“MARVEL Cosmic Invasion” Review by Nick Navarro
With great anticipation, I was giddy to finally step into “MARVEL Cosmic Invasion,” and it felt like coming home to the side-scrolling arcade chaos I grew up with, only now rebuilt with modern precision by a team that clearly loves this genre as much as I do. Tribute Games already reminded the world what a great beat ’em up can look like with “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge,” and as soon as I started pummeling enemies here, it was obvious they’ve carried that same passion into a much bigger, bolder project. With Dotemu publishing and Marvel Games collaborating, this one sets its sights higher than simply riffing on the classics; it wants to stand alongside them.
What immediately drew me in was the sheer diversity of the roster. Being handed fifteen Marvel Super Heroes from the jump, with icons like Spider-Man, Wolverine, She-Hulk, Captain America, Phoenix, Black Panther, Storm, and Iron Man standing shoulder-to-shoulder with cosmic heavy hitters like Nova, Beta Ray Bill, Phyla-Vell, Cosmic Ghost Rider, Rocket Raccoon, and even the Silver Surfer, gives the game both the familiarity of old comics and the excitement of discovering new pairings. I really loved seeing how earth-born heroes and cosmic heroes all converge to push back the Annihilation Wave, and it works so well because each character actually plays differently instead of feeling like a reskin. The Cosmic Swap system became one of my favorite mechanics almost immediately. Each level lets you pick two heroes and switch between them on the fly, which adds layers of strategy without making the game complicated. Sometimes I’d jump between characters to chain together bigger combos, and other times I’d just try strange pairings to see who complemented whom, kind of like building my own dream team lineup. Some characters are meant to be paired to accomplish stage-specific bonus objectives. Even though this mechanic is simple to use, it opens up so much creativity that I found myself replaying levels just to test new duos and see how they handled different enemy types.
Tribute’s combat direction is once again spot-on. Everything feels punchy and weighty in a way that channels the beat ’em up greats without leaning too far into nostalgia for nostalgia’s sake. The basic attacks are satisfying enough for players who just want to mash their way through waves, but when I started exploring the deeper combos and special abilities tied to each character, I realized how much room there is to elevate your playstyle. It reminds me of the best arcade cabinets, where anyone could pick up a controller and have fun, but the real depth becomes clear once you settle in and start experimenting. Visually, the game is a knockout. The pixel art is bright, colorful, and dense with detail, echoing the best of Marvel’s cosmic eras without mimicking comic art directly. Instead, it lands somewhere between classic arcade spectacle and modern pixel artistry. Every location, from New York City to the Negative Zone, feels distinct and full of character; these pixelated stages have real personality in them as well as some easter eggs if you know where to look. The Annihilation Wave makes for a great villainous force too, and the game uses that threat to anchor a galaxy-spanning tone that feels energetic without being overwhelming.
Even though the campaign starts off fairly approachable, things shift once modifiers come into play. It’s here where the game’s longevity really surprised me. Modifiers reshape encounters, challenge you to rethink your team selections, and give completionists a meaningful reason to return. I liked how the game eases players in, then gradually reveals how complex the systems can get without ever feeling inaccessible. That balance, simple to learn and layered once you dig deeper, is exactly why Tribute Games continues to stand out in the beat ’em up space. Multiplayer also hits the mark. Whether I was playing online or locally, the drop-in/drop-out system made everything feel frictionless, and the pacing of levels naturally complements a co-op mindset. This is the kind of game that’s just as fun with one person as it is with three others tossing enemies across the screen. In a year where co-op experiences have been plentiful, this one stands out as one of the most reliably fun options, especially if you want something that feels both modern and classic at the same time.
While it isn’t the most innovative game in the genre, that honestly isn’t a drawback here. “MARVEL Cosmic Invasion” focuses on execution above reinvention, and in almost every way, it excels at delivering exactly what it aims to be. It’s colorful, polished, mechanically satisfying, and full of heart. It acknowledges decades of arcade inspiration while never losing itself in reference. Tribute Games knows this genre inside and out, and they’ve once again demonstrated that mastery with confidence and style. Right alongside “Absolum,” which impressed me earlier this year (feel free to check out my review HERE), this stands as one of the strongest beat ’em ups I’ve played in 2025. Between its massive roster, sharp combat, beautiful pixel art, and replay-friendly systems, “MARVEL Cosmic Invasion” feels like the Marvel beat ’em up fans have been waiting for since the ‘90s arcades. It’s energetic, polished, and consistently fun from start to finish, exactly the kind of game I love to lose a weekend to, and one I can easily see myself returning to for months just to unlock everything and try out new hero combinations.
9/10
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Related: Nick Navarro Reviews
Gaming since I was given an original Nintendo as a kid. I love great storytelling and unique ingenuity. When both collide in a single game, I'm a happy gamer. Twitter/IG @NickNavarro87
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