With Crystal Dynamics releasing new heroes on a fairly regular basis, it can be a little difficult to keep track of which characters are available for selection in Marvel’s Avengers these days. The record-breaking game now has three DLC characters available, though there's still no news on when exactly Spider-Man will be swinging his way into the fray just yet; not that Xbox players will be all that bothered by this.
Despite Peter Parker's prolonged absence, there are still plenty of other iconic characters to choose from. What's more, all nine of the currently available heroes have their own unique powers and well-balanced strengths and weaknesses. Much like in the MCU though, some heroes are far more powerful than others, although, surprisingly, their rankings don't always line up with those of their comic book counterparts.
Updated August 18, 2021, by Tom Bowen: Following its fairly underwhelming launch, Marvel's Avengers is slowly starting to feel like the game that was promised to fans all those years ago. Updates and patches have played a big part in this respect, but it's arguably the addition of a few excellent new heroes that has really helped to change players' perceptions of the game. With Spider-Man still to look forward to and Black Panther having recently been added as part of the War for Wakanda expansion, there'll be at least ten heroes to choose from by the time 2021 is over. The most powerful heroes in Marvel's Avengers may surprise one or two people though, particularly fans of the MCU.
Special Mention: Spider-Man
Console exclusivity is one thing, but the idea of intentionally selling an inferior version of a game to a select group of players is frustrating. Granted, this is more to do with Sony's ownership of the rights to the Spider-Man character than a publisher's greed, but it's still a big kick in the teeth for Xbox players nonetheless; many of whom may be secretly hoping that the character never sees the light of day.
When exactly Spider-Man will be added into the game is anybody's guess. He was announced as a PlayStation exclusive hero more than a year ago now, but, as of the time of writing, all players have been told is that he'll be coming at some point in 2021. He'll no doubt be one of the more moble characters in the game when he does finally arrive, though that may hinge upon how well the team at Crystal Dynamics is able to implement his signature web-swinging mechanics.
9 Hulk
Seeing the Hulk in some unflattering and de-fearing outfits in the game isn’t the only thing that might hinder Bruce Banner’s alter ego’s ego. Though Hulk is clearly the strongest of The Avengers physically, turning green and bulky is more of a peacocking tactic than anything else.
Not only is the hero much slower than the others, as playing as the Hulk feels like trying to move porridge, but his powers also don’t do much, especially when he is surrounded by a huge group of enemies. Still, it hasn’t been this much fun to smash random pieces of metal as the Hulk since The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction.
8 Iron Man
Nolan North, the famous voice actor of video games who has become a star in his own right, is known for voicing video game characters with a quick wit, such a Nathan Drake in the Uncharted series and Deadpool, which makes him perfect to play Tony Stark. Only his sharp sense of humor isn’t enough for him to be considered one of the most powerful characters in Marvel’s Avengers.
There are some great builds for Iron Man that players can attain, but Iron Man still remains one of the weakest characters. It is fun to fly around as the billionaire, and once players have a build that contains rockets in the armor, it’s more of a fair game, but the character is too hard to control in the sky while in the middle of a war zone, and it becomes awkward.
7 Black Panther
Though the character certainly looks the part, Black Panther is an incredibly underwhelming hero, at least at the time of writing, anyway. He's far slower than he should be and is fairly useless when it comes to melee attacks, which is a real shame considering his melee attack animations are some of the best in the game. Players can get around this by spamming his daggers from range, but this can get very boring very quickly.
Whether or not Crystal Dynamics will be able to salvage the character with patches and updates remains to be seen, but the chances of that happening seem slim at this point. Granted, the issues with his weak melee damage can probably be resolved fairly easily, but his lack of speed and mobility seems to be the result of limitations with the game's engine more than anything else. With that in mind, it's unlikely that the mighty Wakandan will ever be as fast as his comic book or movie counterparts in game.
6 Captain America
One of the best moves that Captain America has is being able to double jump, which on paper sounds like he’s no better than Crash Bandicoot. However, the Captain does have a massive range of skills that might not make him the most powerful, but just powerful enough and extremely fun to play as.
Not only is Captain America incredible with weapons, as he can master any weapon he comes across within seconds, but his shield is one of the best parts of the game as it’s insanely addictive stringing combos together in fights. The way the character launches himself into enemies using the shield as a battering ram is wholly satisfying. The shield has never looked better either, as neither in games or the movies has the shield ever glowed!
5 Black Widow
Surprisingly enough, Black Widow is one of the strongest characters in the game. She is a master drop-kicker, which should be obvious if players have seen any of the movies, as they could make a drinking game out of how many times the character kicks an enemy. Marvel’s Avengers in no way leaves her on the bench as the Marvel Cinematic Universe did for so long.
Not only is the Widow great in close-range combat, but she is great from afar too, as she is such an incredible weapons specialist. On top of that, her grappling hook, which works kind-of like Spider-Man’s web-slinging, almost makes us forget that Peter Parker isn’t in the game yet. Almost.
4 Kate Bishop
Despite being equipped with a similar loadout to Clint Barton's Hawkeye, Kate Bishop arguably brings a lot more to the table. Combat with her is just that little bit more fluid and her unique selection of arrows makes her a lot more versatile too. Throw in her Quantum abilities and, on paper, at least, there really is no contest between the pair.
Marvel's Avengers isn't played on paper, however, and, in execution, there are a few things that are really holding Kate back. The most notable of these is perhaps her parry, although she also comes up a little short in the damage department as well. Thanks to her fantastic mobility, few characters are as fun to main as her, though those looking to feel like a god on the battlefield would be better served elsewhere.
3 Kamala Khan
There’s no doubt that Kamala is the most powerful character in the game by a landslide. Though it’s obvious that she has been made the most powerful by Square Enix because in many ways, the whole game is Kamala’s story, but her powers perfectly fit the narrative and vice versa. She can leap hurdles and knock out enemies at a distance thanks to her elasticity. Kamala doesn’t use weapons, she is a weapon.
Not only is the character joyful and great for morale compared to some of the others in Marvel’s Avengers, but she has a skill set that is unmatched by most. The character has some of the most powerful melee attacks in the game, and with her ability to stretch, she can swiftly knock out aerial enemies and any approaching her from any direction. She has the best unlockable upgrades too.
2 Clint Barton
Though many consider Clint Barton to be one of the most underwhelming members of The Avengers, the character's portrayal in Marvel's Avengers is anything but. His signature bow offers excellent ranged attacks, while his Katana, which is borrowed from the character's Ronin persona, makes melee combat incredibly enjoyable too. When combined with his excellent array of skills, he's a solid character, to say the least.
Incorporating both young and old versions of the character was a stroke of genius on the developers' part and really does make for an excellent story. Both versions of the character are drastically different and their interactions with each other and other characters are some of the very best in the entire game as a result.
1 Thor
The ultimate question has been answered after all. Black Widow, Iron Man, Captain America, and Hulk have all tested Thor's strength by attempting to lift his hammer, but none have succeeded, and that’s because Thor is more powerful than all of them. Though one of the best tips for the game is to use and utilize all of the characters, Thor is undoubtedly one of the most powerful.
Thor is literally a god, so there is no question that he is mostly unmatched, and his hammer feels a lot like a fellow PlayStation god’s weapon; Kratos’ axe from God of War. Swinging the hammer and pulling all sorts of tricks with it makes Thor’s character one of the most powerful and one of the most fun to play. It’s irresistibly fun.