When I came out of Avengers: Endgame, I was impressed that Marvel Studios had managed to successfully marry over a decade of movies into one perfect conclusion. After several hours with the Marvel's Avengers beta, however, I came away deflated, drained, and ultimately bored.
Marvel's Avengers releases in September and is being developed by Crystal Dynamics, the team behind the recent Tomb Raider trilogy. Avengers is part adventure-action-adventure and part shooter-shooter inspired by Destiny. Neither matches the other, and the beta indicates a game that, like Hulk, is continually at war with itself.
It's perhaps ironic that a large majority of the beta is spent playing as the Hulk and speaks volumes metaphorically about the internal struggles the game struggles with.
The start of the beta is the Golden Gate Bridge mission which has been featured in numerous trailers for the game. This is the first time – outside of various events – that fans have had the opportunity to play this mission, and it shapes a dignified first impression.
It's pure blockbuster summer fun and feels like a true centerpiece of any Avengers movie. The explosive nature in which it throws the action in your face as the constant exchange between different heroes is electrifying in its pacing and a fantastic start to the show.
Thor maintains a God-of-War style moveset, and Mjolnir can be thrown as Kratos' mighty hatchet. It's not as fluid or snappy, but it gets the job done. Arial's fight with Iron-Man is explosive, high-octane action, blending seamlessly into the destructive smash, bashing and crushing of the Hulk. Captain America and Black Widow have the same contrast as Batman and Catwoman in the Arkham games. Overall, the combat is fluid, engaging, and visually stimulating.
Ultimately, the opening level manages to highlight each character's strengths, while being an incredibly loud, in-your-face roller coaster ride.
Things slow down momentarily as the next story mission puts players in the shoes of Bruce Banner and Kamala Khan, an ordinary citizen who has gained superpowers from the events of the game's opening. they explore a jungle in search of a hidden base, the setup evokes feelings of Uncharted; it helps that the jokes fly back and forth with a few hearty banter.
It's a promising start to something more substantial and nuanced, but Avengers quickly returns to what is clearly its primary focus: grindy, explosive action.
What turns out to be a long mission forces you to control the Hulk as he attacks hundreds of nameless enemies, each with quintessential health bars, levels, and loot. Later, though the perspective shifts to the fast, nimble, and powerful Kamala Khan, it's apparent that Avengers is more about grinding than anything else.
Ironically, the best moments in Marvel's Avengers are when the game slows down and thinks about its characters' personalities. Such is the case when players are allowed to freely explore a room filled with memories of the Avengers as Khan. She pauses, examines the objects and thinks about the situation she finds herself in. It's a sweet, heartfelt moment and one that's mostly stronger than any of the grueling actions the game throws at you.
It only helps Troy Baker and Sandra Saad, respectively Banner and Khan, to shine in these emotional moments.
Unfortunately, the beta falls apart from here. After the jungle mission, players are taken to the War Table, which functions as an elaborate menu and features a host of multiplayer-focused missions. These have specific power levels, where finding better gear or buying new skills for your heroes is vital.
While each mission basically works the same way, Warzones are obviously the main focus and act as semi-open areas. Here you will find a host of activities to do, but unfortunately, little or no interest.
You'll control checkpoints, defeat powerful (and stronger) enemies, and loot plenty of loot chests. Each piece of loot can be equipped to improve your character's stats and increase certain numbers.
Outside of Warzones, there are augmented combat simulations that players can participate in. These work just like the rest of the game and pit players against waves of enemies in a generically rendered environment.
A repetitive gameplay loop simply overshadows anything the multiplayer portion of Marvel's Avengers tries to achieve.
Players jump into Marvel's Avengers to live out their superhero fantasies, not to slowly open chests and swap body parts. As an Avenger, players need to feel powerful from staggering and rely on that feeling of power with skill, not attachments that can be swapped on the fly.
The conflict facing Marvel's Avengers seemingly has no resolution. For one thing, the game has an engaging narrative, with emotionally charged cutscenes and stunning settings. On the other hand, there is a service-like multiplayer suite, which is very reminiscent of titles such as Anthem.
Marvel's Avengers has a lot to prove, and I think the beta has further muddied the waters for fans. Will the single-player segment be long enough to warrant a purchase? How will level scaling work between single and multiplayer? And will players get bored before they get to the game's conclusion?
The Marvel's Avengers beta raises more questions than answers. Much like anyone other than Thor trying to wield Mjolnir, there's often a feeling that in the end, Avenger may not be worthy of his namesake. We will have to wait and see.
