All of them will arrive with the new Shadow of Doom DLC

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 is getting ready to host its third, and possibly final, season pass premium DLC on March 25: Shadow of Doom. All four members of the Fantastic Four are confirmed a??s player c?haracters, with Doctor Doom serving as the primary antagonist. But as per Marvel Games' Twitter account, there's also more outfit DLC coming on that same day.

So there's two sets of DLC here: let's break it down. Everyone will get one free set of costumes on March 25: Star-Lord (Conquest), Rocket & Groot (Conquest), Drax (Thanos Imperative), Gamora (Conquest) and Thanos (Annihilation?). Those will all unlock through gameplay requirements as?? normal.

But on that same date, another set of costumes will launch that is directly tied to DLC ownership. That set includes Iceman (All-New X-Men), Cable (Classic), Jean Grey (Marvel Girl) and Gambit (Age of Apocalypse). You can look at both content drops in the gallery below, and remember yet another outfit add-on was announced recently.

Free consistent costume drops have been a huge boon for Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 these past seven months: but they still don't make up for the misfires of the season pass DLC drops so far. Hopefully Shadow of Doom is different.

Marvel Games [Twitter]

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Jessica Jones still isn't playable

In a bid to help promote the upcoming "Shadow of Doom" Fantastic Four/Doctor Doom-flavored paid DLC next week, the Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 team is sharing a new set o??f ski?ns for the game.

As is customary the skins will be free, with Daredevil sporting his iconic "Man Without Fear" digs, Iron Fist rocking a "Modern" look, Luke Cage is classic "Power Man," Elektra can don her "Ultimate" look and Deadpool will have his "Battle of the Atom" costume as an option. All of these costumes hit Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 on March 5.

Although I fear that the new Shadow of Doom expansion will be more of the same (a chara??cter dump without any actual narrative or worthwhile content), I'm?? hopeful that somehow, someway we're getting more story content. Maybe not. In the meantime, we have costumes and characters!

Marvel Games [Twitter]

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I wonder when the season pass will go on sale

I've skipped all of the DLC for Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order so far (one: the game is on my back-burner, and two: despite cool characters, the content seems uninspired and stale), but I might have to make an exception for the final release of the season pass, Fantastic Four: Shadow of Doom.

As confirmed this morning by Nintendo, the Doctor Doom-centric DLC is releasing on March 26, 2020. If you already got Rise of the Phoenix and Curse of the Vampire, well, it won't be much longer. I'm at a burned-out point with Ultimate Alliance 3 where I need a gam??ep??lay or story shakeup – preferably both!

One of my most-worn t-shirts as a kid prominently featured Doctor Doom, so I kinda can't pass this up even if it's more of the same. I guess if I'm getting Shadow of Doom, I might as well go all-in.

Doom has some of the best out-of-context comic panels around.

The post Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3’s Shadow of Doom DLC is out March 26 appeared first on Destructoid.

Out now

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 is no stranger to free DLC, but that doesn't make those periodic?? content drops any less sweet.

Out of nowhere following the disappointing second season pass entry, the official Nintendo of ?America Twitter account has confirmed four new costumes: Gwenom for Spider-Gwen, Street Wear for Miles Morales, Anti-Venom for Venom and Street Wear for Ms. Marvel. I'd call any one of these deep cuts ??a win, but all four? That's a big win. Oh, and they're out now.

Ms. Marvel is getting a lot of play lately! Not only is her comic run going well, she's also the prevailing wind for the upcoming Square Enix Avengers game, has a Disney+ series coming up and appears as a playable character in the recent card game Marvel Champions. You go, Kamala Khan.

Nintendo of America [Twitter]

The post Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 just got a handful o??f awesome free DLC co??stumes appeared first on Destructoid.

I hope it has Doombots

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 is ready to drop its third and final season pass offering (and possibly final DLC overall?): "Shadow of Doom." Now we already knew the pack would be Fantastic Four-themed and would have Doctor Doom in it, but Nintendo of Canada has re-confirmed the spring 2020 release window and a look at Ultimate Alliance 3's take on the Doctor.

Don't get too excited though. So far the season pass DLCs have been underwhelming, remixing old content in the form of challenge rooms on top of a few decent roster additions. So far each DLC drop comes with four characters: who we can only assume to be the full Fantastic Four lineup. Hopeful?ly we'll get a bonus fifth, because leaving us hanging with an unplayable Doctor Doom would be the final nail in the coffin for this underwhelm??ing season pass.

As a reminder, you can check out a fully updated list of playable characters here, just in c??ase you were waiting t?o pick this one up.

Nintendo of Canada [Twitter]

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Rise of the Phoenix

I didn't necessarily expect to see a Nintendo Switch logo pop up during the first reveal of The Game Awards 2019. The next batch of DLC for Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order is all about the? X-Men (as it should be!). The second expansion pack, Rise of the Phoenix, launches December 23.

With this DLC, we're getting Phoenix, Gambit, Ice Man, and Cable, along with a competitive Danger Room mode and new Gauntlet missions. I was looking for a reason to return. It's? been a while!

The final Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 e?xpansion, Shadow of Doom, is scheduled for spring 20?20.

The post Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3’s X-Men DLC drops December 23 appeared first on Destructoid.

Curse of the Vampire

Buzz for Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 has dulled a bit in the weeks since its release, but it's about to get relevant again with the launch of the Curse of the Vampire DLC.

