Superhero games are a dime a dozen, and over the past decade especially, we’ve been treated to some of the very best in the genre. Marvel games, especially, have had a bit of a renaissance, and 2026 is looking pretty spectacular, with the likes of Marvel’s Wolverine and Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls set to win the hearts of any self-respecting comic book fan out there. However, even beyond Marvel, we’ve had a slew of pretty wonderful superhero games come and go. Frankly, the most divisive releases of the past six years are far better than the majority of what was coming out before the early 2000s.
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However, despite getting some of the greatest superhero games ever made in the past decade, long before that, we were treated to a handful of masterpieces that still hold up today. Between 2000 and 2009, Marvel, DC, and superhero fans in general got to play some genre-defining masterpieces that still absolutely shine just as bright today. From a phenomenally good Batman classic to a somewhat underrated superhero gem, these iconic 2000s games are just as legendary as the superheroes within them.
5. Prototype
Prototype was not your typical superhero game. Releasing at the tail end of the 2000s, Prototype followed what was becoming an increasingly popular trend of focusing on anti-heroes. Alex Mercer, the first game’s protagonist, had a suite of abilities that saw him leap like the Hulk, run across walls like Spider-Man, and blast out tendril-like arms like Venom. These, alongside many others, coupled with the vast open world, made it a truly unique experience that was only really superseded when Marvel’s Spider-Man came out, and more or less did what it was attempting to do, but with a much bigger budget.
Prototype isn’t perfect, of course, but it does absolutely achieve what it set out to do with its strong gameplay-focused experience. It’s grimy, unique, and endlessly brutal, and was a frankly refreshing twist on the typical superhero experience of the era. Its sequel, which was sadly the last game in the series, built upon many of its ideas and mechanics, making it the definitive experience. However, the original Prototype still makes for a great superhero game that delivers some of the most engrossing action of any title in the genre, even after nearly 20 years.
4. The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction
Before Prototype, Radical Entertainment released the critically acclaimed, beloved, and often overlooked game The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction. Much of what makes Prototype so great is featured in Ultimate Destruction, from the sandbox open world segments that appear between missions, including a city location, to the agility of its protagonist, a suite of fun abilities (including using two cars as boxing gloves to pummel tanks into submission), and the delivery of an unparalleled power fantasy.
The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction absolutely lives up to its title, offering what is still the definitive Hulk video game outside of perhaps his appearance in Marvel’s Avengers. It’s fast, furious, and endlessly fun, with Hulk’s power and huge leaps being perfectly translated from page to screen. The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction may not have the more refined visuals or detailed world design of Prototype, but for fans of the Hulk or indeed those looking for a lesser-known Marvel game, it is the perfect choice.
3. Marvel Ultimate Alliance
I don’t know whether Marvel Ultimate Alliance has aged particularly well, but back in the 2000s, it was a dream come true. It took a huge roster of playable heroes and villains from the Marvel comics and planted them into fun and varied missions that were playable in co-op with a friend. I remember grinding this game endlessly with my sibling, always desperately wanting to play as certain characters but ultimately relinquishing them so that they could have a go. Marvel Ultimate Alliance, as the name suggests, was a game best experienced with friends, which is likely why I have such fond memories of it.
Sure, it may not be the best Marvel game ever made, but there is a lot of charm to the original game. It also spawned a really successful franchise that was, for the longest time, the only way you could get an Avengers-esque experience. The coming together of such a varied and often creatively designed roster allowed fans of all kinds of characters to get stuck into its surprisingly lengthy runtime, and the co-op meant that it was largely infinitely replayable so long as you enjoyed its relatively simple hack-and-slash mechanics. I have a sweet spot for Marvel Ultimate Alliance, and I really do feel like it exemplifies that kind of superhero game we were getting in the 2000s.
2. Infamous
Long before it released the critically acclaimed Ghost of Tsushima and Ghost of Yotei, Sucker Punch Productions released the morally complex superhero title, Infamous. Focusing, once again, on an anti-hero, Infamous successfully balanced moral quandaries, choices, and open-world superhero shenanigans in a way that even Prototype failed to achieve. Its open-world parkour and unlockable electric abilities absolutely served as the precursor to Marvel’s Spider-Man games, as did the big focus on a cinematic narrative.
While its sequels introduced more abilities, bigger worlds, and arguably better storytelling, Infamous is nevertheless a superhero game with a novel twist that holds up today. It is also a rare open-world game that isn’t ardously long, released at a time when shorter experiences were still considered premium. Sure, it isn’t the most visually stunning game ever released, but there is a lot to admire about Infamous, and it is a great shame that PlayStation and Sucker Punch Productions didn’t feel that it was a series worth continuing.
1. Batman: Arkham Asylum
Of course, perhaps the greatest superhero game of the 2000s and maybe even of all time is the legendarily good Batman: Arkham Asylum. While we could likely sit here all day and debate which of the Arkham games ranks as the number one best Batman game of all time, Asylum was the first and is inarguably a classic. Its combat revolutionized third-person hand-to-hand action and quickly became the gold standard, influencing a plethora of titles like Sleeping Dogs, Mad Max, and The Lord of the Rings: Shadow of games.
However, it is the setting, story, and cast of villains Batman faces that make Arkham Asylum truly shine. Rocksteady proved it really knew the character and the comics with Asylum, delivering lore and strong characterization flawlessly. There’s a simplicity to Arkham Asylum that I do feel modern superhero games are missing. That isn’t to say that Asylum isn’t complex, but rather that it absolutely knows what it wants to achieve and does so with technical and mechanical mastery. Arkham Asylum was a revelation back in 2009 and remains so to this very day. If you’re yet to play it, do yourself a favor and get stuck in right now.
Which 2000s superhero game do you recommend? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in theย ComicBook Forum!
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