Marvel’s Wolverine may be one of the last games that fans would have believed to come from Insomniac Games. This particular X-Men affiliate is one of the most popular Marvel characters by far, but Wolverine’s abilities and typical content matter is often more graphic or mature than Insomniac is known for. Ratchet and Clank certainly abides by a kid-friendly rating, for example, with Resistance and Sunset Overdrive being its most mature games to-date. Marvel’s Wolverine will not have a confirmed rating for some time, but a Mature rating would definitely not be out of the realm of possibility.
Marvel’s Spider-Man could meet any rating imaginable based on the content matter, but Peter Parker’s life is commonly one of uplifting moments and no excessive or graphic violence. Instead, Wolverine’s entire approach to combat revolves around six adamantium-laced bone claws that protrude from his hands, meaning that bloodshed will almost always follow him in a fight. Wolverine is afforded this graphic nature in combat, but having to rely solely upon his claws, strength, and healing factor will negate one popular feature from the Marvel’s Spider-Man franchise: an assortment of fun gadgets.
Marvel’s Spider-Man Utilizes Each Protagonist’s Science Expertise
Peter Parker and Miles Morales’ abilities in the Marvel’s Spider-Man franchise are engaging enough on their own. Spider-sense is used as an extrasensory alert for an incoming attack, strength and agility are inherent to each character, and both characters can adhere to surfaces and crawl along walls. Miles even possesses bio-electrokinesis and an optic camouflage ability that renders him invisible. That said, Peter and Miles’ gadgets truly put them over the top in terms of how unique their abilities are. Being able to web-swing fluidly throughout an open-world Manhattan alone is breathtaking as a means of traversal, and doing so is only possible because Peter designed web-shooters early after he received his own powers.
But Insomniac introduces myriad gadgets in Marvel’s Spider-Man and Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales that appear on a tool wheel and can be upgraded for better efficiency. These gadgets include the Trip Mine, Web Bomb, Spider-Drone, Impact Web, Electric Web, Suspension Matrix, and Concussive Blast exclusive to Marvel’s Spider-Man, and the Holo-Drone, Remote Mine, and Gravity Well exclusive to Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales.
Marvel’s Wolverine’s Combat Needs to Be More Naturally Creative
Marvel’s Wolverine will need to have gameplay loops that are somehow as satisfying as in Marvel’s Spider-Man, and this is where designing combat could be tricky. Shredding human enemies would be substantially more satisfying than there only being robot or non-humanoid enemies. However, because Wolverine only truly has his claws and brute strength, it could be difficult to make that feel confidently diverse after hours of punching and slashing.
This creativity would then need to come in the form of multiple attack animations that cleave or stab different parts of an enemy, let alone different special moves that could potentially juggle enemies in the air or chain attacks between multiple enemies. Most of what will determine how combat operates couild be how enemies are designed, and indeed it could come down to how brutally Wolverine is able to eviscerate them.
Because the cinematic teaser showed humans unconscious throughout a bar with one drawing a knife to foolishly take Wolverine on again, it can hopefully be assumed that human enemies are in fact present. It will be interesting to see how this combat is handled in general, but without fun gadgets it will need something fairly exciting to substitute for them in gameplay.
Marvel's Wolverine is in development for PS5.
