Video games featuringMarvelcharacters are nothing new, but the greatest ones manage to capture the essence of your favorite heroes and villains for unforgettable experiences. Whether you’re webbing up criminals like the Amazing Spider-Man or causing massive destruction like The Incredible Hulk, the best games let you embody Marvel Comics characters in the most authentic ways possible.
There have been many,manyMarvelgames releasedover the years, from short single-player adventures to competitive multiplayer titles.Some games have compelling stories, while others have astounding gameplaythat captures the essence of what a Marvel character can do. While not every Marvel character has gotten a good video game adaptation, many popular ones have.
10X-Men Origins: Wolverine
A Fantastic And Brutal Action Game That Surpasses Its Source Material
Despite the flop of the movie it was based on,X-Men Origins: Wolverinemanages to create a game far better than its source material.This 2009 action game is brutal and fast-paced, playing similarly toDevil May CryorGod of Wartitles. While it explores many of the same plot points from the movie, it also creates an original story that follows Wolverine’s Weapon X origins closer to the comics.
This game has been praised for good reason for its action, which sees Wolverine use his mutant abilities to devastating effect. You can impale enemies, slash them apart, and enter berserker rages to slice your foes to ribbons across many detailed levels. Deep combat mechanics make every fight memorable, especially since you get opportunities to use the environments themselves to your advantage.
WithMarvel’s Wolverineset to releaseeventually by Insomniac Games, it is likely to take a lot of influence fromX-Men Origins: Wolverine, which still arguably provides the most authentic experience playing as the long-lived X-Men member.
The blood and gore shed by Wolverine in this game is not seen in many Marvel games, making it something unique that encapsulates Logan’s not-so-nice approach to his enemies. Although it follows the senseless plot of a mediocre film,the gameplay alone sells this title as a perfect way to immerse a player as the Wolverine.
9Marvel Rivals
Competitive Hero Shooter With Marvel’s Best Names
One of the bestMarvelgames to come out recently isMarvel Rivals, the competitive hero shooter that took fans by storm in late 2024.This game takes queues fromOverwatchandTeam Fortress 2, allowing players to assemble teams of six to fulfill various objectives.
The roster ofMarvel Rivalsis stellar, featuring both iconic heroes like Captain America and Iron Man alongside obscure Marvel figures, such as Jeff the Land Shark or Peni Parker. Like most hero shooters, each character has unique abilities and movesets, with the ones inMarvel Rivalsreflecting the signature powers and gear of your favorite heroes in distinct roles.
A team’s synergy depends on which characters work together, from sturdy Vanguards to supportive Strategists. Unlike other hero shooters,Marvel Rivals' Team-Up systemgives players new moves when certain heroes jump into a team together. This adds more complexity to a team’s composition, encouraging players to experiment with multiple strategies to win.
8Marvel Vs Capcom 2: New Age Of Heroes
One Of The Most Iconic Fighting Games Will Take You For A Ride
The arcade classic,Marvel vs Capcom 2: New Age of Heroesremains one of the bestMarvelgames to date due to its impressive roster.This 3v3 fighting game gives you an astounding 56 different characters, both from Marvel Comics and the legendary games created by developer Capcom. Here, you’ll seeStreet Fighter’s Ryu face off against Doctor Doom, Magneto, Cyclops, and many more Marvel staples.
Featuring what I consider to be one of gaming’s best soundtracks,Marvel vs Capcom 2is a revered title for its fast, frenetic gameplay.Each character is lovingly represented, with unique moves and super techniquesto beat up the competition.
With every character on a team able to assist each other during a fight, two players can create collaborative squadsof their favorite Marvel characters. From Thanos to Iron Man, popular Marvel characters are selectable, butMvC2is revered for its obscure picks too, like Blackheart and Omega Red.
7Marvel’s Midnight Suns
Build Relationships And Strategies Against Supernatural Threats
Marvel’s Midnight Sunsis an often overlookedMarvelgame that seeks to represent each of its characters incredibly well. This title is a strategy game that takes inspiration fromXCOMorFire Emblem,allowing you to control different heroes in strategic fights against the supernatural armies of the magical side of the Marvel universe.
The gameplay ofMarvel’s Midnight Sunshas elements of deck-building, where you construct decks for specific characters to unleash their abilities in battle. The closer you get to certain characters, the stronger their cards will become for future fights.
Thetitular Midnight Suns teamhas some expected regulars like Doctor Strange and Spider-Man, but lesser-known faces like Blade, Ghost Rider, and Nico Minoru flesh out a deep roster of allies.One of the core gameplay elements is to form relationships with these characters, learning about their histories and personalities to form bonds with them.
The stronger your bonds are with different characters, the stronger they’ll becometo fight past forces of darkness. With a gripping plot surrounding the chaotic deity Chthon and his servant Lilith, your unity as a team will be the only light that can force evil back into the abyss.
6The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction
Unlimited Chaos With Environments You Can Tear Apart
BeforeDonkey Kong: Bananzamade waveson the Switch 2 for its destructible environments,The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destructioncoined the idea first. This 2005 PS2 and original Xbox action gamefeatures the Hulk as he causes chaos across a completely open world.
For its time,this game was incredibly innovative, with set pieces that could be completely demolishedby the Hulk’s explosive strength. Despite Hulk’s sheer power, levels are still challenging in this game, requiring you to purchase upgrades to your abilities to grow even stronger. Hulk can do a number of things using destroyed landscapes, such as using broken cars as shields or making boxing gloves out of ruptured asphalt.
