Thus far, fans have very little insight into how Marvel’s Wolverine is going to play. It could allow gamers to explore parts of Madripoor in open sections like The Last of Us 2’s Seattle, or it could be fully linear. Gameplay mechanics like regneration and Berserker Rage in Marvel’s Wolverine are also possible, but have not yet been confirmed.
With so little known about Marvel’s Wolverine apart from its gritty tone, gamers have been pondering how Insomniac will keep a Logan-focused game balanced. The hero can essentially heal from anything, as his healing factor allows him to regenerate his body no matter how much damage it takes. While this would surely be fun to play with, it is hard to imagine the game being even a bit difficult since its lead hero cannot die. As such, Insomniac will need to find a creative way to add challenges without removing one of Logan’s iconic powers, and Sloclap’s Sifu may hold the answer.
Why a Version of Sifu’s Age System Would Benefit Marvel’s Wolverine
Sifu’s age mechanic is a huge reason the game is so difficult, and it is also what makes it so unique. Players start the game at age 20, with each death seeing them grow older and older. Every 10 years sees part of their pendant break, and once it is fully broken, they will die permanently. While Wolverine has lived for well over 100 years, meaning an exact copy of the age mechanic would not work, the concept as a whole could be used.
Early in the story of Marvel’s Wolverine, Logan could be infected with some kind of poison that sees his healing factor being weakened the more it is used. This way, players can experience the full power of playing as Wolverine early in the game, shrugging off all the damage they take and continuing to fight. However, using the healing factor too much could essentially kill Wolverine, with players being unable to heal at a certain point.
This could span across the entire game or be reset after each level, with possible difficulty settings making both approaches possible. Not being able to utilize Wolverine’s regeneration would be a shame, as it could be a lot of fun to watch him heal from the damage he takes. His body could even be scarred depending on where he was shot or stabbed, giving players a way to see how much damage they have taken or avoided throughout the game. However, while working Logan’s healing factor into the game is a must, it could make things far too easy if Insomniac is not careful.
While there are rare occasions where not being able to die works, like in Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, a game being too easy can be a bit boring to play through. While the Insomniac Games team that is working on Marvel’s Wolverine has some great talent that will surely make the story strong and the combat fun, it will be important to provide some kind of challenge for players to overcome. Taking away Wolverine’s healing factor altogether is a bad move, but allowing him to be blatantly overpowered would also be a mistake.
There is a fine line to walk between Wolverine being powerful or absolutely broken, and it will likely be one of the toughest things for Insomniac to get right. However, something like Sifu’s age mechanic could be a solution, as Sloclap handled its immortal protagonist very well and made each of their deaths meaningful. Every time Wolverine is taken down, it could be harder for him to get back up, pushing players to be careful about how much damage he takes and when he is taking it. Like in Sifu, each revival could take away some health from Logan but add on some damage, ensuring players who have taken a serious beating still have a chance to progress. While it would take some tweaks, something like Sifu’s age mechanic would work much better than giving every thug Adamantium bullets or having no way for players to fail.
Marvel’s Wolverine is scheduled to release in 2023 on PS5.
