IGN Interviews Marvel Games About the Enduring Appeal of ’90s-Inspired Beat ‘Em Ups

Marvel Cosmic Invasion is a hit. With 1.5 million players, Tribute Games’ ‘90s-inspired beat ’em up follows in the successful footsteps of its similarly nostalgia-fueled Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge. Both games are popular pick-up and plays in my household, where my eight-year-old son and I often grab a couple Xbox controllers and boot up the Xbox Series S for a quick session or two. Local co-op is great fun — I get a blast from the past as someone old enough to have grown up playing beat ’em ups in the arcade with friends, and my son gets to experience something similar with me at home. And when it comes to Marvel Cosmic Invasion itself, he has plenty of questions. For example, what is a Beta Ray Bill, and why does he have Thor’s axe?

Marvel Cosmic Invasion is no fluke on Marvel’s part, either. As Marvel Games executive producer Eric Monacelli, and product development manager Brian Marquez tell me in a video interview, the team set out to make a game that would appeal to people just like me. They told me they’d hoped that parents would play Marvel Cosmic Invasion with their children, sparking that cross-generational