The rumours mill has done what it does best and churned out something that seems genuinely exciting at first glance - A Marvel fighting game made by the team at NetherRealm Studios. As truly fantastic as that sounds, NetherRealm’s other comic book fighting series deserves a proper conclusion before we move on.
With that rumour now being out there and Ed Boon actively playing into it on Twitter, I can already see a lot of players are inevitably going to be disappointed if NetherRealm’s next game ends up being Injustice 3. That’s a shame because Injustice 3 is just as exciting as a Marvel fighting game, especially if it ends up concluding the trilogy in a satisfying way.
Although Injustice 2 ended in a fairly definitive way, it left so many potential loose ends and character arcs open that a third game could do so much with it. It would likely carry on from Batman’s ending with Superman being in the Phantom Zone, where he’ll inevitably end up escaping. Where the story goes from there is completely open, but Darkseid seems like the most obvious antagonist unless we go full civil war again. We’ve never seen Darkseid in the story of Injustice, so focusing on that and possibly forcing Batman and Superman together again would be a truly epic third entry. Imagine the proper reuniting of the Justice League, as was teased in the second game.
Another incredibly exciting prospect with a third Injustice is to finally see the addition of some long-requested, fan-favourite characters. Constantine, Beast Boy, Batwoman, and Plastic Man are just a few of the fighters that have been completely missed out on in the last two entries, and they’d all be awesome to finally see in the series. Each of them has a ton of fighting potential, and it would be a shame if we had to wait so long to see them in action.
Previous rumours have also said that the Watchmen characters might play a big role in the game’s story and appear as characters in the roster. If you don’t want to see Rorshach go up against Superman, I really can’t help you. If it’s true that they’ll play into the story, I am incredibly intrigued to see what NetherRealm is cooking up.
To put the story aside for a second, I’d also love to see NetherRealm give the fast-paced gameplay one more go. A Marvel fighting game could take the same sort of battle systems as Injustice, but considering that they’re rival companies, it would make sense for NetherRealm to craft something unique for a Marvel game.
It seems pretty likely that Injustice will go back to the armour system that it debuted in Injustice 2, especially considering Mortal Kombat 11 ended up using the system too. I’m happy for them to do that, but I’d also love it if they defied expectations and included Mortal Kombat X’s variations system instead. Giving each character three different versions of themselves would be a lot of fun, and hopefully, do away with some of the grind issues that were in Mortal Kombat 11.
You also have to look at things from a marketing and business perspective. If a Marvel fighting game does end up happening before Injustice 3, do you really think NetherRealm are going to go back to that series when their Marvel game will literally be printing money? Between that and Mortal Kombat, they’d never have to make another series again! I’m sure the team is even more passionate about Injustice than the fans, but it’d be hard to see a new game in the series coming for some time if they get stuck in on all of the potential Marvel characters.
Don’t get me wrong, I’ll buy the Marvel fighting game faster than you can say “snikt” when it comes out, I just don’t think it needs to come before a finale for Injustice. Injustice fans have patiently waited since Mortal Kombat 11 was announced for the next game, and it would suck to see an even bigger queue form. Regime Superman needs to see his story concluded, and it needs to happen before NetherRealm jumps on the Marvel train.
All of that being said, feel free to completely disregard this if it turns out to be a Marvel vs. DC game because I will absolutely be freaking out alongside you all.