Marvel Heroes 2016

The Best D'ast Comic Game in the Flarkin' Galaxy!

Cosmic Greetings! This is not the first I have written about Marvel Heroes, I reviewed the game for Guard the Galaxy. At that time, the game was fairly new and, by many accounts, mediocre. I enjoyed it, myself, however, and I saw great potential, so I scored it an 8.5 out of 10, factoring in that potential. The game has since continued to see consistent improvement, having won numerous awards since then. I've provided various updates as the game has added certain elements or reached certain milestones, such as the 1st and 2nd anniversaries. Today, I present another look at Marvel Heroes because of its recent major update and rebrand as Marvel Heroes 2016.

Marvel Heroes 2016 is a massively multiplayer online ARPG created by Gazillion Games and Diablo/Diablo 2 icon David Brevik. Brevik has recently left Gazilion, but his legacy definitely remains in this game. It truly feels like the spiritual successor to Diablo 2 (yes, there are secret cow levels), but with the added awesomeness of the Marvel license. The ARPG genre has grown since Brevik's Diablo games and there are many established and newer games trying to recapture or reimagine the magic of Diablo. One approach Marvel Heroes took that set it apart from the genre was the decision to make it an MMO. There are guilds (called supergroups), hubs and public maps that are populated with other players, and, a first for the genre, raids. While the combination of MMO and ARPG has not been perfect, at times, it certainly has taken the ARPG genre in a fresh direction. It is, by this design, the most actively social Marvel game. At the same time, if you do not want to group or interact with other players, you generally can avoid it, with obvious exceptions like raids, of course.

Gameplay

If you have ever played Diablo games, or almost any ARPG, you know what to expect here. Mouse clicks to move, pick up loot, interact, with keyboard hotkeys providing additional attacks and functionality, such as social window and inventory, etc. Until recently, the only option with this was keyboard and mouse, which is fine for long-time Diablo/ARPG fans. Those who were uncomfortable with a click to move/attack system or who were simply more familiar with console games were somewhat wary to try the game. Fortunately, with the 2016 Update, the game has added controller support and it works surprisingly well, making the game feel not unlike the Ultimate Alliance console games. Overall, the combat, which is the most important element of an ARPG, flows well. It is not hard to figure out combat in Marvel Heroes, but there is also plenty of room for a new player to learn to grow. Differing ranges of difficulty across the modes from story to cosmic terminals and raids offer a potential for players to enjoy new content as their skills at the game (and gear) improve.

Setting

While the game is fun, the real hook of Marvel Heroes is the license. Replace Barbarian with Hulk, Tristram with New York City, and Diablo with Doom. The license is used to full effect and has many nods for fans from the obvious to the easter eggs. Being in Avengers Tower and hearing various Marvel characters shooting quips and one-liners at one another is like being in a living comic book. And speaking of various Marvel characters, the game's roster is huge, especially considering that each hero is practically equivalent to a full class in any other MMO, complete with unique powers, costumes, voice acting, animations, etc.

All the heroes (and some villains) pictured on the left are playable in Marvel Heroes 2016, except for Angela (who is planned for launch within a month of this writing). That is 58 total (soon to be 59).

Ant-Man, Black Cat, Black Panther, Black Widow, Blade, Cable, Captain America, Captain Marvel, Colossus, Cyclops, Daredevil, Deadpool, Doctor Doom, Doctor Strange, Elektra, Emma Frost, Gambit, Ghost Rider, Green Goblin Hawkeye, Hulk, Human Torch, Ice Man, Invisible Woman, Iron Fist, Iron Man, Jean Grey, Juggernaut, Kitty Pryde, Loki, Luke Cage, Magik, Magneto, Moon Knight, Mister Fantastic, Nightcrawler, Nova, Psylocke, Punisher, Rocket Raccoon, Rogue, Scarlet Witch, She-Hulk, Silver Surfer, Spider-Man, Squirrel Girl, Star-Lord, Storm, Taskmaster, Thing, Thor, Ultron, Venom, Vision, War Machine, Winter Soldier, Wolverine, and X-23!

