If you have already played the new superhero exclusive from Sony – Marvel’s Spider-Man, and you didn’t find it enough, or, on the contrary, didn’t like it, then this material is for you! Here we have collected 10 games and game series that will help superhero fans plunge into their favorite genre.
Batman Arkham Trilogy
Developers from Rocksteady Studios have revolutionized the superhero action genre with the release of Batman: Arkham Asylum. Everything about this game was great: the plot, the characters, the atmosphere, but most importantly, the combat system.
Combinations of strikes, dodges and various gadgets introduced the player into a state of flow, not only allowing him to feel the character, but also revealing him – the Dark Knight in the hands of the players became a truly terrible weapon, instilling fear in the entire underworld of Gotham.
The sequel, Batman: Arkham City, built on the success of the original and improved on everything. And the triquel Batman: Arkham Knight, although inferior to the first two games in ratings, was still an excellent conclusion to the trilogy, even despite the problems of the release version.
In addition to the three main games, the series has a prequel, Batman: Arkham Origins. This game was developed by Warner Bros. Games Montreal – it turned out to be weaker than the original trilogy, but it is still a good game, the gameplay of which neatly copies the work of Rocksteady.
Today, the Arkham trilogy is considered a cult classic of the genre, one that other developers still rely on – the combat system of Insomniac’s Marvel’s Spider-Man trilogy on Rocksteady Studios games.
inFAMOUS Series
In addition to the Spidey franchise, Sony also has another superhero series – inFAMOUS. Its main feature was the possibility of wagering. The player was free to choose the path his character would follow – good or evil. Because of this, games often raise difficult questions that border on gray morality.
The first two parts and Infamous: Festival of Blood were released on PS3 in 2009 and 2011. Now it’s officially problematic to play them – you’ll have to get a PlayStation 3 and original discs; you can’t buy them “digitally” anymore. But Infamous: Second Son and Infamous: First Light can be played on PS4 and even on PS5 – via backward compatibility. They may not be the same as the first two installments, but they are still great entries in the franchise and don’t forget the legacy. In addition, they are almost unrelated to the first games – you can play them without fear of not understanding something.
Prototype series
An alternative to Infamous is the Prototype duology, created by Radical Entertainment. In “Prototypes” we play as anti-heroes and also choose the path we will take. But not in terms of plot, but in terms of gameplay – this is a kind of “villainous” sandbox, where the player is free to act as carefully as possible, fighting only with opponents, or to cause real chaos – without sparing the civilians of New York.
And for this, the games have everything they need – a good set of abilities, a good degree of destructibility of the world and a complete absence of restraining elements.
But being so unique and successful among gamers, the games could not provide for the creators – the Radical studio closed, and the brand sank into oblivion. But today, after the rights to the franchise have been transferred to Microsoft, there is a possibility of its revival – there is a demand for such projects.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge
The game about the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, released last year, is a classic beat’em up side-scroller, stylized as comics, games and cartoons of the 80s and 90s about teenage mutants. The project is made in the 16-bit style and immerses you in a sea of nostalgia – the game is created as if it came out in those distant days of Dendy and Sega, but plays like a modern product.
“Shredder’s Revenge” takes just a couple of hours to complete, but the game has something to keep your attention – different modes, challenges and collecting collectibles. There are 7 playable characters available at once, with different skills and the gameplay for them is completely different – some are unlocked only after replaying the story.
The game also has local and online co-op, allowing you to gather up to 6 players on one screen. This reveals the project from a different side – a mess of allies and enemies begins to happen on the screen, turning the gameplay into hurricane fun.
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
In 2009, the premiere of the film “X-Men: Origins” took place. Wolverine”, and along with it a game with the same name was released. And if the movie failed, the game gathered a loyal audience around itself.
The project turned out to be a vigorous action game in which Wolverine brutally tears enemies apart, shreds them into leather belts and gestures without brakes. Although the combat system seems simple, it feels complete and well thought out – the very case when a couple of buttons are enough to get a feel for the character.
