The 10 BEST X-Men Video Games
“X-Men: Gamesmaster's Legacy” (1995)
If you haven’t heard of this one, don’t feel too bad; not many of us had Sega Game Gears growing up, and the majority of its library didn’t make much of a splash. “Gamesmaster's Legacy,” an exclusive for the handheld, was actually pretty good though. It followed the team going up against the titular villain, who held an antidote for a virus killing mutants. Visuals were naturally stronger than anything the Game Boy was offering at the time, even though the system’s battery life was atrocious. And while gameplay didn’t extend past your standard action platformer mechanics, unlockable characters like Bishop, Gambit, Cable, and Rogue helped freshen things up.
“X-Men 2: Clone Wars” (1995)
Of course, there were some solid X-Men outings on Sega’s home consoles as well. A sequel to the 1993 original, “Clone Wars” saw the team battling the Phalanx, an evil alien hivemind. Improvements over the first were subtle, but added together to make a more enjoyable game. Beast, Psylocke, and the unlockable Magneto were nice team additions. Levels were a bit grander and more intricate, the difficulty level was more balanced, and you could use each character’s abilities as often as you liked without worrying about an energy meter. That’s not to mention that it looked fantastic, and still does.
“X-Men: Mutant Academy 2” (2001)
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Although it’s not the best X-Men fighting game, “Mutant Academy 2” still deserves some recognition. Released by Activision for the original PlayStation, it’s by far the best in this trilogy. It may seem like a by the numbers fighter by today’s standards. But at the time, it was a blast to have at home. You could fight as your expected combatants like Wolverine and Cyclops, but there were also more obscure characters like Forge and Havok, as well as villains like Juggernaut and Mystique. Mechanics and combos were far more extensive than in the first game, and it was a lot of fun battling across iconic locales like the Weapon X lab, the Savage Land, and, of course, the X-Men Mansion.
“X-Men: Children Of The Atom” (1995)
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Capcom has released some of the best fighting games to feature Marvel characters, and it all began with 1995’s “Children of the Atom.” The game is almost a branch between two eras of style; it features 1v1 matches as opposed to team fights in the “Marvel vs. Capcom” series, though was much quicker paced than what the studio had done with “Street Fighter.” While there’s only ten fighters to choose from, Capcom did a lot with a little. There are a ton of attacks and combos to master for each character. Sadly, your enjoyment depended on where you played it. The Arcade version was obviously top notch, as was the Sega Saturn one, but the PlayStation port’s slowdown was pretty rough.
“X-Men: Mutant Apocalypse” (1994)
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Before Capcom started its legacy of Marvel fighters, it released an awesome beat ‘em up for the Super Nintendo. Each of the five selectable heroes (Wolverine, Cyclops, Gambit, Psylocke, and Beast) had their own individual level so players could get used to them before the rest of the game opened up, unique to see at the time. Plus, naturally, given the studio’s expertise in fighting games and beat ‘em ups, they all controlled like a dream. Many considered it the best X-Men game around upon its release. And even returning to it today, it’s easy to see why.
“X-Men Origins: Wolverine” (2009)
Logan’s origin story may be one of the weaker entries in the “X-Men” film franchise. But the tie-in game is, surprisingly, a damn good time. While it was released across every platform to varying degrees of quality, the undeniable best versions were found on PC, PS3, and Xbox 360. It wasn’t just because of the stronger visuals and controls, though they obviously helped. These versions received a Mature rating due to their strong violence, letting us unleash Wolverine’s viciousness like never before, or since. With a story that can be wrapped up in under ten hours, its biggest criticism was that it was too short. But at least those ten hours are fun.
“X-Men Legends” (2004)
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Anybody missing Raven Software right about now? Before it was turned into a “Call of Duty” support studio, and before its work on “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” and “Marvel: Ultimate Alliance,” Raven put out the “X-Men Legends” games. When the first game was released, there wasn’t really anything like it at the time. A top-down action RPG, on consoles, with co-op, that also starred our favorite mutants? It was great! The cel-shaded comic look popped, while the ability to customize your line-up’s stats made the combat a bit more strategic. Though it would naturally be outshined by others it inspired, this is still a strong foundation.
“X-Men” (1992)
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Konami’s “X-Men” beat ‘em up is understandably considered a juggernaut (pun intended) when it comes to the golden age of arcades. Though it wasn’t the first game to feature the team, it may as well have been. It dwarfed the few adaptations that came before it, and set the standard as well as showed the possibilities of superhero games going forward. As Storm, Cyclops, Wolverine, Nightcrawler, Colossus, and the now forgotten Dazzler, players punched and blasted their way through iconic villains and goons alike to square off against Magneto. “X-Men” unsurprisingly earned a ton of admiration and quarters when it debuted. But we’ll still rush to the cabinet whenever we see one out in the wild.
“X-Men vs. Street Fighter” (1996)
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Building off of its work on “Children of the Atom” and 1995’s “Marvel Super Heroes,” Capcom took the X-Men and pitted them against one of its most popular franchises. It was kind of surreal seeing these two giants crossover, as it was long before these types of things were regular occurrences. While that definitely gave it a level of charm and excitement, it was also an incredible fighter. Unlike “Children of the Atom,” players could now fight in teams of two, one of the first instances of tag team fights. The mechanics were also smooth-as-silk, and the visuals are timeless. Clearly, “X-Men vs. Street Fighter” walked so “Marvel vs. Capcom” could run.
“X-Men Legends 2: Rise of Apocalypse” (2005)
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The first “X-Men Legends” is great. But the sequel is just a little better, and in pretty much every way. Its cel-shaded visuals are a bit crisper and its mechanics are more refined, with more abilities for each character. Speaking of characters, the story saw the X-Men team up with the Brotherhood of Mutants to stop Apocalypse. While a larger roster for a sequel is expected, it was nice being able to play as traditional villains alongside the good guys. The inclusion of online was also a smart call, since it made co-op easier, and playing the first game alone wasn’t nearly as fun as it was with friends. “Rise of the Apocalypse” is still one of the best multiplayer experiences for “X-Men” fans. What’s your favorite game starring the mutant team? Let us know in the comments and be sure to subscribe to MojoPlays for more great gaming videos every day!
