Summary
San Diego Comic-Conneeds very little introduction. It’s essentially the convention that most people immediately think of when they hear the term “Comic-Con,” and it has become a major place for fans of not just comics but movies, TV shows, and gaming to gather at each summer.Major companies such as Marvel and Warner Bros usually show up at the convention with plenty to offer, and while this year was a big year for reveals in the movies and TV space, I am amazed there wasn’t more from Marvel in terms of gaming.
Marvel Gaming revealed its new, Marvel Studios-esque branding at the convention to further synergize the overall Marvel brand alongside a new cinematic trailer for its multiversal third-person hero shooter,Marvel Rivals. TheMarvel Rivalsfootage gave players theirfirst look at the game’s versions of Dr. Doomand came alongside the announcement of two new characters that are joining the game’s current Closed Beta playtest, Thor and Jeff the Land Shark, the latter of whom stole the show in some adorable footage.
There was also a live event forMarvel Contest of Championsgoing on at the event to reward Google Play Points members, which was announced byMarvelbeforehand.
Marvel’s Wolverine Game Doesn’t Seem To Be What I Expected, But It Makes Perfect Sense
The Marvel’s Wolverine leaks show a slightly different depiction of the character than what I was expecting from the reveal trailer.
Insomniac’s Marvel Universe Was Absent At SDCC 2024
Despite Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Having A Strong Presence Last Year
While the promotion ofMarvel Rivalsmakes sense considering theClosed Beta is happening now,the omission of Insomniac’s Marvel Universe surprised me, especially as fans already knowMarvel’s Wolverineis in development - even if after nearly three years since its announcement trailer, fans haven’t seen anything official from Insomniac regarding the title - and the New Game Plus update forMarvel’s Spider-Man 2accidentally revealed that story DLC was in the works and will focus onJanice Lincoln’s version of Beetle.
Last year,Marvel’s Spider-Man 2had a verystrong presence at San Diego Comic-Con. From a giant stand that recreated the shot from the reveal trailer of Venom looming in a dark alleyway with life-size statues of Peter and Miles to a panel with the cast and developers of the game in theconvention center’s biggest stage, Hall H. This panel gave players a look at the game’s story - showing Martin Li’s return for the first time alongside revealing Venom’s identity as Harry Osborn in the game - and unveiled the limited editionMarvel’s Spider-Man 2PlayStation 5 and DualSense controllerdesigns, the latter of which I managed to get my hands on as soon as it became available.
Wolverine As A Character Was Hugely Prominent At SDCC 2024
Thanks To The Release Of Marvel Studios' Deadpool & Wolverine Movie
Wolverine was already a hugely prominent figure at San Diego Comic-Con 2024, largely due to the release of Marvel Studios’record-breakingDeadpool & Wolverinemovie, which came to theaters around the same time as the convention was on.Marvel Studios had a panel for the movie on Thursday night in which it screened the entire film to fans before bringing out an impressive panelconsisting of Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige, director Shawn Levy, actors Ryan Reynolds - who also served as a co-writer and producer on the film, Hugh Jackman and Emma Corrin, andseveral guest appearances that were kept secretas they were major spoilers for the film.
After the screening,there was a drone show celebrating the movie’s releaseand teasing some of theFantastic Fourreveals that would be coming up in Saturday’s main Marvel Studios panel. With not only his costume on display on the main convention floor but also his head projected high above the center by hundreds of drones, it’s safe to say Wolverine was a pretty notable part of this year’s event. The full drone show, which was streamed on theParks and ConsYouTube channel, can be seen below:
Watch Every Major Marvel SDCC 2024 Hall H Reveal In Glorious HD [Exclusive]
Screen Rant and Regal proudly present a video recap of every major MCU reveal from Hall H at SDCC 2024, including RDJ’s Doctor Doom unmasking.
SDCC 2024 Seemed Like The Perfect Time For More Official Marvel’s Wolverine Reveals
Especially With The Hype Surrounding The Character This Year
Therefore, it seemed like the perfect opportunity for Marvel Games and Insomniac to also provide a better look atMarvel’s Wolverine, even if it’s a new teaser trailer like the leaked one that revealed the character’s costumed look and some of his enemies in the game, to jump on this hype surrounding the character. Admittedly, with SAG-AFTRA video game actors going on strike as of Friday, July 26th, over AI concerns - and rightly so, in my opinion - it’s clear that there wouldn’t be a panel for the game in the same way that there was forMarvel’s Spider-Man 2last year, but some kind of update would have been nice after three years.
Of course,it’s possible that Insomniac may have changed its plans and may be holding back as a result of thecyberattack the studio faced last year. As a result, a hacker group shared details including all of the plans forMarvel’s Wolverine, including footage, game files - which have been made playable by some in the community - a teaser trailer for the game, and the studio’s pipeline of games, showing the future of its Marvel Universe. It wouldn’t be surprising if, as a result, Sony and Insomniac took a step back, firstly, to recover from the personal toll of the hack, which also leaked documents about the staff at Insomniac, but then also to rework its marketing strategy to ensure that there are still plenty of surprises outside of the content people may have seen online.
It’s possible thatSony may be holding back from showing more ofMarvel’s Wolverineto save it for part of its own PlayStation Showcasesfirst - much as it did with the initial reveal back in September 2021 - or that the game could make an appearance at August’s Gamescom event instead. This year’s Gamescom is reportedly the biggest yet, and while there have been reports that Sony may be missing it this year, a press release byPyramid Internationalstated that “the heroic tales of Marvel” will be part of its lineup. Of course, this could be referring to other titles such asMarvel Rivalsor the upcomingCaptain America and Black Panther-ledMarvel 1943: Rise of Hydra, so only time will tell. Hopefully, we will see more of Insomniac’s critically acclaimed Marvel Universe soon, even if its absence atSan Diego Comic-Condoes feel like a bit of a missed opportunity.
Source:Marvel,Parks and Cons/YouTube,Pyramid International
Insomniac’s Marvel Universe
Insomniac’s Marvel Universe is a collection of games set in a standalone universe by the popular PlayStation developer Insomniac Games. The franchise began with the release of Marvel’s Spider-Man and has since expanded to include more characters from the Spider-Man universe, with Wolverine preparing to join in with his own feature title set in the same world. The series also consists of several crossover events, including comic books and representation in some of the later movies, such as Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse.
