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I don’t think even Stan Lee when he was creating is first comic could have imagined where his iconic characters would go and the global reach of his product. It is truly incredible. To go along with that there are now an unbelievable amount of Marvel themed board games on the market for board gamers to get involved with. If you are a huge fan of Marvel like us, then getting to play games that utilise our favourite Marvel characters is awesome. So here is just a selection of the Zatu blogging teams favourite Marvel games of the moment.
Marvel Remix by Dan Street-Phillips
There are so many Marvel themed games out there in the world and as a big comic book fan I probably played most of them, however the one that seems to get to the table most is Marvel Remix. Based on the modern classic that is Fantasy Realms, Remix is a simple game of take a card and play a card. You begin the game with seven cards in your hand, six remix cards and one villain. Every card belongs to a certain suit, whether a location, a hero, ally or villain with the only condition that you must end the game with at least one villain and at least one hero or ally.
On your turn you can draw a card from a shared discard row or from the deck and then you must play a card to the shared discard row. Once the row reaches a total of ten cards then the game ends immediately. I love this tension! You might want to draw a card, blind, from the deck but then that will speed up the game, not giving you the time you need to strengthen your hand. You will score by combo-ing your cards together, often blanking cards if their needs are not satisfied. This is such a quick and addictive game and maybe it is because it is so quick that it has risen to the top of my Marvel list. For those who enjoy the theme it is great to see such obscure characters make their way into the mix and not just characters too, but recognisable locations and equipment. And what makes this particular game great is even if the theme doesn’t grab you, the gameplay is interesting enough to entice even the most Marvel fatigued of us.
Marvel Smash Up by David Ireland
I love the Smash up series, anyone who’s looked over my other blogs can see that. My excitement hit new levels when the team at AEG announced the Marvel edition of Smash up. It did not disappoint.
The brilliance of Smash Up is all sets work together and are interchangeable. Smash Up Marvel is its own standalone 2-4 game, or does blend seamlessly with the rest, which, surprisingly, I’m yet to try. Teaming the Avengers up with the dinosaurs or Vikings does have an appeal for sure.
This set contains 8 marvel factions. These are the Avengers as already noted, Agents of Shield, the Kree, Marvel Ultimate’s, Hydra, the Masters of Evil, Sinister Six and Spider-Verse. There is still so much not included that could be further expanded on if the creators wanted to, I hope they do.
The mechanics of the game are very simple. Use your cards to break bases and score the VP points associated with the base. There are prizes (VP’s) for the top 3 players on the base. First to score 15 victory points wins, or in the event of a tie, keep going until there is an outright winner. During the game each player starts with 5 cards. On a player turn they simply play an action and/or play a character. Once card actions are resolved, check to see if any bases are broken and score accordingly. Finally draw 2 new cards and play passes on to the next player.
It is the card and factions’ unique abilities that make this game fantastic as they are all very different and all very competitive. There are plenty of surprises with these abilities and quite often not obvious at all. You would think the Avengers unstoppable, yet (frustratingly) I’m yet to see them pick up a win. Don’t be put off by that though, it has been incredibly close and combinations of factions coupled with the luck of the draw of the cards at any point does play a factor. They will win at some point.
Smash up is a brilliant game and the addition of the Marvel Universe to the series has only enhanced the series.
Marvel D.A.G.G.E.R by Sam (Games with Graven)
Marvel D.A.G.G.E.R. is a co-op where 1-5 players take on a nefarious Nemesis from the villain pantheon – Loki, Red Skull, Ultron and Thanos all rear their heads in the base game (there’s clearly space for expansion here, just warning you now!) This is a push towards a heavier-weight gaming experience than you might expect, and that’s not a bad thing but might put off some younger or more casual players.
First of all, though you need to be aware that you're going to need SPACE - this is a big game - and, at least the first couple of times, plenty of time. Part of this stems from creating the mission decks. From 30 available missions, you're randomly selecting 9 and creating 3 stacks, each with a Nemesis (boss villain) mission added in.
