Free-to-play MMO Marvel Heroes gets first trailer

Gazillion Entertainment has released the first gameplay trailer and details for Marvel Heroes, its upcoming free-to-play superhero MMO.

Gazillion Entertainment has released the first gameplay trailer and details for Marvel Heroes, its upcoming free-to-play superhero MMO. It seems we'll be fighting our way through the streets as the likes of Spider-Man, Wolverine, and Thor in a Diablo-style isometric beat 'em up. Unsurprising given that the dev's president, David Brevik, is a veteran of Blizzard North, the studio responsible for Diablo and Diablo II.

What gets me most excited as a life-long Marvel fan is the announcement that the game's story is being written by Brian Michael Bendis, one of the most consistently good scribes of comic lore in recent years. Victor Von Doom seems to be the main villain at launch, brooding over some kind of doom-y artifact like his usual, doom-y self.

The accompanying press releaseconfirms that the game will include Iron Man, Storm, Black Widow, and more:

"Drawing upon the 8,000-plus heroes and villains in the Marvel Universe, Marvel Heroes allows players to become their favorite Marvel Super Heroes –- from the popular Iron Man, Thor, Storm and Black Widow to the lesser known Squirrel Girl and Cable. Fans will be able to completely customize their characters by constructing costumes taken from each hero's rich history, choosing from a huge array of super powers for each character, and finding thousands of other items. There are countless ways for players to tailor their experience."

It also reveals that we'll be visiting several suburbs of New York City, along with the Xavier Institute (billed as one of the game's social hubs) and other iconic locations. Microtransactions are confirmed, but Gazillion promises that you won't have to spend money to play the "full game."