Gaming
Games
The 9 most underrated superhero games
From Insomniac’s love for onomatopeias to Lego’s take on all things Marvel, these are our picks for the most underrated superhero games in the galaxy.
Depending on how you look at it, it’s a pretty great time to be a superhero fan. Marvel Comics is off to a Fresh Start; Square Enix are still working on their not-so-secret Avengers project; and Insomniac Games’ Sunset-filled approach to Spider-Man hits shelves in just a matter of weeks. It can be a lot to take in if you’re just learning how to pronounce the word “thwip”, but if you’re a true believer who’s still agonising over the sheer beauty of Sony’s Amazing Red PS4 Pro, then we’ve got you covered. These nine games are more of an underrated batch than a best-of playlist, but they’re immersive vignettes that'll satisfy anyone in need of a superhero fix.
1. Batman: Arkham City
Even though most of us would rather scoop our eyeballs out with a spork than be subjected to a playlist of Batman: Arkham Knight’s vehicle missions, you really shouldn’t overlook Arkham City. The 2011 sequel picked up where Asylum left off and Batarang-ed it’s way into being a prolific DC time-sink armed with brilliant voice acting (see Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill), a brutalised combat system and ultra-detailed environments that made cape crusading broodier than ever. Throw in a heaping pile of alternate costumes and missions that swapped in both Catwoman and Harley Quinn as leads, and it’s almost surprising that Rocksteady haven’t chosen to right their more recent wrongs with an entry that harnesses City’s ability to bring Gotham to life.
2. Deadpool
High Moon Studios’ Deadpool is a weird anomaly. It’s a clunky third-person action brawler with repetitive mechanics; its lead is played by Nolan North (Uncharted, Assassin’s Creed) and not Ryan Reynolds (sigh); and while its M-rated tone is an acquired taste, it consistently breaks the fourth wall and suspends an admirable plot so high into the air that you can’t help but watch it cartwheel over you like a male cheerleader who’s seen Bring It On a few too many times. It’s a romp that’s worth flirting with and it’s also a model for what Insomniac Games could do if they threw Reynolds into a recording booth and went crazy with the X-Force, Ellen Whitby, and the Mercy Sisters. Seriously. Ashly Burch as Gwenpool. Think about it.
3. LEGO Marvel Super Heroes
Fact: LEGO Marvel Super Heroes is arguably the greatest superhero game ever made. It’s only five-years-old and has already spawned two sequels -- with 2016’s Marvel Avengers and 2017’s Marvel Super Heroes 2 – and despite its shortcomings in being a (adjusts nerd glasses) serious adult video game, it’s one of the few titles that actually pays tribute to the comic books, cartoons and the cinematic universe. It also features Marvel’s version of New York and a total of 155 playable characters (minus DLC), including Iron Man, Spider-Man, Thor, Hulk, Wolverine, Black Widow, Deadpool, Black Panther, Ms. Marvel, Doctor Strange, Jean Grey, Moon Knight, Squirrel Girl, Star-Lord, Spider-Woman, Aunt May, and Mary Jane Watson. Need we say more?
Because Capcom’s Wolverine is still bae
© Joe Madureira
4. Marvel Super Heroes
1995’s Marvel Super Heroes is more or less the Capcom-meets-Marvel Comics experiment that started it all. The arcade title debuted shortly after X-Men: Children Of Atom – tucking the short version of the ‘Infinity Gauntlet’ storyline into a Jack Kirby-inspired 2D fighter that pitted Xavier’s finest (i.e. Wolverine, Psylocke) against baddies such as Thanos, Blackheart, and Doctor Doom. It also introduced the Infinity Gem System with gems themselves buffing damage, speed, armour, and health while blinding our prepubescent eyes with aerial raves and the flashy Infinity Supers we’ve come to love – like Iron Man’s Proton Cannon and Spider-Man’s Maximum Spider.