You also have to build your team, from a huge roster of heroes including Spider-Man, Hulk, Captain Marvel and even more unfamiliar characters (at least to MCU fans) such as Jericho Drum, though there's a handy hero profile guide included also. Hero cards are double sided, with characters that have similar (though not identical) power sets on each (e.g. Captain Marvel/Spectrum, or Black Panther / Shuri). You also need to assign an aspect to your hero, which will feel very familiar to fans of Marvel Champions: on top of Aggression, Leadership, Justice and Protection, there's now also Vigilance and Determination, which are more team-work orientated, as the game is all about combo'ing your characters. Team-up is an integral part of the game.
The board is clear and of excellent quality, with familiar regions and pathways between them. There is a lot to love in the tokens here - they are all visually and physically distinctive, which is always good from an accessibility perspective; I particularly like that the enemy standees change not only in size but in physical shape depending on their level.
Each player turn, you take turns using one of your 3 actions tokens (2 Regular, 1 Boost) to perform either an action on your persona or their Aspect. You'll move around the board, trying to defeat enemies from side missions or generated by the nemesis, before the threat track on the current mission is passed. You can also activate the DAGGER ability at certain sites where there are bases, and can even attempt to Stun the Nemesis - whilst you can't defeat them till the final confrontation (having beaten all 3 nemesis missions), a Stunned nemesis has the abilities greatly diminished. In the Nemesis turn, once an event has triggered from the relevant deck (attack of the B-list villain!), unless stunned they and their minions deal damage in rank order.
Gameplay has the edge over lighter-weight co-ops such as Marvel United which, though great fun, is nowhere near as intense an experience. If I’m being honest, it’s pleasantly surprising to feel a real sense of threat in this game: the heroes can win, but it’s never easy. On balance, a cracking game which is good at whatever player count - simple modifications to the number of actions means 1/2 is still balanced, and higher player counts are all about proper communication, because if you don't plan and play together you WILL lose. If you want a big, absorbing, IP co-op it's very satisfying.
Infinity Gauntlet – A Love Letter Game by Steven Gibney
Infinity Gauntlet draws its inspiration from the card-based deduction game Love Letter. Rather than a historical romance theme, gameplay and theme are updated and based on Infinity War.
One player assumes the role of Thanos, striving to collect Infinity Stones, while the remaining players become heroes trying to stop him. Players take turns drawing, playing cards, and carrying out their effects. Hero’s must outsmart and defeat Thanos by playing main characters from the MCU, each of which have different power levels, including Iron Man, Spider-Man, Captain Marvel, and Scarlet Witch. Meanwhile,
Thanos tries to defeat the heroes using cards from his own deck containing minions and the Infinity Stones. The goal for the heroes is to get Thanos’ health to zero by “defeating” cards in his hand. While Thanos has the option to reduce the Hero’s health to zero or collect all six Infinity Stones.
The one-versus-many theme of Infinity Gauntlet adds a great twist to the original Love Letter. As in the film, the Hero’s success depends on teamwork; clear communication and planning are needed to use the right ability, at the right time. In contrast, Thanos has the Infinity Stones which are incredibly powerful but he is outnumbered and must also choose the right moment to use them, or risk wasting them.
Overall, Infinity Gauntlet is an excellent mini-game worth playing when you’re on-the-go or as a warm up on game nights (easily done with a play time of ~20 minutes). It’s lightweight, comes in a well-designed pouch, and relies on a deck of cards and a few tokens. The components are well made and cards clearly explain their effects, making it a straightforward game to play. The gameplay mechanics align perfectly with the MCU theme, and it differs enough from the game’s predecessor to make it worth adding to any Marvel themed collection.
Marvel United by Seb Hawden
Firstly, let me tell you I am a massive Marvel nerd. Not a recent one either, long before the MCU came into existence, I worked in a comic shop and loved all things Marvel. Anyway…… board games, that’s why you are here. I have played and owned many Marvel Board Games and none of them get my family and kids around the table quite like Marvel United.
In Marvel United, up to four heroes take on one of Marvel’s massive roster of baddies. When I say massive, I mean huge and it’s now on its third Kickstarter, I believe. I backed the first two and will probably never get through all the content I have. What’s great about it is how plug-and-play it is. Pick a set of heroes, pick an enemy and you’re off to the races. You can add some little tweaks here and there but above all, it’s very simple and easy to get into a game.
