No, Marvel’s Avengers hasn’t suffered the same fate as BioWare’s Anthem. Not yet, at least. Both games, billed as live services intended to hold players’ interest for prolonged periods of time, ultimately failed to achieve their goal upon launch, with interest subsequently taking a brisk walk off a short cliff. While the latter is reportedly coming dangerously close to total cancelation, however, publisher Square Enix apparently believes the Marvel brand is still worth investing time and resources into, despite the fact that Crystal Dynamics’ largely half-baked superhero adventure has lost more than 90% of its player base since arriving on last-gen consoles and PC back in fall of last year.
In an effort to recapture the attention of lapsed fans and potentially entice newcomers to sample the delights of beating up bad guys as Iron Man, Thor, and multiple other comic book icons, Square outlined its plan to double down on delivering expansive add-on content, all of which will remain free from day one. Accompanying cosmetic items, on the other hand, will require purchasing and provide a sought-after return.
Then there’s the subject of next-gen. The plan had always been to release the Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 versions as close to those already available as possible, though Crystal was ultimately forced to postpone them indefinitely for obvious reasons.
Now, however, it’s looking as if they could be closer than many originally thought. As evidenced by PSN Profiles, trophy lists for Marvel’s Avengers on Sony’s next-gen platform have started showing up, suggesting that an announcement is imminent. These types of leaks often precede an official reveal, so we’ll certainly be keeping ears close to the ground for any movement. Stay tuned!