For a second there we had no new comics to read, had that continued fans would have still been able to get their Earth’s Mightiest Heroes fix when Square Enix and Crystal Dynamics give gamers Marvel’s Avengers. Last weekend we got to play a slice of the beta those who pre-ordered the game will be able to access starting August 7.
No spoilers, no tech speculation, just impressions on if going through pre-ordering and downloading the beta is worth your time.
It all starts just as it did for Square Enix when they first showed footage of the game at E3. Players will be dropped into the “A-Day” demo. If you’re a fan of stories that drop you into the action and don’t hold your hand, this slice of the game should be something awesome for you. The purpose lack of a HUD makes it feel cinematic even though you’re awkwardly learning the physics of throwing Mjolnir with Thor.
Where the game begins to open up is after the brief opening mission. Players go through brief snippets of Hero story missions with Ms. Marvel and Hulk. For purists who couldn’t buy into an Avengers game that features one of the Champions, Kamala Khan, in such a prominent role. You’re wrong. No spoilers, just know that her story and character make sense in this reassembly.
On a gameplay level, she gets some imaginative ways to utilize her powers that will look very familiar to those who have read the G. Willow Wilson run of the comics.
Once you play the beta, you’ll see whether it wants to or not; Marvel’s Avengers is going to get comparisons to games such as Destiny. The amount of gear can already seem like too much and it’s only a snippet of what you’ll be able to unlock in the full game.
Players can earn gear that augments attack power, defensive capabilities, and unlocks perks. As you earn more resources by completing missions or picked up from destroyed enemies you’ll be able to power up individual gear pieces. Though one design choice I questioned was not having any control over jumping back in the Quinjet once a mission’s objectives were completed. It seemed like any gear chests or dropped resources from enemies were lost because I had no time to collect anything.
While rare level gear is a nice reward for tough missions, it doesn’t change the look of your character. Crystal Dynamics is doing that by showing off some of the Marvel looks they’re fans of. Via the daily challenge card part of the character menu, you’ll be able to earn various skins modeled after things like Ms. Marvel’s comic look, Hulk’s Joe Fixit persona, and more.
One of the best parts for me personally was the HARM training simulator. It’s the Avengers version of the Danger Room where you can squad up in a survival mode that makes the team battle 10 increasing waves of enemies. The best part of this was unlocking digital comics as a reward. Not because of the concept but because you don’t just unlock 8 selected comics, instead you’re unlocking entire collections of the Avengers history in Marvel Comics. It sucks that the books aren’t completely in there to read but for anyone who likes looking at comic book history it’s enjoyable.
Once you get to a point where you’ve completed the story part of the beta, you’ll get to explore War Zones missions with a team of Black Widow, Iron Man, Hulk, and Ms. Marvel. These missions where you’ll have to destroy specific devices, or takedown elite AIM squads, or hack enemy tech are sometimes too brief. Their purpose is to be quick grinds for gear and XP to level up characters with friends. While everything about the design of them is solid, there wasn’t quite enough of its features to gauge whether it has longevity. Fortunately, we only have a few more weeks until the game’s full release to play a proper amount of War Zones.
If you were planning on buying Marvel’s Avengers this fall, the beta is worth dropping the $5 deposit on. The “A-Day” mission alone. Having known the moment I caught the first footage at E3 that Crystal Dynamics has something special that could not only replace a game like the Marvel Heroes MMO but push it into a level that rivals the MCU, I can say that so far the beta has shown me the game is meeting my expectations. (Don’t believe I’ve been on board since day one? That’s me in the video below)
Marvel’s Avengers Beta runs
August 7 (starting 9 pm local time) – August 9 (For those who pre-ordered the game for PlayStation)
August 14 – August 16 For those who pre-ordered Marvel’s Avengers on Xbox One and PC.
August 21 – August 23 Finally, on August 21, the beta program will be open to all PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC players and run through August 23.