Each hero has their own deck of cards that gardener what you can do on your turn. Whether it’s move, fight or even use a special ability, playing the correct card will allow you to do what you need. What makes this game a bit more cooperative is that when you play your card to the ‘timeline’ you also action a symbol from the card before. This makes talking tactics and teamwork vital and makes you feel like a superhero team.
As with most games of this ilk, you have to defeat the boss by whittling down their HP. However, each boss is different, each one has its own quirks and dealing with hazards and events as they arise, as a ream, is paramount. We love Marvel United, it never outstays it’s welcome, everyone can play and there’s so much content. Plus, I love painting these Chibi-style heroes from my youth. Excelsior!
(Models painted by the author)
Marvel Legendary by Rob Wright
This is probably the oldest Marvel-themed game on this list, and it still remains an absolute banger.
Legendary: A Marvel Deck Building Game was first released in 2012, four years after the release of Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk, but still before the MCU had gained any proper momentum. It is, as described, a deck-builder, and a co-operative one at that (though you can have a ‘winner’, based on how many Villains a player has defeated). It is more the offspring of Ascension as opposed to Dominion, but is influenced by this big daddy of deck builders as well.
The game sees players take on the roles of not so much individual super heroes as groups of heroes. Two decks are formed out of selected villains and henchman for the Mastermind, an end-of-level big boss like Loki or Magneto, and a number of super heroes based on how many players there are and preference – the base game comes with the likes of Hulk, Iron Man, Spiderman and Black Widow.
The individual decks are shuffled and set up to be the Villain deck and the Hero deck. On each player’s turn, a Villain card is revealed, which could be a Villain, Henchman, Bystander or Master Plan. Villains and Henchmen are played to the City Row, Bystanders become hostages for the Villains and the Masterplan activates the Mastermind’s attack. Players then use their six cards to buy cards from HQ, defeat baddies or the mastermind, or a combination of the two. Different card combinations give you different effects, so this is all about the combos. Players win as a group if the Mastermind is defeated, players lose as a group if the Mastermind completes their masterplan.
There are oodles of expansions for it now, so you can quite literally create any kind of Marvel matchup, and it is a testament to the longevity of the game that expansions are still being released. Still one of the greats.
Marvel Splendor by Sophie Jones
Splendor is all about collecting gems and trying to win the affection of nobles until you get enough points to win. It’s got great mechanics which make it an instant favourite. Marvel Splendor takes this classic to new heights with a stronger theme and new additions to get you thinking.
As a fan of Marvel, it was great to see the Splendor deck transformed with my favourites including Rogue, Black Panther, Black Widow and more! Instead of mines and jewellers, players will instead recruit their favourite heroes or villains and add them to their set. Gems are replaced with infinity stones and the winning prize is Thanos’s gauntlet. It’s a fun theme which is perfect for introducing younger players to Splendor.
Other than the fun reskin of cards and gems, this version does include some additional mechanics to alter your strategy. On top of the usual, players will also need to collect a top tier Marvel character in order to grab a green infinity stone. Until they have this stone, they cannot complete their set and finish the game. It adds a little bit more to the end game and means you can bag more points.
Furthermore, instead of winning the favour of nobles, you will instead win locations set in the Marvel universe. Additionally, some Marvel recruits will have Avenger symbols on them. Once a player has 3 of these, they will gain the Avenger Assemble tile worth 3 points. This tile will be passed around during the game as the person with the most Avenger symbols will take this even if another player won it first. Keeping an eye on this tile can be essential to winning the game as someone can take it from you at the last minute and steal the victory.
If you are a fan of Splendor and Marvel this edition is a must have. It adds thematic touches which are aesthetically pleasing and improve the gameplay dynamics.
Marvel Champions by Victor Rios Faria
Have you ever imagined what if Hulk tried to stop Magneto’s schemes with clever moves? Or if Rogue decided to beat Thanos up with her bare hands? Well, in Marvel Champions: The Card Game, you can try it and much more!
This living card game allows you to pick your favourite heroes and the villains you want to defeat under whichever scenario you want. The base game is based on the Avengers plot, featuring five heroes and three villains. Expansion sets and hero packs introduce not only more Avengers and their nemesis, but also Guardians of the Galaxy and X-Men with their crew.
The rules are very simple: choose a hero and an aspect out of Justice, Aggression, Leadership and Protection based on your preferences. Build a deck with 40 to 50 cards and go save the day by defeating the big bad guy before they complete their evil machinations or knock our heroes down. But beware, villainous minions and side schemes will divert your attention.
