Hey, video game creator and licensing people! Listen up.
I'd love to play a co-op Avengers video game. I'd like to have the same feeling I got playing those cabinet arcade games back in the day, similar to the feeling I got playing X-Men Legends (or Marvel Ultimate Alliance) with a group of friends, combined with the feeling I get playing Batman: Arkham City in terms of feeling competent and powerful and like a very specific superhero with a suite of abilities. I've used Arkham as the sort of basis for a superhero game here, especially since the controls are so great and Batman is so versatile you can extrapolate a fun tightly controlled version of most of the Avengers from gameplay there. I know there was a first person co-op type game that never came out, and that would have been okay, but I would have been more thrilled with something like this that can put less effort on ranged combat.
Teamwork
The joy of these games, from the old 6-player X-Men arcade cabinet down through X-Men Legends is the teamwork. Getting with other people and bashing things as only you can. The joy of it with superheroes is that it can allow for emergent gameplay as physics gets played with as powers combine. Add this to a few scripted co-op moves such as what we saw with Thor striking Cap's shield for a huge shockwave, or perhaps a Fastball Special with Hulk throwing a smaller character where they need to go, on top of tandem movement (Hulk, Iron Man or Quicksilver carrying another to a better vantage point) and the idea of stunning an enemy so another teammate can take them out (borrowed from the FPS game) and you can have a really really interesting battlefield. In a dream world, this battlefield would support eight players and it'd be awesome to join in on that kind of chaos.
Story:
The story would pretty much follow the MCU Avengers during some lapse time between Avengers movies. They'd take on some extra-curricular villain, perhaps the Masters of Evil in some incarnation or other. They'd be tasked with missions which they could take any or all of the Avengers on to face a string of comics-inspired but slightly downplayed versions of favored characters and reduxes of the beloved characters already featured in the MCU. The overall villain would be AIM, more inspired by the comics, with someone like MODOK as their leader.
Main Playable Characters:
Captain America: Plays like Batman in terms of combat and movement, but with only the one gadget (the shield), but has tons of combos and counters and fun shield tricks and the ability to issue simple 'commands' that give bonuses to characters if they follow them in those actions. Attack this, defend that, form up, back off. His team up moves usually involve another character hitting or using his shield for cool effects.
Iron Man: Plays like Batman in terms of gadgets, with some basic combat. Has all the gadgets you could hope for, making him the pointman for all the optional puzzle unlocks around. Plus, he has all the mobility you could ask for since he doesn't grapple up, he hovers upwards and he doesn't glide, he flies forwards. Lots of different blasts and aerial targeting and all sorts of fun. Has access to various armors and can also exit his armor in order to interact with special objects his armor cannot. His team up moves usually involve him using his repulsors to charge something or giving his teammate some kind of gadget.
Hulk: Plays like Batman when he's riding on top of a Titan thug. The Hulk is like bucking bronco, always moving ready to flail, and the player is struggling with a control meter to keep him from attacking his teammates and bystanders. But he charges and attacks and leaps and roars not too dissimilar to what you see in Hulk Ultimate Destruction except the Hulk here moves like a lumbering tank, even when he's moving quickly there's a lot of weight to it. His team up moves usually involve him throwing something, or his teammate.
Thor: Plays like Batman with a huge emphasis on his combos being over the top and QTE finishers. Basically, God of War, superhero style. Thor switches 'stances' more than gadgets, going from standard hammer swinging, to hammerless environmental weapon user to flying weather factory mode. Either way, his combos are beautiful to watch and very powerful. His team up moves usually involve bringing someone else into his QTE combos for cool cinematic team bashing.
Unlockable Playable Characters:
Black Widow: Plays like Batman when it comes to stealth and takedowns and triggers, and like Catwoman when it comes to combat. This means she can also solve many of the puzzles and can save the day even when she works independently of the heat of battle by being smart and picking her targets. Still prolific with combat and counters, but she doesn't have that super useful shield gadget and her hits don't land like Cap's do, though she's still great with stuns and she can build up combos to takedown moves. Co-op moves usually involve her using stealth and stun to set up an attack on an enemy weakpoint.
