Marvel's Wolverine Review

There's a moment in Marvel's Wolverine Story Is An Excellent Look At The Character

Insomniac Games proved it could handle superhero storytelling with blush (you can toggle this off, if you'd like), but it's the quieter moments that I found most compelling: The look of longing in Logan's eyes when he and Jean are having a late-night chat in his cabin, the regret on his face after a massacre, or the short-lived dance he and Jean have in Japan.

Marvel's Wolverine Is Brought Down By Exhausting Combat

The 007 First Light). That's all well and good, but too many fun moments (looking for clues, encountering X-Men Easter eggs, some blink-and-you'll-miss-them cameos) get overshadowed by what feels like endless waves of the same 3–4 enemies. Pretty much every fight feels like it needs to be half as long.

There's even a scene late in the game where Logan says, "Just can't let a man rest in peace, can you?" That about sums up the gameplay, really. If it was Insomniac's intention to make us as exhausted from fighting as Logan feels, then Marvel's Wolverine is wildly successful.

Other Gameplay Elements Aren't Nearly As Tedious

It's not all bad, though. Logan's repartee with various characters, especially Jean and Shiro (Sunfire) are enjoyable. The locations, from Vancouver to Japan and Madripoor, are designed beautifully. You can replay levels by visiting Logan's cabin, and you can also take on challenges for rewards thanks to Nightmare Doors. Completing these sheds more light on Logan's backstory and gives you points for more Strains, which can improve various aspects of Wolverine's combat prowess, stealth, and exploration.

Most levels also have collectibles like whiskey bottles and material crates, the latter of which can be used to unlock more costumes for Wolverine. After all the collectibles and challenges in Insomniac's Spider-Man games (or any open-world game, really), it was actually pretty refreshing to only have a few items to chase after.

You'll also level up and get more Techniques to unlock. These can improve Wolverine's Rage meter, Stealth Takedowns, and all kinds of other features. The game also does a good job of regularly throwing new mechanics your way, which helps ease some of the repetitive combat issues I mentioned earlier.

The music is atmospheric and reminded me a lot of The Last of Us, which works well with a story like Logan's. The main actors all do a nice job with their characters, although Nathaniel Essex looks so much like Troy Baker, I didn't feel like I was fighting Mr. Sinister so much as Troy Baker with a British accent. Krizia Bajos gives us a different (but still good) version of Jean Grey and Nicole Pacent is perfect as Mystique. Logan, as played by Liam McIntyre, is a highlight, and McIntyre's performance might just be my favorite part of the entire game.

Marvel's Wolverine Is Fine... And Maybe That's Good Enough

It may be unfair, but it's impossible to play Marvel's Wolverine without comparing it to Insomniac's previous Spider-Man games. There's nothing as pleasantly surprising here as in the first Marvel's Spider-Man game, and while Marvel's Wolverine still has an emotional edge, the gameplay and storytelling can't really get out of Peter Parker's shadow. Too many parts feel like a game I've already played before.

Marvel's Wolverine is a fine game. Good, even. However, given Insomniac's pedigree, I was expecting something a bit closer to greatness, which ultimately made this outing with Logan a bit of a disappointment. I'm cautiously optimistic about Wolverine's future in Insomniac's Marvel universe, even if this is an admirable - but flawed - first offering.