I am what I am and that’s all that I am
Insomniac Games has been carrying the PS5 generation almost entirely on its back when it comes to first-party games on the platform. This is mostly due to their excellent iterations of Marvel franchises. The Spider-Man games have been both commercially and critically successful, and I absolutely adored the latest Ratchet and Clank. So, when they announced they would be adapting Wolverine into game form, I was really excited. The fidelity and game play they are known for mixed with one of Marvel’s most well-known characters felt like a match made in Heaven. The game has finally arrived, and Insomniac has mostly delivered on expectations.
One of the things that made the Spider-Man games so memorable were its story and characters. Wolverine continues the trend. While I am not a massive Marvel aficionado, the story here definitely intrigued me. It includes some characters I am not familiar with, as far as lore goes, and it dives into Wolverine’s past and mixes in some nice little twists. It is hard to describe without going into spoilers but coming from someone with moderate familiarity with the lore, I enjoyed it.
MSRP: $69.99
Platforms: PlayStation 5
Price I’d Pay: $69.99
This is achieved with excellent performances from the main characters. I know a lot has been made about some of the design choices of the characters, but they are well written and acted. Some of the performances are simply outstanding. I really liked Wolverine as he manages to mix in the goofy one liners and anger at times, while also feeling well-rounded and serious at times. I can say that if I knew a little more about specific characters, the story would have likely been spoiled for me early on, and it is definitely one you have seen many times before, but it is still interesting and had me invested up until the end.
One thing players should know going in is that unlike Spider-Man, this game is a straight, linear affair. The game is done in levels and most of them are designed for a single way through. There are a couple of seemingly open areas, but it really is just an alley here or a spot here where you might find a collectible. There are no side missions or extra things to find outside of the Nightmare Doors, more on those later, and instead focus on a simple narrative with clearly defined progression. The main game took me just over ten hours on my first playthrough, but if I explored everything and did all the collectibles, I am guessing the runtime would be around 15 hours.
I hate being reductive when describing a game, but it truly feels like Sony first-party games have a fairly similar template. Wolverine consists of very narrative driven sequences where the team is slow walking and progressing the plot, combat arenas, boss fights, and some minor platforming and action sequences. A lot of the big events are done via quicktime events, which make for a cinematic experience. If you have played any of the other first-party PlayStation games, you will feel right at home here. Insomniac has added enough of their flavor though, and it shines at times.
The combat itself is a mixed bag for me. It can be absolutely visceral at times, and when I pulled off a really cool combo that ended with a detailed kill, it was immensely satisfying. However, there are times when it feels a little stiff and the lock-on mechanic is fickle. I found myself taking a little longer to get into the groove, but once I did, I really enjoyed it. It was not as fun and fluid as Spider-Man, but still a ton of fun, and extremely violent at times.
Wolverine has basic attacks such as claw slashes and a leap move that closes the gap on enemies. There are combos to perform and plenty of unique finishing moves. Wolverine can parry and block some attacks, and the timing is definitely forgiving. He also has a set of special moves that can be unlocked via a skill tree. These can be assigned to a menu and performed by holding down the trigger and pressing the corresponding button such as spin moves and berserk combos. He also has a rage meter that when it fills up, you can do instant kills as the screen darkens. Enemy types are standard fare with normal grunts, ones that need to have their block broken, and my favorite, invisible enemies that get cheap shots, super fun.
The skill tree fills out quickly as I leveled up and includes your standard upgrades. There is also a DNA upgrade system which is unlocked by completing Nightmare Doors. These are challenges that involve using the moves you have learned. These are also timed, which I am not a fan of, but completing them unlock passive abilities such as more healing when performing a perfect dodge or parry. These missions can be repeated at any time through a menu to improve your time. I enjoyed combat for the most part, especially when it felt visceral and unhinged, I just wish it was a bit more fluid.
It is nice that new game plus is already included, as is the photo mode, but I really didn’t find much reason to return to the game. There isn’t much to find and collect. We have the aforementioned nightmare doors alongside whiskey bottles that unlock new memories. The suit system is kind of neat though. Wolverine can collect materials in levels and craft new costumes that range from standard to wild ones such as the classic animated cartoon suit, which yes shows up in cut scenes and is as hilarious as you think it is. I loved this system because crafting new suits also unlocks new claws as well as increasing Wolverine’s health for each new suit. This is by far the best collectible in the game. Also, really deep cuts on some of these suits.
As I mentioned earlier, the game looks great. The character models and environments are beautifully detailed. Sure, some people will not like the designs of some familiar faces, but they still look incredible. I also adore that Insomniac really optimizes their games. The quality mode is sharp as heck, but the performance mode, especially on PS5 Pro is still stunning and runs like a dream. I do wish there was a bit more variety to the enemies, I got tired of killing the same generic soldiers over and over. It does perk up towards the end of the game. Each new level is a visual feast though, and I could not wait to see where the game sent me next. Audio is great with excellent voice acting and writing. The music is good, if it is a bit standard and not memorable. The mix is excellent though and it rocked my sound setup.
While I was impressed with how optimized the game was, I did run into quite a few glitches during my playthrough. There are triggered events that have to happen before the game will progress. There was one fight where my partner NPC just stopped moving and would not progress the game. I also had an enemy that needed to be killed that got stuck in the ceiling. There was another time when I went to make a jump and got stuck in a tree and could not move. I had to restart the checkpoint each time, and it was barely a few minutes, but it happened enough that I felt I had to mention it.
Per usual the accessibility settings in the game are amazing. Color blind options, button commands, removing gore and profanity. The first-party teams at Sony really do great work here. I am happy to see these companies taking the initiative to make games accessible to all types of players. The more people that can play, the better.
Wolverine is another great game from Insomniac. I was kind of shocked how linear and brief it was though. I felt like there could have been some more open environments to explore and experiment with the combat. That being said, the story is great and I had a great time from start to finish. This is yet another solid title, but I do wish these games from Sony’s first-party studio felt a little different from each other.
Review copy of game provided by publisher.
