2018’s Marvel’s Spider-Man is an exceptionally well-made title that made waves in the industry as soon as it dropped. It lived up to the hype and then some, delivering one of the best Spider-Man stories in years.
Superheroes have, no doubt, had a rocky time, original or otherwise, in gaming. However, we look at some titles that perfectly understood what a superhero video game should feel like.
Some of these are familiar comic book characters, and others are purely original creations of the developers.
Five most enjoyable open-world superhero titles like Spider-Man
1) Batman: The Arkham Series
The Dark Knight has had a great run in the past couple of decades in both movies and games. However, when Warner Bros handed the reins to Rocksteady, the gaming community wasn’t particularly excited by the prospect of another mediocre Batman game that would be a clear cash-grab.
However, the resulting game was anything but mediocre or a cash-grab, as it went on to spawn one of the most solid trilogies in gaming. Every game in the Batman Arkham franchise is a knockout entry, and the Caped Crusader’s fans will undoubtedly be engaged for hours on end.
More than just being some of the most commercially successful titles, these offerings were also vastly influential in how combat has been handled in games. The revolutionary combat mechanism of the series was the inspiration for many countless titles that came afterwards.
2) inFamous
Before SuckerPunch Studios took over the gaming world with Ghost of Tsushima, they had previously done so with their superhero-inspired franchise, inFamous. The game series puts players into the shoes of a super-powered individual, given the moral choice of becoming a supervillain or a superhero.
The games are fantastic in every sense of the word, as they give players plenty of ways to play. With a whole arsenal of unbelievably cool superpowers, players are let loose in the city to do whatever they wish.
The game does a fantastic job of giving the players a lot of freedom, and the morality system adds a lot of depth to the title. The game experience can vary from player to player, as they might choose to be a gruesome villain, an anti-hero, or a beacon of hope and light as a true superhero.
3) Saints Row IV
The Saints Row franchise dropped all pretense of trying to be a game about criminals when it decided to feature an alien invasion. Saints Row IV puts the player in control of the President of the United States, and they must battle extra-terrestrial forces and wade off an alien invasion.
The game works incredibly well because it doesn’t take itself too seriously at any point. As a result, Saints Row is possibly the most fun one can ever have in an open-world game setting.
The open-world itself is a pretty great playground to mess around in, but the specific TRON-like levels genuinely take the cake. Saints Row IV is hilarious, action-packed, and surprisingly rich and varied when it comes to the gameplay.
4) Sunset Overdrive
Sunset Overdrive is perhaps one of the most criminally underrated games of the last decade. Insomniac Games, the people behind Marvel’s Spider-Man, developed this title.
Insomniac has repeatedly proven that the studio is a master at perfecting the tone for each game. Sunset Overdrive is a high-octane, vibrant, and colorful adventure that never lets up throughout its runtime.
The game might not be too long, but that works perfectly in its favor as it doesn’t overstay its welcome. The title’s immaculate world-building and elemental traversal makes for some genuinely incredible gameplay that never gets boring regardless of how many hours players sink into it.
Sunset Overdrive might not have gotten the attention it deserved at launch, but that’s certainly not because of a lack of quality.
5) Assassin’s Creed Odyssey
Hear us out. Assassin’s Creed Odyssey is secretly a superhero game set in the Assassin’s Creed universe. The game makes no pretense of trying to be realistic, like the rest of the titles in the series, and that is what precisely makes it a great game.
Previously, it seemed a bit odd that Ezio, or Edward, could jump from the tallest buildings and land on a haystack without being turned into absolute mush. In Odyssey, it makes sense because the character is essentially a Demigod.
The characters of Alexios/Kassandra are blessed with godlike powers that allow them to overpower their enemies to a laughable degree and take on entire armies by themselves.
While the game maintains a steady level of challenge, it is undeniable that the character is nothing short of a superhero or even a God. The gameplay perfectly complements the tone and story. As a result, it feels much more grand and ambitious than some titles to come before in the series.
Note: This copy reflects the writer’s personal opinion, and what may seem like the best title to someone may not be so for others, as it is a matter of personal choice.
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