Marvel Characters That Deserve Their Own Videogame

   

    Marvel videogames haven't always had the best track record. Ever since the first Marvel videogame in 1982, Marvel's gaming catalogue has been plagued with soulless cash grabs, ridiculous mobile games, and an unfortunate period in the 2000s where they cranked out a terrible videogame to go with every marvel movie. There have certainly been plenty of gems in the bunch, however. Playstation's Spider-Man games stand out as some of the best superhero games ever. Where Square Enix failed in giving us a great Avenger's game, they made up for it in "Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy". "Marvel's Midnight Suns" is criminally underrated and mobile games like "Contest of Champions" have kept people entertained for countless hours. There are other great Marvel games as well, but tthat's for another list. It seems that fans have more to look forward to now then they have in a long time with Playstation's Wolverine game on the horizon, as well as Arkane's Blade game. An Iron Man game and a Black Panther game are coming from EA. Lastly, we're getting an untitled Captain America and Black Panther game set during WWII. With all these games coming out, it begs the question, what Marvel Character should get the videogame treatment next? 

Deadpool

    Deadpool had a game a little over a decade ago that was received with mixed reviews. The game had Deadpool's trademark humor and fourth wall breaks, and an interesting plot featuring Cable and the X-Men. Sadly, the gameplay mechanics were lacking, and the game was removed from digital stores due to licensing issues. Deadpool has grown a lot in popularity since 2013, thanks to his two movies from Fox and his upcoming movie that is coming out this year. Deadpool has dual pistols and dual katanas that he uses as his primary weapons, but a new game could feature plenty of other zany and unique weapons as well. Of course, the game should have an M rating with Deadpool's signature tone. Rockstar would be a great studio to tackle a game like this, thanks to their previous work with games like GTA and Max Payne. 

Daredevil

    Fans have been calling for a Daredevil game for a while now, most often calling for Insomniac to make it. However, I think that Daredevil would do best in the hands of a studio like Rocksteady, the makers of the Batman Arkham games. A Daredevil game could be very similar to those games, not only combat wise but tonally as well. The dodging and combat mechanics from the Arkham games would work great for Daredevil and the stealth portions fit Daredevil's MO perfectly. The darkness, gargoyles, and gothic structures would feel right at home in Hell's Kitchen. The game shouldn't be a carbon copy of Batman of course, with Daredevil having a completely different story, villains, gadgets, and abilities. Daredevil did have a movie tie-in game in 2003 but the character is in dire need of an upgraded game.

Moon Knight

    Moon Knight is another Batman-like character, which means that Rocksteady could certainly have a go at developing this game, but it might also be interesting if a company like Ubisoft made it instead. The game could have some similarities to the newer Assassin's Creed games, particularly Origins, since it is set in ancient Egypt. The character of Moon Knight has become more well known thanks to the 2022 TV series of the same name. Moon Knight has a variety of gadgets similar to Batman's but also gets enhanced strength at night. Thanks to his split personalities, the game could be very different from other superhero games with Moon Knight's different personalities giving him different abilities. The game should also be dark and brutal, even more so than the TV show. Moon Knight is still an underrated character and absolutely deserves his own game. 

Nebula

     "What if...?" season two started off strong with an episode about Nebula becoming a detective in a sci-fi, cyberpunk version of Xandar. The idea of that is really interesting and even if a Nebula game didn't draw directly from that, a video game where you play as an angry, alien cyborg exploring space would still be a lot of fun. Studios like CD Projekt Red and Bioware would be great studios to handle a game like this with their experiences with "Cyberpunk 2077" and "Mass Effect" respectively. The game doesn't need the Guardians of the Galaxy since they already have their game but cameos from them would be a welcome addition. Nebula is a very underutilized character in the marvel universe who deserves more credit than she gets. 

Ghost Rider

    Ghost Rider had a movie tie-in game in 2007, which was met with generally unfavorable reviews. The gameplay was reminiscent of Devil May Cry and the PSP version even had a racetrack where you could play as other characters from the game in the style of Mario Kart. As fun as that sounds, Ghost Rider needs a little bit of an overhaul, video game wise. Insomniac would be the perfect candidate, the game would have to be different than their other marvel games, with a darker tone and more aggressive combat, in the same vein as we're hoping "Marvel's Wolverine" will be. The Hellcycle should be an important part of the game and could work similarly to the motorcyle in "Day's Gone". Johnny Blaze should be the main character here, but it would be cool to have other Ghost Riders like Robbie Reyes and Alejandra Jones playable as well. 

Cloak and Dagger

    This duo is not very well known to the general public, but they did get a Hulu show in 2018. The interesting thing about Cloak and Dagger is how they have a sort of symbiosis where they both need the other and their abilities complement each other's. It might sound obvious but a company like Hazelight studios, the developers behind "It Take Two" and "A Way Out" would be ideal for a game like this. They've mastered two player cooperative games, and that sort of style is exactly what a game for Cloak and Dagger would need.

Howard the Duck

    All the way back in 1986, Howard the Duck got a movie tie-in game. Unsurprisingly, the game received mostly negative reviews. Howard the Duck might seem like an odd choice for a standalone video game but hear me out. What if Sega, developed a Howard the Duck game with the visual style of Sonic Frontiers and the tone and zaniness of the Yakuza games? Howard the Duck could make for a fun detective game set in a big city with tons of weird characters and minigames. A visual style similar to the Detective Pikachu movie would also be fun for this game. Overall, Howard the Duck just deserves more love in the mainstream, because he's basically relegated to only a cameo character in the MCU. 

Loki

    Loki is the only villain on this list, although lately he's been acting as more of an anti-hero. The trickster god has grown immensely in popularity since the his debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, particularly in the Loki show which recently got a well-received second season. Depending on how well EA does with the Iron Man and Black Panther games, they might be a good candidate for a game featuring Loki. Loki could have his dual daggers and various tricks and spells to use against his foes, travelling across the nine realms, causing chaos and doing Loki things. While Thor certainly needs a new game, this spot on the list goes to his mischievous half-brother.