The Marvel universe has always been rich with storytelling. Over the years, the comic company has created some of the most beloved characters in history, like Iron Man, Spider-Man, and Captain America. However, I’ve personally found myself disillusioned by Marvel’s recent work, whether it’s in the recent entries in the Marvel Cinematic Universe or some of the latest comic books from Marvel Comics.
Thankfully, Marvel Games have continued to impress in the past year. Marvel Rivals was one such game that has taken the world by storm by bringing the beloved characters in a direction beyond the traditional third-person action genre. On the flipside, Insomniac Games is continuing to make more strides in said genre, with Wolverine set to release within the next year. Marvel continues to outsource its IP to developers, who are all creating new and unique visions for the rich universe. One of the most exciting examples of late is Marvel Cosmic Invasion.
Cosmic Invasion takes Marvel Games back to its roots: with a classic beat-em-up featuring iconic characters. However, where it differs from the original X-Men arcade game is in its investment in obscure characters. The main antagonist isn’t Thanos or Galactus, but rather Annihilus, a Marvel cosmic villain who hasn’t even debuted in the films yet. The game also features playable characters that range from familiars like Spider-Man and Wolverine, to more obscure picks like Beta Ray Bill, Phyla-Vell, and Cosmic Ghost Rider. Has this approach paid off? Marvel Cosmic Invasion does a great job of paying tribute to the rich world of the Marvel universe, despite having some major issues with the gameplay and runtime.
“The Cosmos Must Fall So That I Might Live!”
Marvel Cosmic Invasion is loosely based on a comic book event known as Annihilation, which features the entire cast of characters from the “Marvel Cosmic” side of the universe coming together against Annihilus. Characters such as Nova, Silver Surfer, Phyla-Vell, and characters that would go on to become the Guardians of the Galaxy would play a role. A lot of those same characters and story elements are center stage within Cosmic Invasion.
Annihilus is a bug-like creature obsessed with prolonging his own life, and as such, believes all life that isn’t subservient to him is a threat. So, he seeks to conquer the universe and reshape it in his own image. Along the way, he controls and enlists the help of both corrupted heroes and eager villains alike. It’s up to a group of ragtag members of the Marvel universe to stop him and his “Annihilation Wave” no matter what.
Something I really loved about Cosmic Invasion was its focus on all corners of the Marvel universe. It would’ve been so easy to only focus on characters that have appeared in the movies and TV shows. Instead, there are dozens of heroes and villains that are represented here, some of which have never appeared in a game before, let alone in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
The best example I can give of this dichotomy is in the very first level. Spider-Man and Nova must venture to the ground zero of Annihilus’s attack on Earth: New York. You’d probably expect the appearance of a Spider-Man villain, like Green Goblin or Doctor Octopus, or maybe someone more recently well known, like Kingpin. Instead, it featured Beetle, an obscure antagonist who is targeted by the Annihilation Wave because of his resemblance to the rest of the bug-like army.
In many ways, this may feel like fan service, but it all feels natural within the context of the story. You will play as mutants, Avengers, street-level heroes, and characters who are traditionally based in outer space. As such, you will explore all corners of the universe and meet all sorts of different antagonists and protagonists. If you’re going to Asgard, it’s only natural that you encounter Hela. If there’s a mission set in space, it’s only a matter of time before Thanos or Galactus makes an appearance.
Part of the reason the narrative works so well is because of just how strong the presentation is. The absolutely gorgeous pixel art is so charming and conveys the personality of characters in both the cutscenes and the gameplay. A lot of it feels very much inspired by the older Marvel vs. Capcom games, which is one of the best compliments I can give this game. Each character’s voice performances are also fantastic, and it certainly helps that a lot of them reprise their role from beloved cartoons like X-Men ’97 and Spectacular Spider-Man.
Despite all the good, there are some flaws with the game’s story and presentation. For one, there’s the music. I don’t think the soundtrack is bad, per se, as Tee Lopes does a great job with creating backing tracks for all of the levels. That said, compared to his work on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge in particular, the soundtrack isn’t very memorable. Even now, I struggle to remember any specific tunes, which is a stark contrast to the composer’s other work.
By far the biggest issue with Cosmic Invasion, however, is its length. Beating the game takes around 3-5 hours, which, to me, is way too short. I understand that these sorts of titles usually take that long to beat, but there is so much more potential with this premise that was never realized. Certain playable characters, namely Silver Surfer, Phyla-Vell, and Cosmic Ghost Rider, don’t really get as much time to shine compared to others. Furthermore, it almost feels like a section of the game is missing, as there was plenty of room for more antagonists like Ultron to make an appearance. As it is, the speed at which you defeat Annihilus feels way too anti-climactic for how dire the stakes are set up to be.
Even still, the strength of the game’s story far outweighs its weaknesses. If you’re a fan of Marvel, whether casual or hardcore, you will get a huge kick out of the narrative, visuals, and references in Marvel Cosmic Invasion. That raises the question: how is the gameplay? All in all, it was both really fun and quite frustrating in equal measure.
Tear Through the Marvel Cosmic Universe
Cosmic Invasion, in many ways, is like the other beat-em-ups that Dotemu and other developers have released in the last few years. If you’ve played Shredder’s Revenge, River City Girls, or Streets of Rage, then you already know what to expect from Cosmic Invasion. Thankfully, there are multiple ways in which the game differs from its contemporaries.
