A New Marvel Arcade Beat-Em-Up Is Exactly What The Multiverse Needs
Nostalgia assemble!
Nintendo’s unofficial farewell Direct dedicated to the original Switch delivered a ton of surprises this week. From unlikely ports from PlayStation’s catalog to cult-classic RPGs and new cozy games, there was a little something for everyone. But few of these announcement made me jump with Batroc-esque joy the way Marvel Cosmic Invasion did.
Marvel Cosmic Invasion is a brand new 2D beat-em-up in the style of the unforgettable arcade games from the 1990s. Published by Dotemu and developed by Tribute Games, the prolific team behind Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredders Revenge, Cosmic Invasion is a gorgeous modern rendition of the kind of game that ate up all of my quarters as a child (several of which were included in Capcom’s superb Fighting Collection released last year).
The game features colorful hand-drawn animations and a spectacular roster of recognizable heroes including Captain America, Storm, Phyla-Vell, Spider-Man, Venom, Wolverine, and Nova.
Cosmic Invasion seems to be treading new ground, adapting the 2006’s comic event Annihilation. That classic story sees the immortal villain Annihilus launching an massive attack across the galaxy. The game version will have our earthly heroes brawling with Annihilus’ forces across various levels on Earth and abroad.
The trailer shows Marvel vs. Capcom-style assists, with heroes swooping into combat mid-combo for those playing by themselves. For those who are just trying to blast through its levels with friends, four player co-op will be available online and crossplatform. Certain combinations of heroes will have unique team-up attacks, lending fairly easy to replayablity.
Not counting the Switch-exclusive Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3, its been a long while since we’ve had an all out Marvel-themed brawler in the way we used to get some 30 years ago. Few fictional characters so perfectly fit the beat-em-up formula the way Marvel’s heroes do. It’s borderline criminal that the only Marvel video games we get these days are big AAA-swings that take years to develop (and typically star a single character), or habit-forming mobile games that don’t leverage the bombastic action the source material is known for. It hurts even more when we’re forced to see these iconic characters flourish in movies and TV.
How can you not love everything we’ve seen of this game so far?
This throwback seems like the perfect way to rectify that shortcoming, a welcome surprise for gaming Marvel heads who miss bashing a few heads as their favorite superhero. Tribute Games being part of this project seems like a match made in heaven considering the reception to the studio’s past work.
I expect this one to be full of deep cut references and secrets like Shredder’s Revenge before it. Heck, if we’re lucky maybe it’ll get some post-release content in the form of additional characters. Here’s to hoping my boy Matt Murdock will make a rarified video game appearance in the upcoming arcade game.
