Since it’s been a few years since my last superhero adventure, I was itching for a chance to put on the suit and mask and save the world from another misguided villain. Having scaled the wall of an abandoned factory and snuck in through an open window, I find myself perched on top of a railing, looking down at a group of enemies, each of them decked out with enough advanced weaponry to tear a hole right through me. After dispatching an unsuspecting henchman with a well-timed stealth takedown, the fight is on, and I’m immediately swarmed by everyone in the room. Thankfully, I have superpowers on my side; I carefully dodge a few unblockable attacks, trigger a sweeping area-of-effect move, leap across the map to knock out a few stragglers, and before long, I’m free to explore the building for any relevant clues.
If this sounds like your idea of a great superhero game, well, you’d be right. But there’s one outstanding question with the scenario I’ve just described: am I talking about Marvel’s Wolverine, or one of developer Insomniac’s other titles?
To be fair, Wolverine stands on its own two legs, featuring a fresh cast of characters, a unique origin story, and new gameplay mechanics that mesh well with our titular hero’s temper-fueled approach to crimefighting (emphasis on the “fighting”). That being said, once you dig a bit beneath the surface, it’s clear Insomniac Games has taken plenty of cues from its insanely popular Spider-Man titles, and the experience feels a tad uneven as a result.
While Marvel’s Wolverine takes place in the same universe as Insomniac’s versions of Peter Parker and Miles Morales, there’s no overlap with either of those web-slingers. Heck, aside from some winks and nods to a few Marvel megacorps, factions, and lesser-known characters, Wolverine is focused solely on superpowered mutants and the forces that are trying to eradicate them.
The story picks up a few years after James “Logan” Howlett’s (i.e., Wolverine) departure from Team X, a mutant strike force whose primary mission is to safeguard the future of mutants around the world, many of whom have kept their powers a secret for fear of public retribution. Following his brief sabbatical, Logan rejoins Team X (consisting of the gargantuan Sabretooth, the shapeshifting Mystique, and the enigmatic Nathaniel Essex) as they begin investigating Bolivar Trask, a billionaire scientist who has begun kidnapping mutants.
It doesn’t take long for a few other heroes to enter the mix (the most notable of which is Jean Grey), and without veering into spoiler territory, the overarching plot is heavily steeped in some of X-Men’s staple themes: namely, prejudice against mutants, the nature of Logan’s identity and his lost memories, and the idea of found family.
Well-read Marvel diehards will likely see the pivots and direction the story goes in from a mile away, but more casual fans are certainly in for a few surprises. In particular, the third act answers a few mysteries that are slowly built up from the get-go, and also sets up a handful of unanswered questions that will undoubtedly be answered in the inevitable sequel. As is standard for an Insomniac title, the voice acting, motion capture, choreographed sequences, and animations are best-in-class, upping the ante for real-time graphics on the PlayStation 5.
Still, there are some plot “twists” (I use that term loosely) that are so painfully obvious from the opening missions that it makes you wonder if the blatant telegraphing was an intentional choice. To be fair, these narrative missteps don’t ruin the game outright, but as a player, it is a bit infuriating to sit around waiting for our band of heroes to play narrative catch-up.
Of course, the story sections and walk-and-talk missions are only a fraction of the overall package. For the most part, you’ll be spending your time outside of Team X’s HQ, investigating mutant disappearances and chasing down whatever baddie Wolverine has in his sights. With his signature adamantium claws and regenerative healing factor, you might think that Logan would be impossible to take down in battle, but Insomniac has managed to work around these issues.
For starters, compared to Spider-Man, Wolvie will often find himself facing off against a dozen or more enemies at any given moment, with almost all of them outfitted with cybernetic weaponry and high-powered rifles. As a result, it’s all too easy to get overwhelmed and surrounded, and you won’t be able to focus and take on one enemy at a time, lest you want to get mowed down in short order.
This is where Logan’s rage meter comes into play. As you successfully land attacks, kill enemies, and pull off parries, your rage meter will slowly fill. In Tier 1, your regenerating health will still kick in if you aren’t actively being attacked. Once you hit Tier 2, your combos and special moves will begin dealing more damage, and you’ll also enable Wolverine’s Last Stand, which lets you revive yourself once if you’re downed (your rage meter will completely drain when this is activated).
