There was a time when video games based on movies were rushed out to cash in on the popularity of comic book adaptations and while there were some exceptions (remember that awesome X-Men Origins: Wolverine tie-in?), most of them were truly terrible. However, superheroes have a lot of potential in the world of computer games and it's surprising how rare titles featuring them actually are.
The Arkham trilogy was incredible and a PlayStation 4 exclusive Spider-Man game is currently on the way alongside a mysterious Avengers title from Tomb Raider developers Square Enix. However, there are a lot of other characters we'd like to see in games and we've now broken down the eight most worthy candidates in the list below along with how we think these title could potentially play out.
All you need to do to check it out is click on the buttons below and once you've done that, be sure to head to the comments section below to let us know if we've missed any you would like to see!
8. The Flash
A Flash game was in development some time ago, but it’s easy enough to appreciate why it was ultimately abandoned. Even if it was set in a large free-roaming environment, having players being able to run at super speed through that map would be technically very challenging and not particularly satisfying for those in control if they get from one side to the other in a few seconds.
However, if the Scarlet Speedster were to be slowed down (and there are a number of plot devices which could be used to accomplish that), this might just work, especially if there are also levels included in which players are able to let loose and really use The Flash’s powers. When it comes to a basis for this one, the TV show would be pretty perfect, especially if someone like Telltale were to take the helm and make much of the game a well crafted and story-driven experience.
7. Daredevil
Another superhero who came close to starring in his own video game before it was scrapped, Daredevil is perfectly suited for this format of storytelling. To some extent, you could pretty much just take any of the Arkham games, replace Batman with ‘ol Hornhead, and have a hit release. That being said, the very different setting of Hell’s Kitchen and The Man Without Fear’s unique abilities would obviously go a long way in ensuring that this would be more than just a carbon copy.
While some sort of free-roaming release could work, it might ultimately be better to go for smaller, higher quality missions which allow players to really take advantage of the character’s radar sense and fighting skills. However, there’s undeniably something very exciting about the prospect of battling it out with Stilt-Man thirty stories above street level in the middle of New York City, but either approach would ultimately pretty work well for a hero like Daredevil.
6. Iron Man
Iron Man has already starred in a couple of downright awful SEGA games to coincide with the release of his first two movies, and it’s easy to understand why a third didn’t follow given the reception to the previous efforts. While he’s no doubt a tough character to put into this sort of environment, moments in those games which saw players given the ability to fly around large maps shooting foes out of the sky did work to at least some extent.
However, a new take on the Armoured Avenger that could have some potential would be to put players actually inside the suit, making this a first-person shooter of sorts. Having the HUD on screen as you blast enemies away in front of you would be very cool, while higher production values (getting Robert Downey Jr. to voice the character would make a massive difference) could help to make this an instant classic. There’s no denying that it would be a challenge to make work, but just imagine how great it could be if it did.
5. Green Arrow
Like The Flash, setting this in the world of the TV show could work brilliantly. Bow and arrow mechanics are always a little hit and miss in games – let’s face it, it’s easier to use a gun – but if that could be perfected, then exploring Star City as the Green Arrow while Felicity provides mission objectives in your ear would no doubt make for a fun experience.
Throw in Diggle, Black Canary and Wild Dog as playable characters, and this suddenly becomes a very different type of game with lost of different ways of approaching missions. Dig’s gun skills may be better suited for one scrap than the Canary Cry would for another for example. Alternatively, how about using that scrapped Supermax movie (which would have seen Oliver Queen wrongly imprisoned with some of the world’s greatest villains and forced to try and escape) as a basis for a game? That sort of confined setting certainly worked pretty well for Arkham Asylum.
4. Black Panther
Are you a fan of the Far Cry video games? Well, just imagine that with Black Panther and you have a rough idea of how a Wakandan set game revolving around T'Challa might play out. Taking the hero and placing him in a free-roaming African environment would be downright awesome and players could even be pitted against wild animals providing the developers manage to get that sort of mechanic right.
Having T'Challa take on poachers, warlords, and various villains from the comic books would ensure this adventure would be a lot of fun for gamers and while it would essentially be a fighting game, various hi-tech weapons could be thrown into the mix along with some air combat missions making good use of the sort of flying vehicles we saw in the recently released movie. Oh, and it goes without saying that Black Panther's suit should have those kinetically charged abilities!
3. Wonder Woman
With her movie proving to be a box office hit last year and the sequel on the way, it’s about time Warner Bros. really start pushing Wonder Woman. A video game would be a great start, and while her big screen outing could be a good source of inspiration, it might actually make more sense to turn to the comic books in order to do the character justice. It would actually be pretty easy to pull off, too; imagine a combination of Heavenly Sword and God of War, and this one pretty much sells itself.
Setting this game in Themyscira or an Ancient Greece type setting (after all, Zeus is Wonder Woman's father in the comic books) seems like the way to go, though potentially exploring the character’s history with the two World Wars could also be fun. After all, taking on the Nazis with a sword and shield as an ass-kicking Wonder Woman is a prospect sure to get even non-DC Comics fans excited, right?
2. Justice League
Team-based superhero games have been hit or miss in the past, with perhaps one of the better examples being the Marvel Alliance games. That could work for a release like this, but so too could splitting up the Justice League (possibly into pairs) and having them embark on high-quality separate missions before being reunited for one final epic battle.
Giving players the chance to take advantage of each of the team’s unique abilities in a wide variety of settings essentially gives them six or seven games in one, and while an argument could be made that not playing as a team somewhat goes against the point of a game titled Justice League, would it not be just as awesome to fly through Metropolis as Superman and then command the oceans as Aquaman before returning to Gotham City to battle The Joker? It’s certainly one approach which has some serious potential for success.
1. Superman
Like the movie, the Superman Returns video game wasn’t great. However, it did do a fairly decent job of letting us feel what it would be like to take flight as Superman and explore Metropolis from the sky. Imagining what the current generation of consoles could do with that is pretty mind blowing then, but if a game really wanted to shake things up, just picture the Man of Steel embarking on some sort of mission in space.
Regardless of where it were to take place though, Superman is a character who has a ton of potential when it comes to this format, and whether it’s battling Doomsday on the streets of a fully destructible Metropolis or just flying through the air and getting a semblance of what it would feel like to be this iconic DC Comics character, it’s shocking this has not yet been made. Of course, if rumours are to be believed, Arkham developers Rocksteady are already hard at work making this a reality.