventures.
None of these games are particularly original when it comes to the superhero genre, and they are guilty of cribbing a lot from both Spider-Man 2 and the Batman: Arkham games, but web-swinging through the open world city of New York remains a thrill and it’s hard not to be taken with their incredible graphics and oodles of side content.
Of the three, the Miles Morales game still has the best story, in our opinion, though the 2023 sequel’s fantastic set pieces and interpretation of iconic baddie Venom make it the new bar all future Spider-Man games need to meet.
Marvel Vs. Capcom series
What is there to say about the Marvel Vs. Capcom games that hasn’t already been said? This unusual yet iconic franchise is perhaps second only to Super Smash Bros. as the quintessential example of how to do a crossover video game.
Frankly, there’s not a single bad game of the bunch, with even Marvel Vs. Capcom Infinite still a fantastic fighter despite its dull graphics and roster. Our heart will always belong to Marvel Vs. Capcom 2 though, for its huge selection of 56 characters and irreverent flair.
Every game in the series is also easily playable nowadays thanks to the old retro entries being compiled in last year’s Marvel Vs. Capcom Fighting Collection; while the PC port of Ultimate Marvel Vs. Capcom 3 (the one with Ace Attorney’s Phoenix Wright as a playable fighter) still has an active modding scene on PC.
The older games aren’t as approachable as the modern entries, but you’re spoilt for choice regardless, especially as the rosters of heroes, on both sides, is quite different in each game.
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