Not that it needed reiterating, what with recent interviews and trailers promising as such, but Marvel’s Avengers is going to be big. With five (now six, thanks to the recent reveal of Ms. Marvel) playable superheroes to choose from and a sprawling concrete playground in which to use them at launch, Crystal Dynamics clearly wants to ensure that what fans pick up on day one represents a complete game.
With that said, however, the studio’s work is far from done once its most ambitious project to date hits retail next year. After players have had ample time to explore the world and gear their favourite Marvel stars with the best endgame gear available, the developer will begin rolling out a wealth of entirely free DLC that aims to build upon a solid foundation. Up until now, we’d presumed that such additional content would be comprised solely of new zones and characters, but that’s far from the extent of its plans.
Clarifying earlier comments about Marvel’s Avengers overall length, Crystal revealed to IGN that the main campaign narrative is simply the first step in a journey that will span “multiple years.”
Marvel’s Avengers has an all-original, core campaign narrative comparable to previous Crystal Dynamics games. The numbers quoted were for Rise of the Tomb Raider; as we are still in development we have not yet finalized the exact number of hours for the campaign in Marvel’s Avengers. This is the most ambitious game Crystal Dynamics has ever developed, and in addition to the main campaign narrative, we’re crafting stories that will take fans on a journey over the course of multiple years.
Quantifying the timeframe provided by the studio is impossible, of course, but at the very least, it clearly intends to continue expanding its own spin on the Marvel universe not just with playable content but story, too. Whether these extracurricular, if you will, tales are intended to continue following the main Avengers’ cast or splinter off in new directions remains to be seen, but it’s an exciting statement of intent, none the less. We, and no doubt thousands of others can’t wait to see those plans come to fruition in the future.
Marvel’s Avengers is out May 15th, 2020, for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PC and Google Stadia.
