As most players experienced when jumping into the first few hours of the game's recent beta, Marvel's Avengers is - despite its live-service multiplayer core - a very story-focused game. Following the Avengers disbanding after a cataclysmic event called A-day, the game will see players looking to reunite the Earth's Mightiest Heroes in an effort to put a stop to the plans of some of the team's most nefarious enemies.
Perhaps the most prevalent of these foes is shady scientific corporation AIM, which has been a major focus of the Marvel's Avengers' marketing material and beta. However, it appears Crystal Dynamics has a lot more to say about this notorious Marvel staple, with the team posting a new trailer that delves deeper into what makes the group so menacing.
Titled "Who is AIM?" the footage provides a solid overview of the corporation's longstanding presence in Marvel's history, highlighting how the team combed through the comics to provide a new take on AIM that borrows from their origins while still trying to add something new. "After the disaster of A-day, the superheroes are outlawed and AIM sort of steps in and fills that vacuum," the devs reveal, covering how "they believe that they can offer the world an alternative to the superheroes." Seemingly, a big part of their goal is to oust the Avengers from their position as all-powerful world saviors, with Scot Amos stating that, in their view, "it doesn't make sense to have these people who are above everyone else, so we should neutralize that."
The footage also covers a lot more of their technology, revealing that the team merged with Stark Industries after the events of A-day. Seen as the team worked with the Avengers prior to their outlawing, they also supposedly know their weaknesses and flaws. "Comics are the first step," says Jeff Adams on where the influence for the evil scientific group came from, revealing how the enemy designs and their overarching beliefs all originated from their comic appearances. There will seemingly be numerous AIM units that players will encounter throughout the game, including giant mechs, heavy-ordnance troopers, and "bee-keeper" troopers, which are derived from the group's iconic comic-book appearances.
The trailer also highlights the group's two leaders, George Tarleton and Monica Rappacini. Tarleton has firm beliefs in a world protected by science, with Crystal claiming he's a "very complex character," believing that the Avengers present "unregulated and unchecked power" that needs to be contained. Rappacini is referred to as more assertive than Tarleton, with the character seeing the Avengers as an obstacle to her experiments on the Inhumans. It'll be interesting to see how these two, more grounded villains slot alongside MODOK, who is already confirmed for the upcoming game.
Marvel's Avengers will be available on PC, PlayStation 4, Stadia, and Xbox One on September 4, with Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 versions coming at a later date.
