It’s becoming clear that Marvel Games is far surpassing DC in the world of video games, which is disappointing for many fans. Last week, Insomniac Games finally showed off gameplay for *Marvel’s Wolverine*, and it looks fantastic. The game features a gritty, mature take on Wolverine, with intense combat against enemies like the Reavers. It seems to deliver the exciting, story-driven superhero experience fans have been hoping for, complete with thrilling action sequences like car chases and dangerous scenarios. While we’ll need to play the full game to get a complete picture, it’s great to see Marvel continuing to invest in high-quality superhero games.
As a DC fan, it feels like we’re in a bit of a waiting game right now. While James Gunn has said they’re working on DCU video games, those are still a ways off. It’s starting to remind me of the early 2010s, when Marvel was really pulling ahead and DC was trying to catch up. I’m hoping DC doesn’t feel pressured to rush things, especially given how well their recent movies have been doing, but it’s definitely a familiar situation.
How Marvel Games Compares to DC’s Gaming Efforts
Marvel Games has been around since 2009, but for a long time, they were best known for games based on movies, mobile games, and free-to-play titles. The company really started to become what it is today in the mid-2010s, with early successes like Telltale’s *Guardians of the Galaxy*. However, the release of *Marvel’s Spider-Man* in 2018 was a turning point. Insomniac Games was given a significant budget, a reasonable development schedule, and a lot of creative freedom to build a fresh game, independent of any existing movies or other projects.
The game proved successful for everyone involved, leading to two sequels and other titles like *Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy* from Eidos-Montreal, *Marvel’s Iron Man VR*, and *Marvel’s Midnight Suns*. While *Marvel’s Avengers* wasn’t as successful, it remains one of the few disappointments for Marvel. These games, along with the three popular Spider-Man games from Insomniac, have generally been praised by both fans and critics, though their commercial performance varied.
What’s really impressive is Marvel’s commitment to variety in its games. They haven’t just made multiple games like Spider-Man; instead, they’ve explored different genres and gameplay styles. *Midnight Suns* is a perfect example – it’s a fantastic turn-based strategy game and a lot of fun to play. Though some people mistakenly dismissed it as just a card game, those who gave it a chance found it to be excellent. Marvel is also continuing to support VR gaming with *Marvel’s Deadpool VR* later this year, which is a welcome surprise following the 2020 release of *Iron Man VR*.
Marvel Rivals demonstrates the potential of expanding into new game genres. Many people who weren’t previously interested in Marvel started playing Rivals simply because it looked enjoyable, effectively introducing them to the Marvel universe. By moving beyond typical single-player action games, Marvel is attracting both its existing fanbase and players who enjoy a wider variety of games. They’re also making a strong comeback in the fighting game community with Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls, which has received positive feedback during its beta testing.
Besides *Marvel’s Wolverine*, we’re also excited about new games featuring characters who haven’t gotten much attention in the gaming world, like Captain America and Black Panther in *Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra*, Iron Man in *Marvel’s Iron Man*, and Blade, the legendary vampire hunter, in a game from Arkane.
DC is currently facing challenges in making a significant impact in the gaming world. Recent releases like *Gotham Knights* and *Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League* haven’t been well-received, which has hurt the brand’s reputation. While there have been some successes, such as *Batman: Arkham Shadow* and the promising *LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight*, DC’s output doesn’t quite measure up to Marvel’s. It often feels like DC only achieves success with Batman games. The *Batman: Arkham* series was excellent, but that trilogy concluded ten years ago, and it’s not enough to demonstrate continued success for DC in gaming.
While there’s buzz about a potential new Batman game, it’s been a long time since we’ve seen a Superman game – the last one was tied to the *Superman Returns* movie in 2006. Beyond Batman and the *Injustice* series, modern, high-budget games featuring heroes like The Flash, Green Lantern, Green Arrow, and Aquaman are notably absent. Compared to Marvel, DC’s characters simply aren’t as well-represented in the gaming world.
DC Had a Shot Before Cancelling a Few Games
A Wonder Woman video game was in development, but it was canceled earlier this year. The game would have built upon the Nemesis system from *Shadow of Mordor* and seemed like a promising move for DC to create games featuring heroes other than Batman. It’s disappointing that we won’t get to play it.
There were also plans for a video game based on The Flash, developed by the same team at Warner Bros. Montreal that created *Gotham Knights* and *Batman: Arkham Origins*. After *Gotham Knights*, the studio considered several projects, including a game featuring Constantine, but it wasn’t approved. While development on the Flash game began, it was ultimately cancelled following the negative response to the 2023 *The Flash* movie.
Honestly, even if the game was still years away and we’d probably forgotten about the movie by then, Warner Bros. just cancelled it. And from what I understand, it wasn’t even *because* of the movie – these games usually do their own thing anyway. It’s a really weird choice, and I think it just hurt what DC could have been doing in gaming. It feels like a big missed opportunity.
James Gunn Could Salvage DC’s Gaming Future
Some fans are worried about James Gunn’s involvement with DC’s video games, but even though he’s currently focused on movies and TV, he’s in charge of all things DC. His goal is to create games that feel connected to the DC cinematic universe he’s building, though these won’t be directly based on the films like many games were in the 2000s. It’s still unclear exactly how this will all come together, but it does show he has a plan for the future.
James Gunn seems eager to bring lesser-known DC characters to life in movies, TV shows, and potentially video games. This could finally mean we get a Superman game, or even something unexpected like a Swamp Thing game. Gunn previously worked as a writer on the video game *Lollipop Chainsaw*, giving him firsthand experience with game development and ensuring he’ll have reasonable expectations for any future projects.
This isn’t about taking sides between Marvel and DC. It’s a request to James Gunn and the team now in charge of DC games: we want to see a range of high-quality DC games that are as good as the excellent Marvel games currently available. Whether they can achieve this remains to be seen, but DC seems to be heading in a positive direction. It might take a few years to fully recover, but there’s reason to believe Warner Bros. can make it happen.
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2025-09-29 03:11