The Avengers Project: 10 Things It Must Include
What must Square Enix do to assemble the best superhero game of all time?
Square Enix have had the rights to an Avengers game for some time now, with development reportedly underway at subsidiary studios Crystal Dynamics and Edios Montreal. Dynamics have just concluded the Tomb Raider Trilogy with Shadow, so hopefully, things will pick up speed in the new year.
The pressure on this game to perform will be huge. The MCU rivals the likes of Star Wars and Harry Potter as one of the most popular franchises of all time, and under Kevin Feige’s stewardship it’s gone from strength to strength.
A short, 50-second trailer has been released (though 20 seconds of that is logos and there’s no gameplay footage), showing the Avengers disassembled. It’s similar to the dream Scarlet Witch gives Tony in Age Of Ultron, with Cap’s shield, Iron Man’s hand and Mjolnir strewn on the ground while Hulk roars in the background. The narrator (Black Widow?) then calls on them to assemble once more.
The game is apparently the start of a multi-game deal for Square Enix, with Insomniac’s Spider-Man proof positive that a superhero game can excel. With so much riding on it, the Avengers Project is a game they simply have to get right.
10. PvE Online
It doesn’t need online play. Spider-Man is the most obvious link to amazing offline-only games, but even without leaving PS4 exclusives there’s God Of War, Horizon: Zero Dawn, Uncharted, The Last Of Us...
But, arguably the best single player game ever made is Grand Theft Auto V. And GTA’s online component has raked in $6 billion since release. It’s possible the scale of that profit was funnelled into Red Dead Redemption 2. It’s also possible their executives have daily money fights with wads of cash, but the point is it’s easy to think Square Enix’s head will be turned.
So if they do go the online route, PvE seems the right way to go. They wouldn’t have to worry about making each character perfectly balanced (as all things should be), and while an Overwatch style Avengers could be fun, an Overwatch quality game can’t be easily slapped onto the side of something.
Single player should and will still be the main focus, but PvE could offer something extra. Imagine climbing into Tony’s Iron Man suit and heading online with a bunch of mates to defend New York from Loki’s invasion once more.