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Marvel Heroes to introduce playable Venom, Magneto, and more in 2014
Marvel Heroes is looking to substantially beef up its super-powered roster in 2014, as the devs are prepping a huge round of playable villains and heroes for an upcoming release. These new characters will include Venom, Juggernaut, Magneto, Psylocke, Silver Surfer, Dr. Strange, Moon Knight, Nightcrawler, Sue Storm, and Star-Lord, as well as a couple of additional comic book icons to be named later. Even though the new characters are not in the game yet, Gazillion is hosting an "advance pack" sale for players who want to pick all of them up for a discount. Players can spend either $99.99 or $129.99 to get all 12 characters as well as various extras including costumes, fortune cards, retcon devices, and even an extra hero.
A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Shall I play the villain?
Superheroes are defined by their villains. A lot of what makes Spider-man and Batman such celebrated characters is the fact that they've got no shortage of interesting opponents. DC Universe Online knew this when it launched and gave players a villainous option right from the beginning, something that even City of Heroes didn't manage until its first expansion. Not that this is the norm. Admittedly, calling anything the "norm" in a subgenre with only three launched games to go by is a bit complicated, but that's not the point. Champions Online doesn't let you take a walk on the villain side, and Marvel Heroes will launch without the ability to play a villain now or (presumably) ever. This seems a bit odd on some level. We like villains, we interact with villains as readers, we enjoy seeing what the villains will do. But does it diminish a game to lack the option, or does it diminish villains as a whole when you can play as one?