If you are a Marvel fan, the game has insane amounts of content, full of flavour and lore. You can spend hours and hours just thinking about story-driven decks, crazy combos or simply admiring how beautifully the game designers gave each hero a singular set of cards that represents very well what that character is like, making the way you play them very thematic and unique.
Customization is king, and fun is guaranteed. If you want to keep the encounters into their own universes or mix and match them, it is up to you: the only rule about it is to have a great time! You also have the option to choose whether you want to play a quick custom skirmish or a complete campaign representing an epic Marvel storyline. Stunning artwork, dynamic gameplay, and epic battles. Hurry up, our heroes need your help!
Marvel Crisis Protocol by Northern Invasion Stu
Okay, let’s start with a quick disclaimer. Marvel Crisis Protocol is not a game you can play straight from the box - no matter how hard you try. The core-box is packed full of glorious goodies. Unfortunately, however, the characters and scenery are grey plastic and will require assembly. If like myself, you have a background in table top wargaming and are used to building and painting whole armies, this won’t be problematic at all. If you’re more of a board game player, and want to be able to enjoy the game as soon as you break off the cellophane, this one may not be for you.
That said, let’s consider MCP. As I said, I am used to painting 100 or so miniatures for each army that I want to play. For MCP you will only need between three and six characters per side for most games. For tournament play, or to enjoy the full strategic experience, each player needs 10 characters that they can use in each game - a scenario is selected by the players and then each choose characters from their 10 person roster that they think will fare best against their opponent’s force and in the mission before them.
MCP really is a fantastic skirmish game. It is cinematic to play and is surprisingly strategic once you get to grips with the rules. The minis themselves are great quality and have really come on since the game launched a few years ago. There is such a variety and choice of factions to play at this point that people can draw familiar characters from the movies or from their favourite comic book teams when they select their roster.
The box itself is amazing value, and if you’re interested in getting into the game, I would highly recommend picking one up. ‘Earth’s Mightiest Core Box’ has everything that you need for two players to play, aside from some basic modelling tools and paint. If you already have these items, or scenery from other games, you could pick up the core-box and have the characters table top ready and a game played comfortably within a weekend.
Marvel Zombies by Northern Invasion Stu
Marvel Zombies is the latest Zombicide title from cool mini or not (CMoN). The game follows the standard zombicide rule set but is set within the Marvel Zombies universe from the run of comics published a few years ago. Players take control of their favourite characters who have succumbed to a zombie virus. They must work together cooperatively, or play solo, to fight off waves of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents and healthy super heroes who are trying to end their ravenous rampage across New York.
Marvel Zombies introduces a new hunger mechanic, which is great fun. Players must find a balance between being sated and being ravenous. The more turns a player goes without devouring an agent, a superhero or a bystander they will increasingly become more and more hungry. Likewise, the hunger icon on attack dice further increases hunger. Once ravenous, all our zombie heroes can do is move and devour - they can’t make use of those sweet, superhero abilities or any advancements they have picked up so far in the game.
Games of Marvel Zombies are fast and fun. There are already plenty of expansions available to add depth to the game, and even enable players to take the role of superheroes, trying to fight off their old comrades who have fallen to the zombie virus. My only complaint with this game is the lack of campaign play. Each scenario is standalone and, whilst they advance in complexity and difficulty, it would’ve been great if there was some way to link your adventures together.
All of the miniatures are easily identifiable in different-coloured plastic so it isn’t essential to paint them before play. That said, the quality of the sculpts are quite phenomenal at times. If you’re a hobby painter, it will be hard to resist throwing some paint on them to add to the immersion of the experience. If you like Marvel, which I presume you are if you’re reading this, or if you’re a miniature gamer, I would wholeheartedly recommend picking up Marvel Zombies for a little more light-hearted fun with the family or as a beer and pretzels game with friends.
Final Thoughts
There is so much choice now in the Marvel board game range, which for us as fans of both board games and the Marvel theme, absolutely love. We hope you have enjoyed our feature and have been able to aid in your decision on what Marvel game to pick up.
Editors note: This post was originally published on 18th Jan 2024. Updated on 17th April 2024 to improve the information available.