Marvel fans have a lot to look forward to in the coming years–and I’m not just talking about Marvel movies like Avengers: Doomsday. There are several high-profile Marvel video games in the pipeline, including Wolverine and Blade (hopefully it doesn’t run into the same issues as the film), and up next is Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra. Even though it’s targeting a 2025 release window, we still don’t know too much about it. The information we have and the trailers we’ve seen, however, are enough to make any Marvel fan excited.
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Four Playable Protagonists
Captain America, Black Panther, and more
Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra will take players to Paris during World War II. And if there’s one superhero who everyone knows was active back then, it’s Captain America. He’ll be one of four playable protagonists in the game. The other most notable name is Black Panther, though not the one you’re likely thinking of. Marvel 1943 will star T’Chanda/Azzuri as Black Panther, T’Challa’s grandfather.
Because of the characters and time period, it’s likely Marvel 1943 is drawing inspiration from the 2010 miniseries Black Panther/Captain America: Flags of Our Fathers, where the two heroes meet for the first time and battle Nazis.
Accompanying them will be Gabriel Jones and Nanali. Jones is a notable Howling Commando member, a unit of WWII soldiers led by Nick Fury in the comics, while Nanli is the leader of the Wakandan Spy Network.
All four will be playable throughout the game’s story as the heroes battle against the rise of Hydra. They’re the only characters confirmed so far, but Marvel fans will reasonably wonder if the Invaders will make appearances in the fight against the Nazis. Namor, Bucky Barnes, and the Human Torch all fought alongside Cap in WWII. Not the Fantastic Four’s Johnny Storm–the original Human Torch, the android Jim Hammond.
Linear Single-Player Experience
Think Uncharted with Marvel superheroes
We haven’t yet seen gameplay of Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra, just beautiful cinematics, but that doesn’t mean we can’t speculate as to what type of game Marvel 1943 will be based on who’s making it. Amy Hennig of Uncharted fame is leading development, and confirmed it will be a linear single-player game, despite its four playable characters. “That’s why the Uncharted shorthand is helpful,” she told Game Informer, implying it will go heavy on cinematics and exciting sequences.
“People who have played it have said they’ve lost themselves in our experience because the game was doing what they intended instead of fighting them.”
“We’re building on our experiences of telling action-packed cinematic adventures,” she said. “We’re changing things within the mechanics and controls that will feel fresh for long-time players.”
In terms of gameplay, both Captain America and Black Panther are melee fighters, with Cap being more of a brawler and Black Panther a nimble fighter. Jones will likely rely on firearms in combat and Nanali a spear.
Showcasing Unreal Engine 5
Poised to be one of the most graphically impressive games of this generation
Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra was showcased during the State of Unreal presentation in March 2024, showing off just how technically impressive the game is. The story trailer was entirely in engine, meaning it’s a great representation of the graphical fidelity Marvel 1943 is striving to achieve. The environments and lighting are tremendously impressive, but the face scans and models are even better, blurring the line between game and reality.
It’s safe to say there will be moments in Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra where you’ll have to wonder if you’re watching a video game cinematic or live action footage.
A New Developer
Skydance New Media’s first game
Skydance Media is primarily a film and television production company, but in 2019 it expanded into the world of video games, creating the development studio Skydance New Media. It tapped Amy Henning to be its president; she’ll aid the studio in creating “new story-focused experiences [that] will employ state-of-the-art computer graphics to provide the visual fidelity of television and film” (via Eurogamer).
Hennig has had quite the career in the industry and notably worked as creative director and writer on the first three Uncharted games before departing Naughty Dog in 2014.
Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra will be Skydance New Media’s first project, and the developers are excited to bring their vision to the Marvel universe. “It’s an honor to be able to tell an original story with all the humanity, complexity, and humor that makes Marvel characters so enduring and to enable our players to embody these heroes that they love,” Hennig said about the project in 2021 (via Deadline).
Skydance New Media is swinging big, not just with its Marvel game, but with its second project: the studio is also collaborating with Lucasfilm Games to develop a new Star Wars game.
Potential Release Date & Platforms
Aiming for this year
Announced in July 2024, Skydance New Media is partnering with Plaion to publish Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra. The companies are targeting a 2025 release date, though, because so little information has been revealed so far (and because video games tend to suffer delays), one has to wonder if Marvel 1943 will hit that 2025 release window or get delayed until next year.
Interestingly, no platforms have been confirmed yet for Marvel 1943. Usually you could assume it would launch on the major players–PC, Xbox Series X/S, and PS5. However, superhero games are no stranger to platform exclusivity, so we certainly have our eyebrows raised in wondering if Skydance and Plaion are brokering some sort of deal to make Marvel 1943 an exclusive. But, this is just speculation at this point.
Now that the Nintendo Switch 2 has been revealed, we certainly have to wonder if it’ll arrive on Nintendo’s new platform. Personally, I’m skeptical; regardless of how powerful the Switch 2 ends up being, I doubt it’ll be able to run Marvel 1943 well.
Other upcoming Marvel games:
- Marvel’s Wolverine
- Marvel’s Blade
- Marvel Cosmic Invasion
- Untitled Iron Man game
- Untitled Black Panther game
