10 Criminally Underrated Comic Book Video Games You Must Play

Yes, Transformers was originally a comic book. And yes, you absolutely MUST play Fall of Cybertron.

by Ewan Paterson
Transformers Fall of Cybertron
Activision

For the longest of times, comic book video games weren't exactly what you would call a hot commodity. Sure, they sold well, but video game developers always seemed to struggle nailing the transition from panel to pixel, a fact made worse, no doubt, by the industry's now extinct fascination with movie tie-ins.

Fortunately, this is no longer the case. Thanks to the likes of Rocksteady, Insomniac and even NetherRealm - the studios behind the Batman: Arkham series, Spider-Man PS4 and the Injustice franchise respectively - comic book video games are now at the forefront of the medium, pushing technological and storytelling boundaries in all kinds of different ways.

Of course, it's important to remember that there were still genuinely GREAT comic book video games before Arkham Asylum released in 2009. Some of the more notable examples include 2004's Spider-Man 2 movie tie-in, or even 2006's Marvel Ultimate Alliance. However, there are other, slightly more overlooked and indeed underrated comic book video games that released over the last two decades, all of which are well worth playing.

They might not be perfect, but the following titles are definitely in need of some new attention - especially from those who love comics.

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Content Producer/Presenter

WhatCulture's very own resident movie guy, Ewan has been working in the content creation biz for over 10 years now, having started as a freelance contributor to WhatCulture Gaming all the way back in 2015. After graduating with a First-Class Honours in History from Northumbria University in 2017 (where he won a prize for a totally killer dissertation on the Watergate years), Ewan took on the role of Comics Editor at WhatCulture and quickly developed WhatCulture Comics into one of the biggest superhero-focused channels on YouTube. He followed this with a brief hiatus at Screen Rant in 2021, where he worked across the Gaming and Film sections as a writer and editor, before returning to WhatCulture as a Senior Content Producer / Presenter in 2023. He started his own podcast, We Love Dad Movies, in 2022, and has contributed several written pieces to the Eisner-nominated comics website Shelfdust as well. In his current role, Ewan incorporates his love of cinema, comic books, and history into written pieces and video essays for WhatCulture's Film & TV channel, as well as WhatCulture Gaming and WhatCulture Horror, with a particular focus on nineties-era Dad Movies, old school Westerns, and Golden Age Hollywood Noir. John Carpenter is his fave, and he thinks Batman Beyond should never have been cancelled. If that's your vibe, you'll probably like his stuff.