Hawkeye: Plays like Batman when it comes to ranged combat. Has lots of trick arrows to work with, also good for solving puzzles that Widow cannot. Hand to hand combat is more limited without having the counters, but can still combo and stun. Teamup moves usually involve hitting enemies with cool arrows that set them up for a teammate's attack.
Scarlet Witch: Plays more like the Batmobile battle mode with a bit of mana bar in terms of gaining and balancing energy and tossing out all sorts of energy powers and attacks. Still switches between effects the same way Batman does gadgets (i.e. Blast effect, beam effect, forcefield effect, telekinetic hold effect, telepathic reading effect, telepathic mindscrew effect, area blast effect, hover/flight, etc). Lacks much in terms of combos or anything like that. Coop moves usually involve holding or locking down enemies.
Quicksilver: Plays like the Batmobile drive mode in terms of having lots of momentum and movement, which can help in attacks. He also possesses the ability to track to enemies when he attacks distant foes, but instead of slowly flipping to them, he darts to them. All attacks are in beatdown mode, and Quicksilver can 'counter' anything in a wide area, even if it's not necessarily directed at him. Team up moves usually involve distracting opponents.
Stages/Levels/Areas/Arenas/Missions:
The game takes place over several large open battlefield areas to which the Avengers are deployed that are filled with enemies, obstacles, traps and story-progressing cutscenes that delve into what AIM is doing, why it's so horrific, how it relates to the Avengers and their past and their supporting characters, and how the Avengers can stop him. They usually include a few mini-bosses and a boss fight.
Stage 0/Tutorial-ish Level: Avengers Tower. Avengers are attacked in their base by AIM in their bright yellow beekeeper suits. These guys are after the Avengers Database, and they manage to get it. In the meantime, the Avengers mop up the high tech footsoldiers, and are introduced to their wonderful gadgets. They face AIM's hired man, Taskmaster who is working with Crossbones and Batroc the Leaper to give the team a bit of trouble. They learn this is all being organized by the Scientist Supreme.
Stage 1, "Lockdown and Out": Stryker's Penitentiary/The Icebox. Avengers learn one of SHIELDs old assets has been compromised, and they go to deal with a jail break and have to fight unruly criminals running amok and prevent them from escaping. Along the way they learn some old friends, including Justin Hammer and Abomination have linked up with AIM and are using their abilities and skills to make the escapees even more dangerous, creating a kind of Wrecking Crew. Objectives include evacuation, stopping the escape boats, calling for backup and more.
Stage 2, "Laboratory Retriever": Occupied Helicarrier, the Avengers learn of two problems at once, AIM has kidnapped a number of leading scientists and hijacked the old Helicarrier. The scientists: Helen Cho, Jane Foster (and her team), and Betty Ross. The Avengers have to battle against AIM's increasingly bizzarre weaponry (gravity guns, anyone?), only to find out this science team is headed up by The Leader and another one of Anton Vanko's protoges, the Crimson Dynamo is assisting with security. They learn this new AIM's true nature and plan here and recover the Helicarrier. Objectives include stabilizing the helicarrier, securing the armory, battling enemy aircraft, helping out Nick Fury and Hill and more.
Stage 3, "Cold Comfort": Antarctic Base: The Avengers now have an upperhand and are tracking down AIM at 3 different bases. First is their production facility underground near the south pole. Here they face the unearhed Fing Fang Foom and are part of triggering the transformation of George Tarleton into MODOK for the first time. AIM enemies show off their short range teleportation tech here. Objectives include keeping the place from freezing to death, re-burying FFFoom, destroying the lab, collecting science fragments and imploding the base after you escape.
Stage 4, "What's Yours Is Mine": Russian Cold War Bunker. Lorelei of Asgard is overseeing the rebirth of the old AIM's Extremis project, and they are creating a heap of fiery soldiers that she can mentally stabilize. Her prize soldier is an old Russian super soldier experiment called Red Guardian, whom Black Widow has history with. Spoiler alert: the place ends up exploding with the Avengers interference. Objectives include unlocking old Cold War safety protocols, defusing a nuke, putting together an old war story and freeing the latest Red Room initiates.
Stage 5, "Battle of DC":Washington, DC. AIM has big plans to infiltrate the government by turning Secretary of Defense Ross into a Red Hulk who seems unstoppable and can drain them of their energies. Their main obstacle here is protecting civilians from this rampage and trying to figure out how to stop him. Unfortunately this is all an elaborate trap and the Avengers are captured by some high tech AIM gizmos thanks to a somehow backed-up Arnim Zola after they are weakened defeating Red Hulk. Objectives include saving groups of citizens.
