Marvel’s Wolverine Review

Cyclops leads them, Professor Xavier founded them, and Jean Grey is often considered the strongest in their ranks. But more often than not, it’s a certain Canadian short king that comes to mind first when you think of the X-Men. So, it’s hardly a surprise that developer Insomniac Games would look to Weapon X to be its next focus after a triumphant trilogy of Spider-Man titles. But will this move beyond the Spider-Verse and into the wider world of Marvel be a successful one, or is the next stage in human evolution too large a next step?

At the time of Marvel’s Wolverine, the X-Men haven’t yet formed. With mutants largely considered a myth, those with an active X-Gene live in secret, hiding their powers from the world in fear of persecution. Working to build a new world for mutants is Team X, comprised of off-kilter maniac Sabretooth, shapeshifter Mystique, and, formerly, Wolverine himself.

At the opening of the game, Wolverine finds himself reunited with Team X as they attempt to free their leader from the clutches of Bolivar Trask, a staunch mutant detractor, a billionaire genius, and an all-around dick. Their leader? None other than the long-lived and incredibly powerful Nathaniel Essex, played to smarmy perfection and modelled after Troy Baker. Those with X-Men knowledge will already be piecing things together just based on this quick introduction, but it’s worth noting that this ride has plenty of twists, turns, and revelations worth sticking around for.

Dropping from a VTOL onto an armed car like a fleshy missile, Wolverine is back in action, and we’re quickly introduced to his pointy punches thereafter. Wolvie’s arsenal is as straightforward as you would expect from a man with knife hands. Square throws a basic swipe, Triangle throws a heavy attack, and pushing the right stick in conjunction with Triangle will see you close distance with a jumping lunge. All these movements have a satisfying weight behind them, as you would expect from a man with Adamantium-covered bones.

Blue enemy attacks can be parried with L1, while red ones will need to be dodged with Circle. Yellow strikes can also be parried, but the instant riposte leaves the attacker in pieces. Yes, this is a Wolverine game that leans heavily into the character’s aggressive and violent nature, meaning there will be a lot of blood, dismemberment, and screams of terror. It’s on brand, it’s visceral, and it’s awesome.

Killing enemies in quick succession generates Rage that fills three tiers, each empowering Logan more. Once the third meter is filled, he’ll get thrown into a savage state, where all colour is stripped from the world (save for red), and enemies become little more than cardboard obstacles.

This Rage meter also acts as a second-chance mechanic that plays into Wolverine’s infamous healing factor. If Reavers or Trask goons manage to sap your health, you’ll be able to spend a Rage bar to regain that life and get back into the fight. It’s a neat way to portray this power within the confines of gameplay, and seeing as Rage depletes out of combat, it incentivises aggressive play.

The final piece of the combat puzzle are abilities tied to cooldowns. The first sees Logan spin like a tornado of knives, while others drill through crowds of enemies, siphon Rage to replenish health, and kick off a multi-hit combo on a single foe. They’re flashy and fun, and the cooldowns are relatively quick, but they are far from a get out of jail free move.

You’ll unlock new combat moves and abilities as you level up using experience you gain through combat, but most of these boil down to another form of punch, throw, or guard break. I had a blast cutting down hapless fodder during the first few hours as I progressively unlocked the full combat suit, but once I hit that mark, there wasn’t much further I could push the moment-to-moment experience. By no means is the combat bad, but it doesn’t allow for enough personal expression to withstand a 15-hour runtime. Gory finishing moves and team-ups with a rotating cast of side characters never get old, but mowing through waves of familiar enemy types in the same fashion time and again does.

I was occasionally knocked out of combat cruise control by a boss encounter, but I slipped back into gear soon thereafter. Most bosses have you and the big bad squaring off in your typical arena, where you’ll parry, parry, dodge, attack, rinse and repeat, but the spectacle of the occasion regularly kept me invested. Mechanically, all but the final boss is essentially a beefed-up regular enemy, but the cutscenes and character moments woven in do give each an extra layer of excitement. That said, the widely covered Sentinel fight is a tabletop affair that sees you wailing away at its huge arms while only half of the body is visible. It’s a dull and plodding encounter that squarely misses the exhilaration that should be present in fighting a huge, mutant-hunting robot.

While each mission is linear, the streets of Japan, Madripoor, Vancouver, and others do have more open areas with hidden secrets to be found. That could mean caches containing resources to buy new cosmetic suits, whiskey bottles to unlock passive abilities, or Nightmare Doors. These challenge rooms are split between combat encounters and, oddly enough, traversal courses. The gauntlets and stealth challenges are inoffensive, and the narrative reward for completing each one is worthwhile, but running, jumping, and swinging around a dreamscape when those mechanics are hardly used during the main portion of the game feels woefully out of place.

It’s when Logan isn’t bisecting bad guys that I felt the most compelled. I was always excited by the moments when the claws retract, and you’re free to wander a space and interact with the collection of three-dimensional, well-performed characters like Jean Grey, Walter, and, believe it or not, Sabretooth. The globetrotting story includes many characters you’ll be familiar with, as well as plenty that only X-Men mega fans will recognise, but they’re all interesting and well-rounded.

I won’t delve any deeper for fear of spoiling any moments you should experience for yourself, but know that you’re stepping into a gripping narrative that evolves far beyond what you may initially expect. The primary reason I fell in love with the story is because of Wolverine himself. Aussie actor Liam McIntyre puts in a wonderfully layered performance that can go from animalistic to vulnerable, and then right back to rage-filled, all in a single scene. We’ve seen so many interpretations of Logan now, and more than one performed by top-tier Australian talent, but this is as complete and interesting as you could ask for.

Final Thoughts

Marvel’s Wolverine shows great appreciation for the character, staying true to who he is in terms of both gameplay and narrative. But it’s this ardent admiration and fierce dedication that limits its potential as much as it realises it. While entertainingly gory and fun in small doses, the combat model lacks the player agency required to stay engaging throughout the game’s 15-hour runtime. However, you’ll find more than enough engagement in the wonderfully written and excellently performed narrative that diehard X-Men fans and casual audiences will enjoy in equal measure.