- This episode of Nerdist News is sponsored by Legion on FX.
The first look at Marvel's Avengers Game
has fans disappointed.
Move over CGI Sonic because there's
a new game in town, literally!
Now the first trailer for Square Enix's,
Marvel's Avengers Game dropped during the developers
E3 press conference, and suffice it to say,
it has many a fan questioning which reality they're in.
Berenstain or Berenstein?
After the back to back releases of Avengers Infinity War,
and Avengers End Game,
it felt like the super hero team could do no wrong.
Beyond the box office receipts, the public reception
has made The Avengers, and by extension,
The Marvel Cinematic Universe, a cultural touchstone
beyond the traditional comic book trappings.
So when it was announced that an Avengers game
was coming from the folks behind the rebooted
Lara Croft series, it was no surprise that
fan expectations were shooting through the roof.
Cut to Monday when the first look for the game
made its debut, and instead of a mic drop,
general fan reaction was basically, uh--
(record scratch)
Was that supposed to be Mark Ruffalo?
What's with Tony Stark's hair?
I think it's sexy.
Is that supposed to be the MCU Captain America
or the comic book version of him?
And seriously, is that supposed to be Mark Ruffalo?
While some fans were upset over the lack of game play
in the trailer, most were perturbed over the
uncanny valley version of the heroes when compared to
the team they've come to know and love in the MCU.
To be honest, the comparisons may be unfair because
the game's developers have said it doesn't
tie in to the MCU, but to be equally honest,
it certainly seems to be taking design cues from
their big screen brethren instead of hueing
more closely to their comic book counter parts.
And of course, fans were quick to take to Twitter
to point out their frustrations and criticisms
with the character models,
so let's run down some of the best internet reactions.
First off, a lot of people commented on the characters'
lack of resemblance to the MCU heroes.
@ScottWamplerBMD Tweeted, "Live look at me watching
"Square Enix's Avengers game trailer at the precise
"moment where I realized they didn't get
"likeness rights for any of the actors."
However, it was @roywoodjr who probably
uncovered the real reasons we got these weird knockoff
Avengers with, "Marvel: We wanna use y'all likenesses
"in the new Avenger's game.
"Avengers cast: Cool, we each need
$576,275,592
and 48 cents.
"Marvel: Cool, lemme hit y'all right back..."
In response, @erickwunart reminded us that the
difference between this Captain America and The Dark Knight,
is that Christian Bale doesn't wear hockey pads.
@Millbeeful gave us some alternate Avengers aliases with,
"I didn't think seeing the Avengers not looking like
"the MCU versions was going to be so weird for me.
"But it is.
"They look like a strange bootleg Avengers in my brain.
"Major USA, Steel Guy, Dark Spider, The Bulk, Not Thor."
@MedinaEriksson reminded us of this
great moment from Spaceballs,
my favorite movie of all time,
that memed up perfectly with the trailer,
"You Idiots!
"You captured their stunt doubles!"
@AshCrossan compared these Avengers to the
evil tether doppelgangers from
Joran Peele's "Us."
We're not sure which group was creepier.
And if that wasn't enough, Star Wars lore master
took to Twitter himself.
@pablohidalgo said it all in three words.
"Dinner theater avengers."
Oooh.
That hurts.
Joking aside, it may have been @midnightcap
who summed things up best with,
"The Avengers game probably should have
"distanced itself from the look of the MCU more."
"Having a Bruce Banner dressed and styled
"like Mark Ruffalo really reminds you
"that it's not Mark Ruffalo.
"Embrace a new look."
Now, to be fair, this isn't the first time
that we've seen altered versions of marvel heroes
in video games.
Just last year Sony released their Spider Man
game for PS4.
So what made the reactions so different to that game?
Well first off, that Peter Parker felt and looked like
an amalgam of all the various movie Peter Parkers.
Plus the main suit looked different enough
from both the movie and comic book versions
to stand out on its own.
And all of the unlockable costumes weren't afraid
to dip into either world for inspiration.
But the main reason may be simply because
Peter's head and face was covered by the mask
most of the time and players mostly saw him from behind.
With the exception of Iron Man, it doesn't appear
that this Avengers game will have that same option.
But does that mean it's all bad and that we should
cry into our cereal bowls?
No, of course not.
There was also a lot of positive to come
out of the Marvel's Avengers E3 presentation.
Beyond the fact that the game is coming to us from
one of the better developers in recent memory,
one of the features that has fans most excited
is that the DLC will be free.
All upcoming game areas and new heroes
will be freely available to players.
And according to the developers, this is not just some
one and done game, as they plan to have
a multi-year narrative for the title to have players
coming back for more content.
The game will also feature both single player
and multiplayer co-op, without having things
like loot boxes or pay-to-win mechanics.
To top all that off, the game has a very impressive
voice cast for its heroes with the likes of
voice acting superstars Troy Baker,
Nolan North, and Laura Bailey bringing the Avengers to life.
Over all we get why fans are upset.
The character models definitely left us
scratching our heads too, but a lot can change
between now and when the game drops next May.
Perhaps we just needed to get the band-aid ripped off
and by next year we will all be on board
for these Avengers' new looks.
But what do you folks think?
Were you thumbs up or thumbs down for these new looks?
Should they have paid millions of dollars
for actors' likenesses and voices, or would you prefer
that money went into the game's development?
And what conditioner do you think Iron Man uses,
because that is some serious volume in that hair.
Let's discuss.
Thanks again to today's sponsor Legion
which premiers Monday, June 24th on FX.
Based on Marvel Comics, the mind-bending series
follows Professor Xavier's son David Haller
as he discovers that he might be the
most powerful mutant the world has ever seen.
In this final chapter, David must recruit another mutant
named Switch, whose time traveling abilities
is essential to David's plan to save himself.
Catch the beginning of the end
when Legion returns on Monday, June 24th
at 10:00 PM on FX.
(mellow electronic music)
(whoosh)