Ravensburger will be expanding its Marvel universe with a brand new Marvel Villainous “expandalone game.”
ComicBook.com can exclusively report that Marvel Villainous: Twisted Ambition adds Doctor Octopus, Titania, and Kang the Conquerer to the popular Marvel-themed Villainous game. As with other Marvel Villainous games, each character will have their own goals and win conditions. Doctor Octopus needs to complete five Schemes, which range from collecting power to defeating Spider-Man. Titania needs to gain strength to become Empowered and defeat She-Hulk. Kang uses Variants to appear in other Villain decks with the aim of conquering four locations in other Villain Domains with Robot Duplicates. Pre-orders for Marvel Villainous: Twisted Ambition will be available starting on February 3rd. The Target version will come with an exclusive “chrome” Doctor Octopus mover.
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ComicBook.com had the chance to speak with Mike Mulvihill, Game Development Manager at Ravensburger North America about the next Marvel Villainous expansion and the unique challenges that comes with building a game around such iconic villains:
ComicBook.com: Why were these three villains selected – is there anything they have in common? Do they fit into any overarching Marvel Villainous narrative?
Mike Mulvihill: We always want a compelling headliner or cover character – someone that stops you in the aisle and makes you say OMG “X” is in Villainous. So that means they not only have to be an awesomely well-known Villain but must have a unique silhouette.
We have been wanting to get a cover for Doc Ock, and he was decided and approved before anyone else. I love She Hulk – she’s one of my favorite Heroes ever – so I wanted to make sure her ultimate enemy, Titania, would appear in the game. She’s a woman who fights with total unabashed strength, which is cool to design. With two Villains that fight singular Heroes, we decided to go with a deep cut Villain that fights with the entire Marvel Universe – Kang the Conqueror, an old school Avengers Villain.
Marvel offers us a 4th character, if you will, with our Common Fate deck – a set of Fate cards that are independent of the Villain decks. Previously in Infinite Power, the deck was themed around the Avengers; in Mischief and Malice, the theme was S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. In Twisted Ambitions, we realized early on that a common link between the three Villains was their ties to New York, specifically Spider-Man, and settled on the New York / Spider-Verse themed Common Fate deck.
For those that love their Marvel history, check out the Targeted Event cards. They also are themed in a unique way between all 3 Villains! Each of these Villains pushed us to create new types of mechanics and Objectives that will challenge the players – each interacts differently than other Villains and yet, fits perfectly into the shared Marvel Villainous universe for a unique and immersive experience.
Mulvihill: What makes it more competitive? More interactive? What is the delta between that and Disney/Star Wars?
We consider Disney Villainous to be most accessible for new players. Playing characters whose stories often are captured in one film, with their Objective being the thing they failed at in that one story, makes them more straightforward, understandable Villains to play.
Star Wars Villainous is a bit more difficult. Villains may be in multiple movies over time and their Objective may be a bit muddled over time. But since the game play is closed (i.e., only things that Darth Vader encountered could be used in his story) it follows more of a Disney play pattern, but comes with some cool new features, like Ambition and Vehicles.
Marvel is our most competitive version. In the Marvel Universe, every Hero has fights with every Villain. We could not, nor would we want, to limit that – so things like the Common Fate deck and the heavy use of Villains messing with each other – make Marvel Villainous much more aggressive and interactive, which adds more complexity.
The addition of Doc Ock, Tatiana, and Kang create a high level of interactivity that we consistently strive to include. Kang has cards that are inserted into other Villain decks. Titania can call and move Heroes into and out of other Villains realms. Doc Ock is a mastermind – always scheming and manipulating events.
The Common Fate deck really pushes the interactivity causing havoc with any Villain created. These Villains really alter the game play experience for players that love the old Villains, letting players manipulate and change the status of the game to try and win while slowing their opponent’s down – like a true Villain!
What challenges come with designing the “shared universe” aspect of Marvel Villainous and has that original concept expanded at all with the new expansion?
Mulvihill: The awesome (positive and scary!) challenge of Marvel is there are 70 years of history – of every Villain fighting every Hero and millions of plots to choose from! Yet when we pick a villain, we try to find one plot – one set of Heroes and Allies and one “story” to tell. And we keep a massive database of cards we used so that if we have lots of Spider-Men (in this set and in Venom), they all have different abilities and different names – just like the comics!
The evolution, or expansion of the concept as you state it, comes from creating new and cool Objectives/gameplay that fits and tells the story of the Villain AND that makes a new Villain compelling with the other older Villains. That process is the coolest for Marvel because we toss out Objective ideas, mechanics, plots, and Marvel History to come to a final path forward.
Are there any unexpected heroes that show up in the new Fate cards?
Mulvihill: The Common Fate deck has some awesome Spider-Verse Heroes that haven’t been seen before. Titania fights some throw-back She-Hulk companions. Kang has a couple surprising Hero’s combos – including some first timers that fans of Kang will get immediately.
Marvel Villainous: Twisted Ambitions will be released later this year.
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Image Courtesy of Marvel Studios