The main unique mechanic at the heart of Cosmic Invasion is the ability to pick two characters at the same time. Much like the Marvel vs. Capcom games, you can pick a second character to either tag in for brief attacks or switch to entirely. A lot of missions have characters that the game recommends that you pick, both to create more cohesion with the narrative and to give you a chance to complete the mission’s challenges, but you can feasibly pick whoever you want.
Speaking of the characters, you will unlock four characters along your journey. Each play completely different, with their own unique capabilities when it comes to combat and blocking. For example, Venom can’t outright block and even parry an attack, while Spider-Man’s block button is instead a dodge. Plus, all of the characters have special attacks and customization options, which you’re sure to get a kick out of if you’re a fan of the Marvel universe. In fact, a few of them are direct references to the aforementioned Marvel vs. Capcom games.
Some characters are stronger than others, but each is equally viable in many ways. I personally clicked more with Phyla-Vell and Beta Ray Bill, but I also had a lot of fun playing as the rest of the game’s characters, like She Hulk, Spider-Man, Venom, and Nova, among others. Though the problem with the recommended characters concept is that you will very briefly play as Wolverine and Storm at the very beginning of the game, but in the late stages, you won’t be using them as much.
The tag mechanic also feels great to play around with. It feels right out of a fighting game, and if you’re a fan of tag fighters in particular, you will have a great time with Cosmic Invasion. The game will frequently test your abilities with its mechanics through the challenges. Some of these are really easy, like using a character’s special multiple times. Others are more obtuse, like asking you to parry attacks ten times.
Along your journey, you’ll be fighting various enemies from across the Marvel universe. These range from foot soldiers part of the Annihilation Wave, A.I.M., Sentinels possessed by Annihilus, to more elaborate boss fights. At first, these boss fights are a real treat. It was a huge joy putting my combat skills to the test against characters that I never thought I’d see in a Marvel game, like Sauron, for instance (not to be confused with The Lord of the Rings antagonist). Further, it’s a great treat to see iconic locations like the Savage Land fully realized.
I say at first, because despite how much fun I had with the overall gameplay mechanics and levels, there’s one massive problem that often detracted from my enjoyment: the difficulty spike. After around a quarter of the game, there’s a certain level where you fight Venom in a boss that took me almost an hour to beat. The reason for this was due to unfair attacks that tore through my health within moments, even if I was going into the battle with max HP.
This problem applies to multiple levels. There would be sections where your speed is slowed down drastically as you get stunlocked by certai n enemies. It certainly doesn’t help that when you die, you are forced to restart the level all over again. It’s worth noting that I haven’t yet played the game with friends in local and online co-op in depth, so these issues may be mitigated there. However, a beat-em-up shouldn’t only be fun with others, and the lack of any difficulty options to balance out the experience made certain levels feel more unfair than fun.
There’s another issue as well, which ties into the game’s short runtime: replayability. Once you beat the game, there aren’t many reasons to go back and play more. Even if you try and complete all the challenges, all you get are additions to the Cosmic Matrix feature. While this is a great way to unlock more cosmetics, beyond that, all you get are character bios and music tracks, which don’t significantly alter the overall experience. There is an arcade mode that forces you into playing one constant run that will reset once you die, but it’s just more of the same. There are no new ways to play, no secret characters, and no incentives to go back and play more, other than completion.
As someone who has always had an appreciation for the beat-em-up genre, I often found myself conflicted by the gameplay of Cosmic Invasion. One second, I would be having a blast, while the next, I would have to resist the urge to throw my controller at a wall. Thankfully, despite these shortcomings, I still had a great time overall with the game.
A Great Experiment From Marvel, But Not Without Flaws
Marvel has been in a weird spot for the last few years. The emphasis of quantity over quality in the last few projects from the Marvel Cinematic Universe has slowly led to fatigue that has allowed competitors like DC to appeal to more audiences than ever before. Thankfully, Marvel Games has continued to push the creativity of the universe forward, with Marvel Cosmic Invasion being another great example of that initiative.
There are some major problems at the heart of the game. The short runtime, lacking soundtrack, limited replayability, and frustrating difficulty spikes can often detract from the strengths of Cosmic Invasion. These issues, however, pale in comparison to just how well done everything else is.
The brilliant, yet restrained approach to fan service makes it so that no matter your level of interest in the Marvel universe, you will find a reference that makes you point at the screen in excitement. The use of obscure characters within the narrative is perfect and does a great job of highlighting heroes and villains that are often overlooked. The presentation and use of pixel art is absolutely fantastic, and finally, the overall gameplay mechanics are a lot of fun to play around with.
Marvel Cosmic Invasion is not perfect, but as a huge fan of the Marvel universe, I was certainly not disappointed by the finished product. Tribute Games constructed everything with such love that it’s almost enough for me to overlook all of the major issues. Plus, for just $24.99, this is a must-buy regardless of whether you’re a fan of Marvel or the overall beat-em-up genre. I can only hope that, in future updates, a lot of the problems are ironed out and that more content is added.
Disclaimer: Dotemu provided a PlayStation 5 copy of Marvel Cosmic Invasion for review purposes.
