Marvel Universe Invasion Review – It’s Marvel, Baby

Tribute Games clearly believes in the power of nostalgia. The company's last project, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge, brought the heroes in half shell back to their 2D side-scrolling roots to critical acclaim, while the rest of the company's portfolio is marked by games with a retro look and feel. Now, Tribute is trying again with Marvel Cosmic Invasion, a beat 'em up game starring Marvel superheroes, and the results are just as good, as Cosmic Invasion has earned a spot among the top retro fighting games of the modern era, thanks to a solid roster of playable heroes as well as some influences from other parts of Marvel's gaming history.

Marvel's Cosmic Invasion plunges an all-star cast of heroes into a galactic battle against Annihilus, who is using an army of parasites to take over the universe. The campaign mode takes place in more than a dozen locations across the Marvel Multiverse, including the Savage Land, Genosha, Wakanda, and more, with a group of villains in their final battle against Annihilus. The campaign is divided into 16 stages, each with a unique boss. Arcade mode, meanwhile, simplifies the same story into 12 stages, some of which allow you to choose between two locations.

On normal difficulty, it only took me about three hours to complete a full run. The stages are mostly side-scrolling, and while there are some occasional curveballs with vertical sequences or unique stage hazards, the stage design doesn't stray too far from classic side-scrolling. As a result, eventually the view of the same locations and enemies starts to become sparse, making the whole experience feel a bit shallow. Each stage has unique collectibles and challenges to complete, and there are modifiers from Arcade Mode—like increased enemy health and speed, or super attacks that drain health instead of focus—that add a bit of flair to each run, but the basic structure of each stage, from the visual design to the voice acting cues, remains the same each time.

Still, Marvel Universe Invasion does offer a lot to dig into for fans of retro side-scrollers. First off, I appreciate Tribute Games' use of Marvel canon more than just the hottest titles in terms of playable rosters and story beats. I knew who Captain America, Spider-Man, and Black Panther were, and I knew where Wakanda was, but I had no idea about this dinosaur-looking guy, Beta Ray Bill, or why he was dressed like Thor. Ghost Rider is here, but he's specifically the “cosmic” Ghost Rider that makes me wonder what's different about him. Also, there is a floating zoo stage called Destromundo which looks cool but I am curious how it is done he Got there. While the game doesn't answer these questions, it did inspire me to seek them out myself.

Taking the opportunity to delve into cuts like this can go a long way in introducing them to more casual Marvel fans. Comic books weren't a big part of my childhood, but thanks to X-Men: Arcade Game and Capcom's fighting games, I became familiar with names like Colossus, Doctor Doom, and Blackheart, as well as big names like Iron Man and the Hulk. Marvel Universe Invasion brings that experience back, and now I know more about Marvel's wider universe than I did before I started the game. This is a great opportunity that video games should take advantage of more often, and I'm glad to see Tribute do this.

Apparently, I'm not the only one influenced by Capcom's fighting games either. Marvel Universe Invasion draws many core elements from these warriors. Many of the playable characters in Cosmic Invasion also appear in Marvel Super Heroes or Cosmic Invasion. series, using moves seen in past battles. Wolverine perches on his enemies and quickly stabs them with his claws before throwing them, reminiscent of his attacks in Marvel Super Heroes. Iron Man's ultimate skill, the beam cannon, is actually his proton cannon (in all but name) that appears in Cap's sky. There are even some enemies that wink and pay homage to the past. One stage has a sentinel enemy whose color will make you Think New York Knicks.

These influences are also reflected in the combat mechanics, thanks to a versatile tag system that allows you to switch between two selected heroes at will. You can start a combo as Iron Man, find a spot to tag She-Hulk, and then take control of her as soon as Iron Man disappears from view. If you keep putting together and find a way to get Iron Man involved again, then so be it. Combo strings end when you take damage, but thanks to the dodge and parry system, you can keep combos alive, just like the parry tag, and it's satisfying every time.

This system is similar to the Active Tag system in Marvel Vs. Capcom Infinite, which adapted surprisingly well to the side-scrolling format. With 11 playable characters at the start and 15 once you've unlocked them all, the combo synergy potential feels limitless, and that alone makes me want to start an arcade game and see what kind of mind-blowing nonsense I can pull off – and that's during a single-player run. Once a few friends get their act together via online co-op, combos can get creative: During one session, a friend's She-Hulk hurled Venom at an enemy at me, and I continued the combo while they attacked other enemies. The online co-op mode works without issue – there's a bit of stuttering, but nothing too worrisome – so timing these combos is never an issue.

Some light RPG elements also appear in “Marvel Cosmic Invasion”, and the characters will level up after each completed stage, but this system is still a bit immature. Each character gains the same buffs at each level – extra health, extra focus, a unique passive skill, or a new color choice. I prefer to choose my character's buffs rather than assigning the same sequence to each character.

Marvel Universe Invasion is a fitting homage to the superhero side-scrolling games of old. Experimenting with different teams in each stage provides great replay value, even if the same stages and enemies can become tiresome after a while. The collectibles and challenges in each stage offer some nice perks, and the depth of the source material will appeal to Marvel fans old and new. In fact, the only thing missing from Marvel Universe Invasion is Colossus' “whoooooaaaaa” sound effect from X-Men: Arcade Game — though I doubt players will be saying “wow” many times while playing this wonderfully retro romp.