If you can build up your rage to Tier 3, you’ll enter Berserker Rage. At this stage, your damage output will hit its maximum, and Logan will be able to dole out critical hits and instant executions. You can keep Berserker Rage active by continuously attacking and killing enemies, but your rage will slowly drain over time, and if it falls back into the second tier, it’ll completely deplete, taking you back into the first tier.
It’s a fairly simple system, but it works incredibly well in keeping you on their toes while also striking the right balance in making Wolverine incredibly resilient, but still vulnerable. That being said, the actual moment-to-moment combat bears a striking resemblance to a couple of other releases from Insomniac’s wheelhouse.
Sure, just about every game with a robust combat system will feature some combination of light/heavy attacks, dodges, and parries, but there’s a sense of familiarity that Marvel’s Wolverine isn’t quite able to shake off.
Unblockable attacks that are color-coded red. Powerful special moves with their own separate cooldowns, familiar button combinations, and upgrade paths. A leaping move that closes the gap between you and a far-away enemy. Gold-tinted “reckless” attacks from enemies that can be parried for additional damage. Dodges and rolls that can be followed up with a counter if timed properly.
It goes without saying that, even with its own faster-paced (and not to mention, incredibly bloody) combat system, Marvel’s Wolverine is very much rooted in the formula laid out by Insomniac’s Spider-Man titles. It’s polished to a mirror finish and engaging once you get into a flow state, but the lustre begins to fade as you make your way into the final third of the story. I can’t help but wonder if it would have more staying power if Insomniac had leaned more into combos and emphasized relentless attacking, as opposed to trying to strike a balance between offense and defense.
Weirder yet, despite being a completely linear game with no semblance of an open world, Marvel’s Wolverine also borrows side content and stealth mechanics from the Spider-Man titles, and they stick out like a sore thumb compared to the rest of what’s on offer. Admittedly, the stealth sections are few in number – and largely devolve into attacking unsuspecting enemies from up on high or leaping out from tall grass – but they feel completely out of place compared to standard combat encounters, and it’s all too easy to break stealth due to Wolverine’s penchant for lengthy and flashy executions. It’s all too telling that I couldn’t find a single instance where you’re punished for breaking stealth or being spotted, and I can’t help but think that’s a reflection of the developer’s lack of faith in the mechanic as a whole.
Outside of combat, you can unlock a handful of active abilities and passive perks as you level up throughout the course of the campaign. Admittedly, some of Wolverine’s special moves, like his deadly Tornado Spin, are always a treat to watch in action (and they deal a good amount of damage to boot), but his passive abilities are incredibly hit or miss, and some are so lackluster that I completely forgot that I had some of them equipped.
Material caches and whiskey bottles are also hidden throughout each level, but they feel largely inconsequential in the grand scheme of things, and are only really used to unlock new costumes and passive bonuses in combat. Worse yet, these collectibles don’t mesh well with the linear levels. If you miss one, you’ll have to replay missions later on to collect them, and actively hunting for them during your first playthrough can ruin the natural pacing.
There are also a handful of optional challenges tied to Logan’s Nightmare Cabin (the equivalent of his mind palace), and while some of the combat gauntlets do a great job of testing your fighting prowess, the traversal challenges feel rather mindless. On paper, they sound like an interesting concept; you’re tasked with navigating through a dream world of buildings, debris, and rock formations that are abstractly mashed together. In reality, they rarely test your actual platforming skills since a lot of Logan’s movement is on-rails, and they largely devolve into holding up on the control stick while pressing the jump/climb button when needed.
Marvel’s Wolverine (PS5) Review: Final Verdict
It’s a bit of a shame that Marvel’s Wolverine isn’t able to crawl out from under the shadow of its spiritual predecessors. It certainly leans into the brutal, frenetic nature of its hero, and when it’s firing on all cylinders, it offers up some of the best, most action-packed moments we’ve seen this year. If it were a more confident game, it would cut out some of its hand-me-downs in favor of a leaner, more focused experience, but as it stands, players will have to learn to take the old with the new.
- Combat is fast, chaotic, and challenging
- Best-in-class visuals, animations, and choreographed set pieces
- Serves up an engaging (if somewhat predictable) story
- Leans too heavily on the formula established by its predecessors
- Optional challenges and collectibles feel out of place
- Stealth mechanics fall completely flat
Disclosure: Sony Interactive Entertainment provided a digital copy for our Marvel’s Wolverine review. Reviewed on version 1.000.001.A copy of our review policy can be found here.
