It’s no secret that the superhero genre has been on something of a hot streak. Essentially, ever since the very first X-Men and Spider-Man movies of the late 90s and early 2000s, fans of comic book characters just can’t seem to get enough. While superhero movies and comics have been on the rise ever since, videos games have taken a while to catch up in terms of critically and commercially successful adaptations. One of the most recently successful superhero games on modern consoles is Marvel's Spider-Man on the PS4 and, while the franchise seems to just keep getting better with the addition of Miles Morales, Spider-Man’s formula would work extremely well with another hero at the helm: Invincible.
Invincible and Spider-Man share a lot of qualities that would make them similar games. However, something that could set the two apart if Invincible were to ever get a game is that it could be rated M instead of Spider-Man’s T-rating. While the Invincible comics aren’t always as graphic as the recently released Amazon Prime series, the game could take inspiration from both and make for a tonally mature narrative-driven superhero game that still has the heart of Spider-Man PS4, never before seen in the medium.
Mark Grayson and Peter Parker
Before its true darker tone is shown, the beginning of Invincible is pretty comparable to the many Spider-Man origin stories that have been depicted over the years. Mark Grayson is a typical American teenager who struggles with balancing his life and his newly acquired superpowers in a very similar manner to Peter Parker. As a result, both characters end up feeling very similar but are placed in drastically different situations making them equally interesting to follow in their adventures both on the screen and on the page. They both seem to share the same wit making them relatable and likable protagonists who are perfect for being the leads in a superhero video game as exampled by Spider-Man on the PS4.
Because of the more serious overarching story of Invincible, however, fans of the Peter Parker character would be able to see him in a new light through Mark in an M-rated video game. While the Spider-Man depicted in Insomniac’s franchise is a little bit older and more experienced than other depictions, Invincible is still learning the ropes of being a superhero and as a result, doesn’t always get things right. This leads to devastating outcomes in both the show and the comics that can really only be told with an M-rating in a game.
Committing to Invincible's Darker Tone
If Invincible were to get a game, it would need to follow some of the more mature aspects of the overarching story. The main conflict for Invincible is his complicated relationship with his father, Omni-Man. In a twist revealed at the end of the first season of the show and in issue 11 of the comics, Omni-Man isn’t the justice-serving hero that he makes himself out to be - instead, he’s a genocidal maniac set on conquering Earth for his people, the Viltumites. While a game wouldn’t need to follow the beats of the comic or the Amazon series, there are certain aspects to Invincible’s story that are important for Mark Grayson’s character, and Omni-Man being the murderous villain that he is is one of them.
There are plenty of other more mature elements of the Invincible story that an M-rated game could follow that wouldn’t be allowed in a T-rated Spider-Man game. From Mark’s complicated relationship with his mother as a result of her drinking issues to the horrific acts of violence committed on civilians by otherworldly conquerors, there are a lot of different ways that an Invincible game could tell a mature superhero story that simply wouldn’t be possible with a more restrictive age rating. This isn’t to say that all of Invincible is a dark, mature story, quite the opposite, but when it does need to go there, it shouldn’t have to pull any punches.
By telling the more mature side of Invincible in a video game, it could pave the way for more adult-appropriate superhero stories and characters in the medium. In a similar way to how R-rated superhero films like Logan and Deadpool were able to prove that mature superhero movies can be commercial and critical successes, Invincible could do that for games. While there have been M-rated superhero games before like Batman: Arkham Knight, there wasn’t a sudden surge in mature superhero games following its release in a way that would really prove to skeptical studios that the concept works.
The Evergrowing World of Superheroes
The Spider-Man PS4 formula would likely be best for an Invincible game over all the other recent superhero game formulas. Because Spider-Man isn’t associated with any sort of superhero team in the game, he’s free to go wherever he likes and stop his villains however he see’s fit. Similarly, while Invincible associates and works with a handful of superhero teams in the comics and shows, he’s rarely tied down to one specific group, meaning that players could explore an open world sandbox just like in Spider-Man, unshackled from other superhero teams. Like in Spider-Man, however, Invincible could still meet up with other heroes and fight the colorful cast of villains included in the source material, but their fights could include more graphic violence.
The Invincible game wouldn’t need to be all blood and gore all the time, but it could take a more realistic approach to the widely different power levels of all of the superheroes and villains than Spider-Man’s more cartoony style of violence. While Spider-Man definitely explores the question of “what happens when a superhero loses?,” it never quite addresses its answer with any sort of realism. Both the Invincible comics and show take unflinching looks at what happens when superheroes fail, so it could explore those themes with much more detail. At the end of the day, Invincible doesn’t need to be dark and graphic to be a powerful story. Still, by allowing the game to be free from the confines of a Teen-rating, it would be able to tell a story closer to that of the original source material.
Marvel's Spider-Man is available now on PS4 and PS5.