Gamers who want to see fights featuring some of the most unexpected concepts possible will love Smash Up. This "shuffle-building" card game from Paul Peterson and folks at Alderac Entertainment Group will have players pin characters and creatures from different genres against each other in some of the craziest match-ups the world has seen. Thanks to the game's simple and straightforward mechanics, two to four players can see pirates, zombies, dinosaurs - and soon, comic book characters - fight for domination. With Smash Up: Marvel coming very soon, just which teams can players choose?
Smash Up: Marvel already teased the arrival of HYDRA and The Ultimates as the first factions in this Smash Up iteration. However, as this Marvel setting will feature eight teams, what might be the others? Moreover, what other groups should be out of the drawing board?
10 Want To See: SHIELD
Who better to face off against HYDRA in Smash Up: Marvel than agents of SHIELD, themselves? Fans of Marvel's world-spanning secret agency can rely on the likes of Nick Fury and Phil Coulson to eliminate HYDRA and other opponents with no mercy. SHIELD works best with its arsenal of hi-tech equipment and with a tenacious efficiency that gets the job done. Smash Up: Marvel can represent SHIELD as the efficient team that it is.
Card abilities could include enhancing each others' talents or blocking an enemy's assault. These can be in the form of delaying crucial actions on their turn or even by milling their deck. When SHIELD's at war, it can quickly turn into a war of attrition. And given SHIELD's resources, the team's not going down fast.
9 Don't Want: The Inhumans
In Marvel comics, the Inhumans live in solitude unless they have to protect their kingdom. Inhumans are superpowered beings blessed by the Terrigen Mist, a mysterious substance that "activates" their hidden powers. Led by the silent but deadly Black Bolt, the Inhumans try to live a peaceful life in Attilan.
Compared to heavy-hitters like the Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy, the Inhumans don't have that strong branding. Moreover, Marvel should probably work on giving the Inhumans a more central role in future stories. This approach will be similar to how the X-Men had a renewed "life" with the Dawn of X relaunch.
8 Want To See: Guardians of the Galaxy
If players are trying an "interdimensional" game like Smash Up, perhaps Star-Lord and his team might be the ones best for the job. The Guardians made themselves known for being adventurers just cruising the stars, taking on odd jobs here and there. Story-wise, the Guardians seem to fit the most to interact with other Smash Up settings. After all, it's the Guardians of the Galaxy that's the likeliest to stumble upon worlds of Elves and Zombies and different settings Smash-Up has to offer.
Smash Up: Marvel with Guardians of the Galaxy can take advantage of the Guardians' adventurous theme. Powersets for the Guardians could include a lot of deck shuffling, enabling players to draw the cards they need at the cost of a few turns.
7 Don't Want: The Defenders
While everyone else is busy doing heroic things in the spotlight, the Defenders do what they have to do. If troublemakers keep on messing with cities, they get the fist. Comprised of Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist, the Defenders add a realistic approach to small-scale heroes protecting their hometown from baddies.
Despite the popularity of the Defenders as a Marvel team, they may not fit the crazy setting of Smash-Up. Moreover, Marvel should improve the Defenders' branding first. After all, its Netflix adaptation did have mixed reviews.
6 Want To See: Fantastic Four
What's a Marvel game without the comic universe's founding family? Players can join Reed Richards and his family of superheroes to knock out bad guys with science and butt-kicking abilities. Thanks to members such as Mr. Fantastic, The Human Torch, Invisible Woman, and The Thing, the Fantastic Four can spice up any Smash Up: Marvel encounter with their presence.
Fantastic Four in Smash Up: Marvel can be a team of extremely complementing abilities. A Fantastic Four team should have a powerset that plays as though they're a single unit, and that one can't function without the other. This approach might seem detrimental, as usually, cards in Smash Up should be able to handle themselves individually. However, managing the team-focused tactics of a Fantastic Four team can be a worthwhile challenge to any player.
5 Don't Want: Runaways
Runaways serves as one of Marvel's more obscure but underrated teams. The team has teenagers that realize they're children of spervillains, and their stories revolve around them being chased by their parents. The Runaways aren't to be trifled with, though, as they have a wide range of powers that can threaten most teams - ranging from magic to advanced gauntlets, to having an actual dinosaur.
Despite their unique character histories, Runaways just doesn't have that big of a fanbase amongst comic book fans compared to the other teams mentioned.
4 Want To See: X-Men
If there's any team to offer a diverse set of abilities to any Marvel game, it's the X-Men. To the unfamiliar, these are mutants under the tutelage of Professor X that save the world despite criticism and judgment for their innate abilities. Players of Smash Up: Marvel will love to have the X-Men for their amazing costumes and their unique powerset. Seeing as the X-Men possesses the most team members with unique powersets, this should be reflected in their Smash Up: Marvel theme.
Unlike other teams, the X-Men's powerset may enable them to duplicate or copy the abilities of other enemy cards. This disruptive nature of their deck works similarly to the SHIELD suggestion above. However, instead of doing something against the enemy, the X-Men deck uses an enemy's strength and turns it into their undoing.
3 Don't Want: Deadpool Corps
Players can spice up any fictional match-up with Deadpool and his team of other Deadpools. The Merc-With-A-Mouth's Deadpool Corps comprises of alternate versions of Deadpool across universes. These include Lady Deadpool, Kid Deadpool, and even a dog mercenary! Stories that feature Deadpool always end up adding entertainment for readers. Moreover, the fact that Deadpool can break the Fourth Wall and talk to readers is in itself a very appealing part of his character.
Unfortunately, while the idea of Deadpool Corps in itself can be immensely fun to have in a story, it might not work in a game. Remember, Deadpool can break the Fourth Wall, which means he knows he's a fictional character. He uses this to his advantage a lot of times - he doesn't run out of bullets, and he can pull out almost any weapon from his person. Adding Deadpool to a game might break it.
2 Want To See: The Avengers
Any Marvel game won't be complete without the Avengers. The iconic superhero team shares members with almost all of the superhero teams mentioned in this list, and for a good reason.
Players of Smash Up: Marvel can join Captain America and Iron Man as they fight evil with a rather impressive roster of other superheroes. Smash Up: Marvel with the Avengers can take advantage of their relationship with other teams. Card abilities could include enhancing the effects of other heroes' abilities to gain power. Card abilities may also focus on helping players draw vital cards to help them capture the most points the fastest.
1 Don't Want: Spider-Verse
If players aren't up for some mercenary action, what about some web-slinging? Spider-Man and his Spider-Verse team can add a great deal of fun and complexity to any game. In the comics, the Spider-Verse is a series that explores multiple iterations of Spider-Man in different universes. Unlike Deadpool Corps, Spider-Verse isn't "all" Peter Parker. His protege Miles Morales (Ultimate Universe) and Spider-Gwen (Gwen Stacy of another timeline) will be a part of this team.
Interestingly, Spider-Verse can be its own game instead of just being part of an existing franchise. Thanks to the popularity of Into the Spider-Verse, Peter Parker and the gang should probably be web-slinging in a fully-3D title.