Marvel Midnight Suns

[Maryokutai]

So this came out of nowhere just now at ONL. This is probably what insiders/leakers confused with the Guardian game, because this is a proper tactics title from Firaxis (XCOM) and will feature an abundance of different Marvel characters like the Captain, Wolverine, Blade, Dr Strange, Ghost Rider etc., with characters refreshingly far detached from the MCU.

Meanwhile you play a new create-your-character as the protagonist who leads them all into battle.

 

 

They're going to show some gameplay next wednesday, really looking forward to this, sounds excellent all around so far.

[Maf]

I don’t like the costumes but it’s really different in tone and idea to all the other Marvel games out right now so it’s interesting because of that. See what it plays like. 

[Nag]

I'm interested to see what that actually is.

[DisturbedSwan]

It’s Firaxis so if it’s the Marvel XCOM I think it is I’m so fucking in.

[Maf]

It’s good to see X-Men characters being used again in video games, not strictly just for this one but all Marvel games, as it gives a bit of a break from seeing the same characters from the movies all the time.

 

I guess it’s because X-Men are back in house and those movies will be made now but still. It brings in 30+ extra cool characters instead of the same 10 from the films all the time. More variety is good. 
 

Although I don’t know how I feel about them inventing a new character for the player to imprint themselves on too. Not a fair comparison but it’s a bit like Sonic Forces where there are all the characters you know and then this sore thumb sticking out in the middle of it. 

Or DC Universe Online is probably a more apt example

 

Maybe they’ll do it really well and could be a breakout new character but there’s also potential for it to be distracting and out of place

[Maryokutai]

I think it's a good idea. Of course we still don't know how exactly this will play, but if you look at how limiting Geralt was to the player in the Witcher games for example, I think it's better to give you free choice over your avatar than say, forcing you to use Wolverine as a brawler or Storm as a "magician" class or something. Plus this way, if they happen to include some "make your decision" moments, you won't have to contradict the character of an established hero. Solicon Knight's ill-fated X-Men game did it as well I think. Got a lot of flack for it (or in general) but depending on the game I think it's really a better choice. And it's not like you're going to command just that one character presumably. It's a tactics game, so you're going to use everyone anyway I expect, it's just that the story will be focused around your avatar and their mother.

 

Edit: https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2021-08-25-firaxis-reveals-marvels-midnight-suns-a-tactical-rpg-thats-less-xcom-than-you-might-think

 

Seems I was right, there's a certain RPG element to it which involves your character forming relationships with the rest, which really works best if your character isn't established yet.

[OCH]

I recognise Lilith (the antagonist). But it does irk me that Iron Man, Captain America and Wolverine are there.

Spoiler

 

 

If you're going to make a Midnight Sons Suns debut game. Surely only that team should be in it? It would be like having Daredevil and Luke Cage (ala Netflix) in a Fantastic Four game.

Never played XCOM and the trailer was pretty generic without gameplay. So I'm decidedly on the fence at the minute.

 

Lastly, sorry but blank avatars are a poor creative substitute for a narratively focused character. God of War or Uncharted would be a lot worse without Kratos or Drake, for example. 

[HandsomeDead]

In a tactics game having a player generated character should be fine since you kinda control everyone anyway, and it serves well as a player entry point narratively.

 

It falls flat when you have a game like X-Men Destiny where you're some mook just watching the X-Men do stuff.

[Maryokutai]

Gameplay presentation is tomorrow evening:

 

 

Really intrigued by this, could and should be right up my alley.

 

[OCH]

 

 

....😬

[Maryokutai]

 

Pretty much what I expected after the eurogamer writeup, though the card-based battle system was unexpected. But I usually like those, so I'm still all in for this. It looks a bit last-gen though, which is a bummer, but I suppose Switch players won't have to fear a big downgrade.

 

The only things that worry me a bit:

- teams of three, out of which one is your personal character, means not too much potential for certain combinations

- the fact they mention that there will only be 12 characters at launch. It's not a bad number if they're all fleshed out, Bioware-style. But this being from 2K we can assume the game will receive a ton of DLC characters

 

Overall I like what I've seen so far. It won't be a game for anyone but for me personally it's already way more interesting than the Avengers game ever was.

[OCH]

Definitely not what I was expecting. If there is a demo, I'll look into it. Beyond that, a hard pass.

[Nag]

I haven't bothered watching the gameplay reveal but the card based battles mentioned have already set alarm bells ringing for me... I'd be surprised if this can do anything to get my attention back now.

[mfnick]

Wait, card based? Oh no... Was looking forward to this too 😢

[DisturbedSwan]

Oooo yeah, not sure what to make of this, I assumed (wrongly) it would be a relatively straightforward XCOM reskin with Marvel characters but the whole card system has me a bit 😬.

 

I did get into some Card Based games like Artifact for awhile back in 2018 so the card aspect hasn't put me off completely but is still a bit of a ?. I think at this point I'll need to see more of it before making any decisions, a relatively straightforward Day 1 has gone to a 'wait and see'....

[Maryokutai]

What exactly is turning people off about the card system? Whether you pick "attack" from a menu or chose the "leap forward and do XX damage" card doesn't make that much of a difference when you think about it.

[Nag]

Building a deck kind've shouts out RNG.

[Maryokutai]

There's an RNG element for sure but I think people might exaggerate the effects it has on player choice. Usually these games allow only a certain amount of cards from a certain type in your deck to avoid being stuck in a situation where you can't attack for a turn or something.

 

I hope they make this all a bit more clear on the way to its release because I feel like this is getting an unwarranted negative response at the moment.

[Nag]

They just aren't my bag, I think the only one I've ever spent any real time was Baten Kaitos... and I'm pretty certain that didn't get finished.

[Maryokutai]

The fact that you even tried Baten Kaitos kind of blows my mind already.