Marvel Cosmic Invasion Game Director & Narrative Designer Talk Superheroes & Beat-Em-Up Legacies

Marvel Cosmic Invasion is the latest modern throwback from Dotemu and Tribute Games, and it’s a chance for the developers to bring back a classic gameplay style for a modern era. In past decades, it wasn’t uncommon to see the heroes of the Marvel Universe unite for a side-scrolling fight against hordes of enemies. Marvel Cosmic Invasion takes that concept back into the modern day, with a focus on creative combos and colorful action that’s marvelous to witness.

With 15 playable characters and plenty of villains to take down, the new game was just as fun for the creatives behind the scenes to make as it is for gamers ot play. During an interview with ComicBook.com, Marvel Cosmic Invasion Game Director Frederic Gemus and Narrative Designer Yannick Belzil discussed the hero selection for the game, why the title focuses on a cosmic threat like Annihulus, and what fans can expect from the side-scroller’s future.

Welcome To The Marvel Universe, Hope You Survive The Experience

Marvel Cosmic Invasion is a great throwback to earlier eras of superhero gaming, with a beat-em-up focus that’s a delight to dive into. At the center of the game is Annihilus, the classic Fantastic Four villain who has unleashed an army of his insectoid horde from the Negative Zone in a bid to overtake the galaxy. Now, it’s up to the Marvel heroes — including the likes of Spider-Man, Wolverine, Captain America, Storm, Rocket Raccoon, and plenty more — to save the day.

According to Narrative Designer Yannick Belzil, the idea to use Annihilus and pull from the fan-favorite Annihilation comics storyline came directly from Marvel. “The Cosmic setting and the Annihilation storyline were pitched to us by Marvel. Rapidly, we saw that Annihilus made for a great beat ‘em up antagonist; he’s brash, loud, and has a big personality you want to punch. He also came with his own recognizable army of baddies: always a plus for this type of format. We did a bit of adapting with the original storyline so we could include Earth heroes and locales, and to add a bit more of a ‘90s blockbuster “heroes venturing out in space” feel, like an Operation Galactic Storm or Independence Day.“

By leaning into the cosmic angle, the creatives behind the scenes got the opportunity to utilize some Marvel heroes that might not be as well-known to the general public. This includes cosmic heroes like Nova and fan favorites like Phylla-Vell, who have otherwise not found the spotlight that other characters in the game have. Finding the right characters for the title was an intriguing challenge for the creatives, as Belzil explained.

“There are many thoughts behind the selection process for the characters. First and foremost is gameplay: the different playables need to have varied powers and playstyles. Some characters fly, others don’t. Some have ranged attacks, others don’t, and so on. Looks, variety, and animation complexity, all of these are factors. There’s also a certain amount of Marvel representation: we want to have mutants, webslingers, street-level heroes, Avengers, cosmic heroes, etc. We want to represent the width of the universe. As for Nova and Phyla-Vell, they’re both featured in the Annihilation storyline, but they’re lesser-known characters, and it was important to us to have heroes we could reinterpret a bit more freely.”

While Belzil and the rest of the team were able to fit a lot of the Marvel Universe into the beat-em-up, there were apparently some ideas and were left on the cutting room floor. “Some non-playable cameos and nods to storylines we initially had ideas for ultimately didn’t end up fitting into the game, which is typical for development on any project, as concepts are considered, potentially implemented, or deemed not to be the right fit for various reasons. Given the broad timespan of Marvel characters and storylines we’re paying tribute to, some concepts we had in mind for deep-cut classics were not available – but we’re still elated with the scope of surprises and homages we were able to fit into the campaign!“

Teamwork Makes The Dream Work

One of the most engaging elements of Marvel Cosmic Invasion from a gameplay perspective is the way that all players get to bring in two heroes for each level. A quick tap of the button shifts them around each other, allowing players to experience multiple heroes at once and to have a larger variety of inherent abilities, like flight and range, that might be lacking from one-character playstyles. It also sets up plenty of cool combos that can clear the field in a single burst of action.