The plot follows the script of the film, but fills in many of its gaps with additional scenes – it will take about 10 hours to complete the game, which allows X-Men Origins: Wolverine to open up to the player and saturate him.
Today, unfortunately, it is impossible to officially purchase the game.
Marvel Ultimate Alliance Series
“Avengers, general assembly!” – this is the phrase that best characterizes the Marvel Ultimate Alliance trilogy. The gameplay is a beat’em up in which the player controls a team of four superheroes. You will have to collect protagonists in the hub before each mission – dozens of characters are available, gradually opening up when you meet various conditions and complete the story.
The plot of each game is large-scale and makes you feel the very famous cry of Captain America. In the first game, as villains you can already meet such antagonists of the universe as Galactus, Loki, Doctor Doom, Ultron – the list is impressive.
As in the case of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the games offer co-op, both local and online – each player will control one hero. Otherwise, the three characters will be taken under control by artificial intelligence, and a living player will be able to switch between them at any time.
Now you can officially play only the third part, which was released on Nintendo Switch.
Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy
The game from Eidos Montreal was designed to rehabilitate publisher Square Enix after the failure of The Avengers, and it succeeded! “Guardians of the Galaxy” is a story-driven adventure that can be completed in 20-30 hours and leaves behind a pleasant impression – no service elements!
During the gameplay, we take control of Star-Lord, the leader of the Guardians of the Galaxy, who uses small arms to defeat enemies and jet boots to fly. Other team members act independently, but obey the player’s orders – this introduces an element of tactics into the gameplay, diluting the monotony of the combat system.
Now this game is available in two subscriptions at once – Game Pass from Microsoft and PS Plus Extra from Sony.
Deadpool
But if you lack real excitement, then you should remember the game about Deadpool from High Moon Studios. The main character here constantly breaks the fourth wall, communicates with the player, jokes about the creators of the product and tries to come up with its scenario himself. All this is seasoned with elements characteristic of the 18+ rating – a lot of blood, swearing, reasonably exposed women, dismemberment and stupid jokes. The latter is here in abundance – the game half consists of nonsense, which is a characteristic feature of the main character.
The gameplay is also very vigorous – the game is a slasher game, where the protagonist constantly destroys hordes of opponents. Also, as it progresses, the project often changes perspective, making adaptations to other game genres – almost like in Nier Automata, for example.
There are also a lot of references here and we meet familiar X-Men: Wolverine, Rogue, Psylocke, Domino, Cable – they don’t help Deadpool much, but they constantly appear in the plot, making it even funnier.
One problem: it’s officially impossible to play Deadpool. The project was taken off the market a long time ago.
Injustice duology
In the world of superhero games, there is also an analogue of the Mortal Kombat series – the Injustice duology, created by Netherealm. In the game you have access to dozens of heroes and villains from the DC Comics universe, many modes, multiplayer and an exciting plot.
The story of the game tells about one of the universes in which Superman lost his beloved – Lois Lane. This led to him going mad and seizing power on Earth, establishing a totalitarian regime. The canonical Batman finds himself in this universe and decides to save the world by dealing with an alternative version of his comrade.
Based on the game, a whole series of comics was created, numbering 60 issues. The picture books serve as a prequel to the game’s plot and tell the story of the six years that preceded its start.
The first Injustice was a pure fighting game – battles take place in side-view arenas, and the surrounding elements are partially destructible and interactive. The second part added some PRG elements and a loot system to this formula. Also, many new characters appeared in the sequel, and some replaced those who had died in the original game.
Hellboy: Web of Wyrd
The project from Upstream Arcade has just been released, but has already managed to win the love of the public. The game about Hellboy is made in a comic style, paying tribute to the original by Mike Mignola.
Hellboy: Web of Wyrd is a roguelike. The gameplay consists of short runs through randomly generated locations and battles with monsters. The combat system cannot be called complex – there are weak and strong blows, the ability to throw objects and sometimes shoot. The battles themselves are also easy – the enemies are slow, do not deal much damage, and the main character’s health is restored on its own.
The project is completed in about five hours and does not have time to get boring – especially if you are new to the roguelike genre.
