Seeing Marvel Super Hero Squad for the first time on TV was a big shocker. The last thing you think about when you hear the Marvel name is kiddy versions of the super heroes you know and love. While I still have a hard time swallowing the idea, I can accept this for what it is: A fun alternative for kids that are too young for the dark tales of the Marvel universe.
Marvel Super Hero Squad Online is an upcoming browser based MMO that will bring in over 5,000 heroes and villains from Marvel together. Players will be able to collect heroes and interact with others all in a fun, friendly online setting.
Hit the jump for a first look at the super hero game.
Marvel Super Hero Squad Online (PC)
Developer: Gazillion Entertainment
Publisher: Gazillion Entertainment
To be released: 2010
Your avatars are the Marvel super heroes found throughout SHSO. New heroes will join your squad and you can switch between heroes at any time. It’s kind of like Pokemon as you’re encouraged to catch them all. There will also be variants of super heroes available with different looks and different move sets. For example, there’s Iron Man who’s good at distance attacks and then there’s Hulkbuster Iron Man that focuses more on melee combat.
As having a class system makes no real sense for a Marvel MMO, every hero has a set of attacks and moves based on their respective persona. Iron Man can fly, Hulk smashes, Cyclops uses his eye beam and so on. Every Marvel hero will also have Super Emotes — The Thing making a concrete angel (like a snow angel but on concrete) and Cyclops lets off a eye beam blast after sneezing — on top of regular emotes.
Players in Marvel SHSO will be able to find each other in the numerous social spaces themed after places such as Spider-Man’s home turf, the Fantastic Four building, the X-Mansion and many more. Up to a couple of dozen people can hang out in these themed spaces where they can unlock things as they explore the environment.
The social spaces are also where players can go on combat missions with up to three others. Players first pick the hero they’ll play as before jumping into the missions tied together by a series of storylines. These missions are designed to be around 15 minutes on average for quick and easy fun as Gazillion wants SHSO to be super accessible. There’s no death either — Players simply get right back up after getting knocked out. The only real penalty for death is receiving a lower rating (which ranges from a silver to an Adamantium score).
The combat sections will see players going through levels almost like a brawler. Left click is your main attack and right click is associated with your special powers. Players will be beating up minions as they make their way to fight famous Marvel villains such as Doctor Octopus or Super Skrull.
What was shown was a very early look at the upcoming MMO. Gazillion wasn’t ready to talk about whether the game will be free-to-play or see a monthly subscription but we can expect to hear more at E3. There will be some kind of PvP combat too and don’t expect to play as the villains, at least not at first.
While I don’t see myself playing Marvel Super Hero Squad Online in the foreseeable future, I do have to admit that I was smiling a lot during the presentation. The game doesn’t take itself too seriously and it’s just about having fun. You’ll find an enjoyable and accessible MMO here if you can look past the kiddy take on the heroes.
