Marvel Heroes developed by Gazillion is a Diablo style MMO in the Marvel universe. The game has been open beta for the past two months and has finally released for the PC platform. It has the right ideas in mind, but its execution is what defines the experience.
Where Marvel Heroes fails at doing is building a community. There are so many hoops to jump through to do the simplest tasks. Inviting a person to join your party is more troublesome with the only option available is to invite people via the social window. It makes players less cooperative, and less willing to help as a result. Another issue is the trading system that is currently in shambles.There is no trade window, and as result the only way you can trade gear is dropping items on the ground, and exchanging them that way like in Diablo 1. The biggest issue the game has is the lack of original content. You can’t create your own character, which hurts the game in some areas. I couldn’t get fully invested in my character because he didn’t resemble the way I wanted him to look, an aspect that other MMO’s nail. Collecting items doesn’t change your hero’s appearance; the only time that happens is when you purchase content.
Marvel Heroes is free-to-play game where you can choose to play as a hero from Marvel Comics lineup. There is a good balance between genders, and types of heroes you can choose from. Characters, and costumes from the comics, TV cartoons, and Marvel cinematic movie universe have been included, but with a catch. The free-to-play system locks away most of the content behind a pay-wall, and it got in the way of my enjoyment. For many collectors, collecting every outfit will be a challenge not because they’re hard to find, but because of the cost. It’s assumed on your part that you’re going to purchase a subscription, which will cost you $199.99 dollars allowing you to have access to all the heroes, and outfits. It’s MMO economics baked into a Diablo formulaic gameplay that doesn’t work.
Marvel Heroes forget what it set out to achieve. Its gameplay formula doesn’t translate well for a superhero game, and the lack of free roaming kills the excitement of gathering and collecting equipment. I have serious doubts that it will be in gamer’s playlists after its launch because of the free-to-play pay wall, and of the better alternatives currently out on the market, which is a shame.
Score: 6.5 / 10
