While it was nice to finally see God of War: Ragnorok, Gran Turismo 7, and Spider-Man 2, one of the major highlights from the PlayStation Showcase 2021 was the surprise reveal of Marvel's Wolverine. Insomniac Games has proven itself to be one of Sony's best first-party studios, and with the way that it's handled the Spider-Man games, it's pretty clear that the studio knows its way around translating the magic of comic books into compelling gameplay. That said, Insomniac is going to need to go all out with Logan's brutality when it comes to the game's combat.
There are plenty of reasons why comic book and video game fans alike should be excited for Marvel's Wolverine, but if it can't make the most out of the brutality that comes alongside casting Wolverine as the lead character, then the game is going to feel a little bit off. Plenty of X-Men movies have tried to make the character suitable for younger audiences, but it wasn't until the films embraced the more violent nature of Weapon X that they truly felt like they were being true to the comic source material.
Wolverine Deserves an 'M' Rating
Although it might be a tough pill to swallow for Sony, as it may limit the mass appeal for Marvel's Wolverine, the game needs to be rated M to truly make the most out of the character and tell the most compelling story possible. Because he's associated with the X-Men, Wolverine has a lot of appeal to younger audiences, but the brutal nature of his powers shouldn't be toned down as a result. If it is, the game might not be able to tell a story true to the character, as Logan's inability to die paired with the fact that he brutalizes everyone in every fight he gets in takes a toll on his psyche.
The bloodless fights from the early X-Men films just wouldn't feel right in a game all about a man who has metal claws that stick out of his hands. While the push might be for Insomniac to stick with more "all ages" games, Marvel's Wolverine wouldn't be able to capture the same appeal from the comics if he were to be restricted to anything other than an M rating.
The Success of Adult-Oriented Superhero Media
For Logan, the final Wolverine film starring Hugh Jackman, the studio was able to make an R-rated film because of the major success of Deadpool just one year before. Since then, adult-oriented superhero media has exploded in popularity, as it's been proven to be profitable. Recently, TV shows like The Boys and Invincible have brought fresh ideas to the table in terms of what an adult superhero story can be, and Marvel's Wolverine might be able to lead the charge for adult superhero video games.
It simply takes watching the opening scene of Logan where Wolverine is forced to kill a small group of car thieves to understand what makes the character so interesting to comic book fans. Logan is a man who knows not only that he's going to win every fight he gets in, but that he's going to decimate his enemies, not always on purpose. That sort of narrative can't be told if Insomniac is forced to tone down the brutality of Wolverine's adamantium claws. There's still so much that's unknown about Marvel's Wolverine, so it may be getting an M rating that no one knows about yet. While it's likely to be an excellent game either way, as Insomniac has proven that it knows what it's doing when adapting comic characters to gaming, the M rating could make it much better.
Marvel's Wolverine is in development for PS5.