5 Reasons Why Captain America Needs A New Video Game

With news of their television shows and movies dominating Comic-Con, Marvel Comics is making big moves this year.  I personally was most excited to hear news about Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Action wise, it’s already said to be comparable to the Iron Man films, which people are really responding to. With all the hype building up, I think it’s time we had a quality video game that could be connected to the upcoming movie while being worthy of the Sentinel of Liberty and here is why.

1. IT COULD SET THE TONE FOR THE UPCOMING MOVIE

According to news articles, the movie takes place about 2 years after the ‘Battle of New York’ shown in The Avengers. Cap remains with S.H.I.E.L.D. after the events of the movie, fighting for freedom no matter what year it is. But what happens during that two year gap? We know Iron Man goes a few rounds with Advanced Idea Mechanics (also known as A.I.M.) while Thor ends up in a war with Malekith and the Dark Elves in his upcoming film, but what happens to Cap? If a game had to focus on a setting, it could happen between Avengers and Winter Soldier. Players can control Cap as he steps into his new role as a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, making them truly feel one with the character. Coming from someone who’s plays a lot of RPGs, that little detail goes a long way.

2. ENHANCE THE TIES WITH OTHER AVENGERS

Marvel has made it their mission to do what another certain comic book company (the one with the other powerful demi-god and rich guy who fights crime) have never done: have characters from their movies actually share one universe. One of the many reasons I believe their films are getting approval from everyone, including comic geeks (fanboys) like myself, is that they’ve done what we thought was impossible. I’m not saying a game involving Captain America in the present should have a team up with The Avengers. But a quick cutscene of Rogers having a video call with Tony Stark or Black Widow mentioning Hawkeye leading a squad in another part of the world could strengthen Marvel’s mission. And speaking of certain Avengers…

3. EXPLORE THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CAP AND BLACK WIDOW

One of the main topics being talked about in Winter Soldier is the budding relationship between Steve Rogers and Natasha Romanoff aka The Black Widow. In the comics, those two have a great deal of respect for each other with (thanks to thought bubbles) some occasional lingering romantic thoughts. Hell, in some realities, they have a child together (Google Next Avengers: Heroes of Tomorrow for an example). But according to both Chris Evans and Scarlett Johansson, their characters only develop an ‘intimate friendship’ through their partnership in S.H.I.E.L.D. I’d like to see how that develops over the course of time, particularly with some Whedon-esque banter in between missions.

4. PEOPLE WILL FORGET ABOUT CAPTAIN AMERICA: SUPER SOLDIER

No matter your preference, video game players can all agree on one thing: Games based on movies usually SUCK! Whether it’s because of time restraints, a small budget, or a lack of caring, whenever a movie has an accompanying game, I get a chill up my spine. Surprisingly, Captain America: Super Soldier, a game which was released in conjunction with Captain America: The First Avenger, was a lot better than I expected from super-hero movie games. So what if they copied the combat mechanics from Batman: Arkham Asylum, the game itself had so much potential and this is the time to tap into it. Done right, this could show people why Cap is so revered among his peers in the Marvel Universe.

5. ANOTHER TYPE OF MEDIA TO DOMINATE

Right now, Marvel Comics is dominating the big screen with their movies, but rival company DC Comics still has the advantage in other areas. Their Batman: Arkham games are already a commercial success with another coming in October and they just released a new animated series last month (be sure to check out Nathan Mark’s Beware the Batman episode reviews too while you’re here). Marvel could already use the foundation set in Super Soldier and improve on it until they have a game that’s as good, if not better, than its DC counterpart.

Let me know what you guys think about the Star Spangled Avenger getting another shot at a video game.