The Marvel franchise has exploded in popularity over the past decade or so, leading to a slew of films, TV shows, comics, and video games. Though, even before the MCU took the film industry by storm, Marvel games were always popular — dating back to the PlayStation 2 days in the early- to mid-2000s (and even earlier).
Over the course of the franchise’s rich history, we’ve had Marvel video games based on films, as well as original stories coming in all sorts of genres. There are action games, cooperative multiplayer titles, fighters, beat ’em ups, and more ranging across various styles of play. There’s even a Marvel pinball series out there!
With that in mind, we decided to take a look at the best games the franchise has to offer, looking back over two decades of releases. These are the best Marvel games of all time.
You knew this was coming. Of course, Marvel’s Spider-Man is one of the best Marvel games out there. There are so many reasons this game is so special, from its fluid combat to the compelling story and performances of its actors to the satisfying web-slinging. We’ve gotten lots of Spider-Man games in the past, but Insomniac Games’ take on the hero is in a league of its own. It strikes a balance of giving you enough to do throughout New York City without feeling too overwhelming. Because of its approachability, it’s easy to jump in, swing around, do a few missions, and hop out — without ever feeling like it’s too much to handle. Many open-world games struggle in this regard, but not Marvel’s Spider-Man. Above all else, this game is full of heart and will be remembered for years to come. We’re so excited Sony and Insomniac are working on a sequel, which should be coming to PS5 in 2023.
On the flip side, Marvel games are also known for allowing you to play with others. And that’s exactly what you can do in Lego Marvel Super Heroes — a game featuring 180 heroes from the beloved comic book universe. The most compelling thing about this game is that it’s easy to drop in and play with friends and family, regardless of skill level. With so many characters to choose from (even the lesser-known ones like Kraven the Hunter or Malekith), it’s easy to spend tons of hours trying out everyone’s movesets and abilities. While video games are sometimes very skill-dependent, the barrier to entry with Lego Marvel Superheroes is quite low, meaning even inexperienced gamers can find enjoyment with this one, but it also gives expert players plenty to do and unlock.
Acer’s Predator Atlas 8 finally has a US release date and price, several months after the company first showed off the handheld in May. The highlight is the Intel Arc G3 Extreme chip inside, which has been adopted by only a couple of other consoles besides the Atlas 8. This version will go on sale exclusively at Best Buy on November 1 for $1,299.99.
Acer originally said the Atlas 8 would arrive in North America in October, but left pricing open at the time. The launch came amid the ongoing DRAM crunch, which has made memory more expensive across the PC industry and complicated pricing for hardware makers.
Gaming laptops and I have a complicated relationship. One of my first gaming rigs was an Acer Predator that was already outdated when I bought it. I was a broke college kid, and that was the best I could afford. So trying out high-end gaming laptops is always fun. But ASUS' ROG Zephyrus G14 is a lot more than a laptop that can run AAA games. It is portable, so you're not lugging around a 2.5kg machine everywhere you go. It is built well, none of that plastic chassis, and can even function as a normal laptop outside of just gaming.
Google Play is borrowing one of the Nintendo Switch’s most useful little tricks. A new Sidekick tool called Playbacks captures a short clip after something interesting has already happened, sparing players from running a screen recorder throughout an entire game.
Playbacks is part of Google Play Store v53.8 and keeps saved clips on the phone. Google first announced it earlier this month, but the new Play Store update marks its arrival for players. Anyone who has watched a perfect win vanish because the record button came too late already understands the appeal.