Marvel has experimented with a plethora of different genres and gameplay types over the years. From open-world action-adventures, to turn-based strategy games with an occult twist, to co-op live-service games, and even a handful of VR titles, Marvel has put out a variety of video game experiences for a wide range of audiences.
But when looking back at the last decade or two of Marvel’s video game output, the vast majority of experiences tend to be third-person action games with a Teen ESRB rating or lower. While these games can tackle some heavier themes and can have plenty of dramatic moments, they try to remain lighthearted overall. Though this is obviously a natural fit for Marvel’s brand, it might be nice if, every once in a while, Marvel experimented with some darker, more mature themes and features. For instance, there’s one type of horror game that could be a perfect fit for Marvel this time next year.
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Marvel Zombies Could Pave the Way for a New Type of Marvel Video Game
The Marvel Zombies Comic Offers Some Great Inspiration
Back in November 2005, a run of Ultimate Fantastic Four comics titled “Crossover” reached its climax. In this run, Reed Richards is contacted by an alternate universe version of himself, and he crosses over into that universe. This universe ends up being home to zombified versions of various Marvel heroes and villains, acting as a backdoor pilot for the Marvel Zombies run that would begin just a month later.
Released between December 2005 and April 2007, Marvel Zombies was originally a five-issue limited series written by Robert Kirman (of Walking Dead fame) and illustrated by Sean Phillips. This series follows the alternate Earth-2149 teased in Ultimate Fantastic Four, where a virus has turned Earth’s Mightiest Heroes and villains into flesh-eating zombies. Though, unlike most zombie fiction, Marvel Zombies‘ flesh-eaters retain most of their cognitive abilities and superpowers. The horror comes from what these heroes and villains would do to satiate their hunger.
Since that 2005–2007 miniseries, Marvel Zombies has released a multitude of sequels and spinoffs, essentially becoming a whole Marvel comic series in its own right. The most recent entry in the series was Marvel Zombies: Dawn of Decay, a four-issue run that began in September and is set to wrap up in December.
The Upcoming Marvel Zombies Disney+ Series Could Lay The Groundwork for a Game
In 2021, Marvel released the What If…? animated show on Disney+. One of the anthology show’s episodes, What If…Zombies?, took direct inspiration from the Marvel Zombies comic series, though in this continuity the Avengers don’t catch a virus from an alien but from Janet van Dyne, who contracted something in the Quantum Realm.
When Bruce Banner is sent back to Earth to warn the world of Thanos’ impending arrival, he’s ambushed by a horde of zombies, including Doctor Strange and Iron Man. The rest of the episode follows survivors like Wasp, Spider-Man, Hulk, Black Panther, and Vision as they try to find a cure for the zombie virus. A four-episode continuation of this storyline is set to release in October 2025 under the banner Marvel Zombies.
What a Marvel Zombies Video Game Could Look Like
The upcoming Marvel Zombies series gives Marvel the rare opportunity to make a more mature game, and experiment with a genre it’s never really dabbled in before. A Left 4 Dead-style zombie game could work really well for a Marvel Zombies adaptation, letting players embark on some co-op zombie-slaying missions as a band of iconic heroes or villains across a range of well-known Marvel locations.
Every few levels, players could get the chance to face off against a zombified version of a beloved Marvel character. And much like the show and comic it’d be adapting, a core appeal of a Marvel Zombies video game would be letting players fight heroes that they never usually get to face, such as Captain America or Spider-Man. The Marvel Zombies theme would also allow for a bit more gore than Marvel games are usually used to.
Marvel
Marvel is a brand associated with a wide array of popular superhero comics, movies, television shows, and merchandise. The company owns the rights to popular characters like The Avengers, Spider-Man, Black Panther, Deadpool, and many more.