Although it only features simple attack, defend, or destroy missions,Ultimate Destruction’s Hulk controls extremely well. You can jump great distances, climb to the top of buildings, and, most of all, smash everything in sight. Your destruction can even cause an emergency response, putting you in the same situation Bruce Banner finds himself in throughout many Incredible Hulk comic runs.
5Ultimate Spider-Man
Spider-Man And Venom’s Conflict Creates Two Distinct Perspectives
Ultimate Spider-Manis another 2005 action game, this time featuring the wall-crawling web-slinger and one of his greatest enemies - Venom. Set in the first Ultimate universe,this game follows both Spider-Man and Venom through two different perspectives, allowing you to play as both of them.
Both Venom and Spider-Man are vastly different to play, with Spider-Man’s agility and web shooting offset by Venom’s violent symbiote powers. While Spider-Man swings gracefully through the air, Venom leaps and crawls through the darker corners of New York,creating two unique gameplay experiences.
There are very few Spider-Man or Marvel games that allow you to play as Venom, let alone with as deep of combat mechanics as they have inUltimate Spider-Man.
Thecell-shaded artstyle of this game is excellent, with each frame resembling a panel from a comic bookyou’d see from Marvel. With a large open world for both Spider-Man and Venom to explore, you’ll find many quests and a story filled with memorable Marvel cameos.
4Deadpool
Merc With A Mouth Gets A Game Just As Loud
Deadpoolis athird-person action game that is as comedic as some Deadpool comics, reflecting the manic, fourth-wall-breaking characterfar better thanX-Men Origins: Wolverine. This title is full of non-stop jokes in every scene, creating a vibrant and hilarious adventure that fans of the character will always get a laugh out of.
Thegameplay forDeadpoolis solid as well, giving players many of Deadpool’s abilities, from his unstoppable healing factor to teleportation across various levels.Deadpool comes equipped with his signature pistols and katana, engaging enemies in different waysdepending on your playstyle. Whether you prefer stealth, full-blown firefights, or melee brawls, there’s a little something for everyone.
Constant meta commentary and humor creates a fever-dream of a game, with a plot that Deadpool doesn’t take very seriously.No matter if you love or hate this type of game, it’s a one-of-a-kind Marvel titlethat is 100% Deadpool from start to finish.
3Marvel: Ultimate Alliance
Perfect Team-Up Of Marvel’s Greatest Heroes
Although there have been multiple sequels, the originalMarvel: Ultimate Alliancestands out as one of the best games that features a long roster of Marvel Comics characters. This 2006 title allows you toform a four-member team of 26 possible Marvel characters, who engage in explosive actionacross a variety of intricate levels.
The roster ofMarvel: Ultimate Alliancecan grow bigger if you unlock specific character costumes. For example, Beta Ray Bill is unlockable as a costume for Thor, but he has a completely different set of moves and abilities.
This top-down action RPG features simple mechanics, but an addictive battle loop that will have you taking down wave after wave of enemies.This game features full multiplayer, giving you the chance to team up with your friendsto form a squad of your favorite heroes and villains. You can recreate iconic teams or invent new ones, adding replayability as you find out what synergies you can find.
As you level up characters, you have the choice to complete optional objectives to unlock multiple endings, along with several collectibles and costumes. This encourages you and your friends to find more ways to play, a fact which has kept this game enduring past the test of time as more Marvel games have been released.
2Marvel’s Guardians Of The Galaxy
Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxypulls you into an action-adventure story featuring the unpredicable Guardians of the Galaxy going from one explosive event to the next.This game has you control Star-Lord, who in turn must bring out the full potential of his team, from the chaotic Rocket Raccoon to the deadly assassin Gamora across multiple planets with their own threats.
The story of this game is incredibly compelling, with your actions as Star-Lord forming strong connections to every Guardianand other NPCs you meet. As you grow closer with your team, you unlock various abilities for them to use in combat and exploration, opening up what the Guardians of the Galaxy are truly capable of.
In my opinion,Marvel’s GotGis an underrated gem, featuring some of the best representations of the Guardians characters outside Marvel Comics.The twists in turns in the story combine with free-flowing action and an excellent soundtrackto craft a great single-player experience you shouldn’t miss.
1Marvel’s Spider-Man
A Dream Come True For The Friendly Neighborhood Superhero
Undoubtedly the bestMarvelvideo game out right now isMarvel’s Spider-Man, developed exclusively for the PS4 by developer Insomniac.This game has everything a Spider-Man fan could want, from a huge New York open world to fluid combat and RPG systems that let you develop into the perfect superhero.
The web-swinging is this game is nothing short of miraculous, allowing you to freely move, do aerial tricks, and combine abilitiesto zip and dash through New York. The open-world is incredibly detailed, with multiple regions to visit with tons of different collectibles to gather. The amount of hours I’ve put into this game with Photo Mode alone makes me never want to use fast travel, which I can’t say for many other games.
One of the best parts aboutMarvel’s Spider-Manis the number of different suits for Spider-Man you’re able to unlock. Each suit comes with a special combat ability, encouraging you to craft them all by the time you finish the game.
Marvel’s Spider-Manalso has a fantastic story revolving around an experienced Spider-Manwho has operated in New York for around eight years. The dynamic relationships that form and develop in the game are incredible, featuring a variety of important Spider-Man characters, from villains like Scorpion and The Vulture to figures like Mary Jane and Miles Morales.
The reactive combat in this game mimics theBatman: Arkhamseries, creating an intuitive system that lets you embody Spider-Man authentically. This alone makesMarvel’s Spider-Manthe bestMarvelgame out there, due to how it beautifully immerses players as one of the most important heroes in fiction.