While there is some imbalance (with 50+ "classes" it is unavoidable), no hero is unplayable. So, if a hero listed is a favorite, from comics, or cartoons, or movies... feel free to play them. You may not always be the min/max optimal top of the charts, but you can have fun. Most importantly, the heroes are represented well: their powers, their animations, their lines, feel true to what you would expect. Among those (and why this is being posted on this site) is Rocket Raccoon. This game has the most awesome and thorough portayal of Rocket Raccoon out there. You will not be disappointed, Rocketites. Below: A picture of Rocket's existing costumes. His default is his GotG v2 (2008-2010) look, the first one.

In addition to have the characters in place, the game has all the right locales. You'll visit various sections of NYC, an important city for Marvel, from the Upper East Side to Central Park to Hell's Kitchen to the Bronx Zoo. There is Avengers Tower, the X-Mansion, the SHIELD Helicarrier, Madripoor, the Savage Lands, Latveria, etc. To play through Marvel Heroes is to take a trip through the Marvel Universe and it is wonderfully realized.

Graphics/Sound

Marvel Heroes 2016 is not the best looking game right now, it's not the best looking ARPG right now. That said, it captures the look of this comic world very well. From some of the best costume designs you'll see in any MMO to the flashy and impressive power visuals to the many locations mentioned above. It may not be the best, but it is what Marvel should look like.

And the audio is what Marvel should sound like. The music is decent as are the wide variety of sound effects that accompany the dozens of powers in the game. Where the game truly excels and is absolutely at the top of the competition, however, is the voice acting. Every single hero, enhanced costume, and team-up (NPC's that fight alongside you) has their own voice and script of dialog, when they fight enemies, destroy things, reach points in the story, or approach another hero. The quantity of voice acting here is staggering, but it is also very consistently produced. All these characters sound like you would expect, you can hear a hero speak for the first time, without seeing them, and know who is talking. It all just fits and it is performed by a literal who's who of voice acting. There are dozens in the cast here and so many are icons in the field. Much as Marvel Studios has aced casting with the movies, Gazillion has mastered casting in Marvel Heroes.

Value

Perhaps the most amazing aspect of Marvel Heroes 2016 is that it is free. Free to download, free to play. To get costumes in a reasonable amount of time, you have to spend money. To boost leveling speed, rarity, etc. beyond their normal levels, you can spend money. To get heroes faster, you can spend money. To get extra storage space, you have to spend money. But you do not have to do so. Every hero can be earned by collecting the in-game splinter currency. Even costumes can very rarely drop. Every mode, every part of story, everything doable in game can be done without spending any money at all. It is, beyond a doubt, one of the fairest and most consumer-friendly free to play games. Period. If you do choose to spend money, know that, in doing so, you are supporting an amazingly dedicated and responsive development team.

Overall

The game is free and manages to be more fun and engaging than many full priced retail games. Not only do you have nothing to risk by trying Marvel Heroes, I feel anyone who is a fan of comics or games is doing himself a major disservice by not giving this game a shot. Fun game. Iconic setting. Amazing development team. Incredible community, one of the best for any game. The game has some flaws. The optimization could be better, it may give you some trouble on a lower end machine (but it also has many adjustment options for graphics and performance). The development team, while dedicated and actual players of the game, is somewhat small. Their passion sometimes causes them to overreach what they can accomplish in a timely manner, but I'd much rather have that than a bunch of suits who do not care. It still has room to improve but, if you give it a real chance, you will find one of the best comic games, one of the best ARPG's, one of the best MMO's you've ever played. Go to marvelheroes.com and download the client or look it up on Steam.

Future

Marvel Heroes has always been defined by its growth. It went from critical mediocrity to critical praise as month-by-month the game expanded and improved. While some staff shake-ups have slowed things down some over the past year, the game still has a solid future and the developers have been teasing some major, exciting changes to be announced. With controller support in place, a 10th chapter added this year to round out story (with a new dynamic scaling function to allow higher level players to group with lower level), and my second favorite hero (and our Captain's favorite) Beast on the way within the year... now is a great time to #PlayMarvelHeroes