Stage 6,"Muspelheim": Surtur's Realm. The team ends up stranded in a hellish dimension fighting undead creatures of all sorts trying to find a way back home. They fight facsimiles of their slain enemies, including Whiplash, Obadiah Stane, Alexander Pierce, and Aldrich Killian. Notably, some felled foes are missing. Eventually they must escape Surtur, as they cannot defeat him and make their way back to Midgard. Objectives include putting things out of their misery, freeing some slaves like Beta Ray Bill, keeping Surtur pre-occupied and collecting the necessary bits to open the exit.
Stage 7, "Hold The Line": The Avengers find out that New York is under attack by 'The Mandarin'... apparently a guy named Trevor got a hold of some conduits from that Fing Fang Foom incident and is now wielding uncanny power, summoning ancient-looking armies from the ether to bring the city to its knees. The Avengers must head the army off ASAP, though the enemy gets some assistance from someone who looks just like Iron Patriot, even though it's not War Machine. Objectives include saving and protecting civilians and shutting down the rings one by one.
Stage 8: "Strike Like Lightning": AIM Headquarters. The team has discovered the enemy headquarters deep underwater and they go in as hard as they can. They find a veritable anti-Avengers team, including Abomination, A (nother) Crimson Dynamo, Taskmaster, a Zola-controlled Iron Patriot and none other than the mastermind behind all this war strategy: Red Skull, back again from outerspace. Dealing with the nasty AIM beekeepers is enough on its own, but a team against the team may be too much for them to handle. Objectives here are mainly survival.
Stage 9: "End of the Line": Avengers Tower. While the Avengers were away, the tower was seized again, and now it's defended by the Avengers' own defenses, MODOK and something composed of all the power and information gathered from throughout the game: The Super-Adaptoid, a being with all of the Avengers' powers and none of their weaknesses. MODOK attempts to retire the Avengers permanently at this point, with a gauntlet of AIM beekeepers using all the crazy tech from throughout the game, in an attempt to usurp them as 'The Best There Is,' the smartest, the bravest, the strongest, the most worthy, Scientist Supreme.
Are you gonna let that fly, Avengers?
NOTE: All of these stages are just a sketch, really, the point is... lots of butt kicking, lots of bosses, big huge areas, lots of objectives within each. There could be more stages with different details. You could wipe it all and just play the history of the MCU Avengers, or instead do something with Kang in different time periods, or a combination of the two. Sky is the limit, more or less.
DLC Downloadable Characters:
Cap DLC: Bucky, Falcon, Black Panther, Sharon Carter, all play similar to Cap. Includes Invade/Defend Shield Base PvP missions.
Thor DLC: Sif, Heimdall, Hogun, Fandral, Volstagg, Captain Marvel and maybe Loki, all play similar to Thor. Includes 'waves of Ice Giants' endurance missions.
IM DLC: Vision, War Machine, Extremis Pepper, Ant-Man, Wasp, all play similar to Iron Man. Includes
SHIELD DLC: Quake (plays like Scarlet Witch/Black Widow), Mockingbird, Melinda May, Phil Coulson, Lance Hunter, Al Mackenzie, Maria Hill, Nick Fury (play like Black Widow), Leo Fitz, Jemma Simmons (play like unsuited Tony Stark). Includes infiltrate and extract capture the flag missions.
Hell's Kitchen DLC: Daredevil, Luke Cage, Jessica Jones, Iron Fist, Elektra (play like Captain America), Punisher, Hellcat (plays like Black Widow/Hawkeye). Includes patrol the streets 'open world' missions.
Cosmic DLC: Dr. Strange (plays like Scarlet Witch), Captain Marvel (plays like Thor), Starlord, Mantis (play like Black Widow), Gamora and Nebula (play like Captain America), Drax (plays like Thor), Rocket (plays like Iron Man) Groot (plays like Hulk, sorta) and Yondu (plays like Hawkeye, sorta). Includes roguelike 'alien' missions to different realms to fight more or less randomized mooks for as long as you can.
Log in to comment