Game Director Frederic Gemus and the rest of the team embraced this approach because of the way it reflects a core element of the larger Marvel brand. “One key aspect of the Marvel universe is teamwork: heroes often assemble together as teams, like the Avengers or the Defenders, but also in duos, like in the classic Marvel Team-Ups comics. This team spirit is a great contrast to Annihilus, who wants to be the single ruler of the universe. We felt that keeping the teamwork aspect for multiplayer only would be a missed opportunity; plus, with a huge roster of 15 playable superheroes, there was a concern that players might be overwhelmed by the process of picking a single character and worry about missing out on another hero’s abilities. This led us to the Cosmic Swap, a solution in which players actually pick two superheroes they can swap on the fly or combine their powers. It gives the players flexibility as they can combine a variety of abilities to face different challenges, but on the storytelling side, it also gives us a chance to have character interactions, which is amazing to explore narrative elements while keeping the players in the action.”

Cosmic Invasion is building on a grand Marvel legacy in side-scrolling beat-em-ups, going all the way back to arcade classics like X-Men or Captain America and the Avengers and console games like Spider-Man and Venom: Maximum Carnage. Gemus noted the influence of those titles on their Cosmic Invasion, recalling how important those games were to them. “We grew up playing the Marvel legacy titles at the arcade and on our home systems, so recapturing the magic of playing with friends or the feeling of awe when you discover a new stage or face a new villain was the easy part, but we really wanted to build this game differently. Instead of trying to emulate the gameplay of other titles, we built our game around our superheroes and how they express themselves. For example, some of them fly, so we made sure there was an extra layer to the arenas for flight and a ton of flying enemies! Other superheroes have ranged attacks? Let’s make sure our enemies can block them and attack from a distance as well! This helped us break past some of the classic tropes of the genre and build a fresh experience that doesn’t feel solely focused on nostalgia.”

Dotemu and Tribute Games have found a lot of success in the modern era in updating the side-scrolling beat-em-up for modern gamers, with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge earning rave reviews from critics and selling well with broader audiences. Reflecting on that success and the impact it had on Cosmic Invasion, Gemus noted that “I think we hit a homerun with our previous title by making an experience that is just easy to pick up for anyone and fun to share. We created a simple gameplay loop that younger players could enjoy by simply mashing two buttons, and it was easy for anyone to join the action by just picking up a controller at any time, online or offline, to drop in. This is something that became core to our development, and even though our Marvel Super Heroes have more abilities and there’s a lot more action on screen, we always make sure that the game remains enjoyable for players of all ages, so that everyone can share a session together.”

Days Of Future Past, Today

Bringing the classic beat-em-up genre to modern audiences is a deceptively tricky beast, given the ways the game typically worked best in the arcade setting but could struggle on home consoles. Luckily, Dotemu and Tribute Games have found the proper balance in presentation and execution to deliver a solid experience that feels attuned to the history of the genre but with a clear eye for modern styles.

Gemus explained, “At Tribute Games, we make games that play like you remember: even though we tackle genres from the arcade era or showcase pixel art that seems to be taken straight from retro gaming, they are definitely modern games! We love beat ‘em ups, and our team worked on many titles in their careers, so we are well aware of their shortcomings, but also their best qualities as well!

“By focusing on what makes these games great, like their rhythm, how easy it can be to chain amazing combos, or by having a varied roster, we are able to build an easy-to-pick-up and hard-to-put-down experience that can transcend any modern expectations with pure fun… We love to see these games as an introduction to the types of experiences from our youth, not only due to their looks, but also because of how simple and efficient they are. It’s also a unique experience that is different from the rest of the Marvel Games portfolio, with a sense of nostalgia that we hope will motivate players to discover and get into the classic cartoons or comic books from that era.“

Looking ahead to the game’s release, Belzil revealed that the future roadmap for the title depends on the response the game receives from the gaming public. “DLC depends on the game’s success, so we’ll see! But it was funny (and heartening) to see people talk about DLC and wishlisting their favorite characters as soon as the game was announced.”

Reflecting on the development cycle and the biggest surprises of the experience, Gemus noted that “I think the fans’ reaction to our unique roster of Super Heroes has been the best! Being at SDCC and hearing the crowd go wild when we announced Beta Ray Bill and Silver Surfer as playable characters was nuts! Even though we could probably have a roster of 300 fan favorites, I feel like everyone is just excited about each character we picked and that they really understand what we are trying to achieve, which makes us even more thrilled for the launch ahead!“

Marvel Cosmic Invasion launches December 1, 2025, for PC, PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo Switch.