Spidey and Venom go full ‘90s and then some
© Amazon
5. Spider-Man And Venom: Maximum Carnage
Even in a decade that birthed Earthworm Jim, Cool Spot and Bartman Meets Radioactive Man, there’s nothing more SNES than Maximum Carnage. The side-scrolling beat ‘em up is more '90s than Astro Pops and Creepy Crawlers combined, and being based on the comic book arc of the same name, it’s a 'nerdhaven' for all things Marvel, as it features characters such as Black Cat, Captain America, Iron Fist, Firestar, Morbius and Cloak and Dagger. It’s also ridiculously hard, to the point where every button-mash combo can decide whether you’re seconds away from blacking out or throwing a controller at anyone with a face. The first prints of the game were sold in a blood-red cartridge, which is still right up there with Ocarina Of Time’s Gold Edition.
Like Tony Hawk, but with way more thwipping
© Amazon
6. Spider-Man
If you spent a majority of your childhood inhaling bugs and binging the Spider-Man series, then there’s a solid chance you gave yourself away to this PS1 classic. It was developed by the team at Neversoft, using the Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater engine, and it paired its thwips-and-quips action with comic book lore, narration from Stan Lee, and a grab bag of bad guys that included Venom, Carnage, Rhino, Mysterio, Scorpion and a game-exclusive Symbiote Doctor Octopus. It also revolutionised collectibles at the time as a variety of alternate costumes (and power-ups) could be unlocked -- ranging from Spider-Man Unlimited, Spider-Man 2099, Scarlet Spidey, and the Amazing Bag-Man. It wasn’t perfect but compared to Superman 64 and Batman Beyond: Return Of The Joker, it quipped its way to being a nifty starter kit for future superhero games.
7. Sunset Overdrive
The thing about Sunset Overdrive is it might be the most underrated game of the past decade. It landed on the right console at the wrong time and its uncanny ability to make every single trailer and cutscene an uncensored jab at its own video game-ness cast a pretty dense shadow on its appeal. Nonetheless is still holds up as 20-hour joyride that mixes shooting with skateboarding and uses hilarious respawn animations, dazed-out colours and dreamscapes, and an ‘all killer no filler’ soundtrack (see The Bronx, Cheap Time) to really slam those hooks in. It’s also one of the few games where you can transform a working-class superhero into a complete oddball that has a thing for Vans, distressed jeans, face paint, corsets, capes, light sabers, and neon bunny ears. It’s like American Wasteland but with way more onomatopeias, so thank you Insomniac.
Because Uber cyberpunks have feelings too
© Amazon
8. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles In Time
Are the Ninja Turtles superheroes? Technically, yes. They live by the ‘za and are known to yell ‘Hellacious!’, ‘Radical!’, and ‘Totally tubular!’ at the most inappropriate times, but they have also buddied up with Batman, and were sort of created in the same accident that turned Matt Murdock into a red tights-loving vigilante named Daredevil. And for what it’s worth, 1991-1992’s Turtles In Time is a good time. The arcade-turned-SNES beat-'em-up still holds up as one of the best side-scrollers that’s not named The Simpsons and it’s all thanks to being a co-op friendly fit for gamers of all ages. It also never shies away from the source material and there’s really no better feeling than hurling a Foot Soldier right towards your television screen.
9. Viewtiful Joe
The premise of Viewtiful Joe is simple: Joe and his girlfriend Silvia are at the movies on a date. While there, Silvia gets kidnapped by said movie’s antagonist and is then taken to the world of movies, otherwise known as Movieland (because why not). And with the help of a robot and a hero named Captain Blue, Joe makes it to Movieland and receives a V-Watch that grants him superpowers and the ability to combo his way through endless waves of bad guys. Its premise is a little more Sandler than Russo Brothers -- especially when you consider the level of cringe that’s in the catchphrase ‘Henshin-a-go-go-baby!’ -- but Joe remains a pinnacle of Capcom’s prestigious history for being a hyper-stylish fighter that doesn’t pull any punches. The use of ‘Viewtiful Effects’ (aka VFX) were almost synonymous with the GameCube era and every 2D cell-shaded scroll into action holds up because of its ability to blur the lines between art forms.