Out now, the DLC adds Punisher, Blade, Moon Knight, and Morbius to the playable character roster, as part of the "Marvel Knights" team-up source material. It'll also bring a new mode into the fray: "In Gauntlet Mode, up to four players take on a frenzied series of co-op challenges in rapid suc?cession to earn rewards. Once you've cleared a Gauntlet, you will unlock a survival-style version of it with continuous waves of challenges. Find out how long you can last and see how your score stacks up with online rankings."

Remember, the season pass is 20 bucks, an?d you cannot purchase any DLC piecemeal at this time (this was reconfirmed by Nintendo this week), so make sure you read some reviews before you pull the trigger, or better yet just wait until the entire pass is out, then make a decision.

If you aren't po?nying up there's some free content on the way too. The latest content update added new Black Panther, Thor, Iron Man, and Captain America costumes, as well as the "Nightmare" difficulty setting for repeated playthroughs. There's a lot more free DLC on the way in th??e form of outfits and characters, as scores of them were datamined earlier this year.

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Out September 30

It seems as if Nintendo's Japanese website is the place to get all of the first hot Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 news!

Once again the site has been a boon in giving us the first big of info on Curse of the Vampire, the first paid DLC pack that's set to arrive on September 30. In addition to already known info like the fact that B??lade, Moon Knight, Morbius, and Punisher would all ??be playable, we also have our first screenshot of Punisher, and some info on "Gauntlet Mode."

The site lists it as "A mode in which up to four players collaborate and continuously challenge various challenges. You can also enjoy survival that repeats a series of challenges until the game is over." Leaderboards will be supported. As a reminder, there will be a story mode component to Curse of the Vampire too.

As a reminder, Cyclops, Colossus, and a set of free costumes was just delivered by way of a free update on August 30. Also, here's a running lis?t of confirmed playable characters for Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3.

Curse of the Vampire [Nintendo]

The post Here’s our first real look at Marvel Ultimate Alliance’s Curse of the Vampire DLC appeared first on Destructoid.

It's all looking good

If the August 30 update is a taste of what's to come for Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3, I'm so on board.

Thanks to a new update from the "Marvel Minute" YouTube series, we now know exactly what free costumes we're getting from the?? unearthed DLC listing: Spider-Man's? Symbiote Suit, Planet Hulk, and a Ms. Marvel Captain Marvel outfit. Mind, this free update is coming at the same time as the Cyclops and Colossus cast addition on the aforementioned date. So to recap: that's three costumes and two new characters for free.

That free DLC will run through "early 2020" alongside of the premium pass, which is going to create one hell of a "Game of the Year Edition" at some point. As always, you can consult our full running list of playable characters for more info.

The post Here’s the first set of free Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 costumes, plus Colossus and Cyclops footage appeared first on Destructoid.

As a reminder Cyclops and Colossus are coming soon for free too

Over the past few days, eagled-eyed Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 fans have spott??ed a bit of info on the Japanese landing page for the site, and it's good news. Here's the key passage (translated): "From now on, different version costumes for all playable characters will be distributed free of charge until early ?2020."

Now we already knew that Spider-Man, Captain Marvel, and Hulk were getting free costume DLC soon, but this updated notation seems to suggest that the powers that be will continue that train for the next six months or so. That's not including the datamined additions of Black Bolt, Medusa, Valkyrie, and Vision as free (potential) DLC. As far as confirmed stuff goes, as a reminder, Cyclops and Colossus arrive on August 30 as free DLC, with Blade, Moon Knight, Morbius, and Punisher debuting in the first paid DLC pack on September 30. Here's a full list of upcoming releases.

A lot has been happening in the Marvel world lately, with the announcement of the Marvel Champions LCG (a co-op card game that features heroes that were in Ultimate Alliance 3,&nb??sp;with the exception of She-Hulk) and the news that the deal between Disney and Sony fell through for Spidey.

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 [Nintendo via Reddit]

The post It looks like?? Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 is getting free c??ostume DLC through 2020 appeared first on Destructoid.

September 30

I'm still poking around in Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3. I have all the secret characters and most of the Infinity [Challenge] rooms completed, but it's fun to try and mess around with fighters I haven't pla?yed yet and recruit new players into the fold.

I'll be doing a lot more than just occasionally jumping back in by the end of September though, as Nintendo of Europe has announced that the first DLC pack, The Cu??rse of the Vampire, arrives on September 30. Note that this is part of the required season pass (no piecemeal purchases here), but you've pr?obably had enough time to decide if you dig the game or not and want more.

DLC Pack 1 centers around Marvel Knights, a saga that heavily features The Punisher. Joining him will be Daywalker Blade (who is returning in MCU form in a few years), living vampire Morbius (who is now relevant in the film world with a Jared Leto production in the works), Moon Knight ??(who really needs to be in a film at some point). Note that this is the first clear time we've had a look at the in-game models for each character and not just concept art: Bla??de looks on point!

As a reminder, paid DLC packs include story missions, new characters (the standard seems to be four), and additional challenge rooms/modes. Colossus and Cyclops are coming as free DLC on August 30 (they're already in the game, just not playable), and two more paid DLCs are coming in the future, based on the X-Men and Fantastic Four properties. Here's a full updated breakdown!

Nintendo of Europe [Twitter]

The post Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3’s first DLC arrives next month appeared first on Destructoid.

It was only a matter of time

Some glitches are ruinous, but others can be unintentionally helpful. There was a glitch in Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order that allowed players to duplicate a single character and have up to four instances of the same hero working together to beat up baddies and, crucially, earn loads of experience points all at once. As of today, though, it's gone – the 1.0.2 update put an end to the bug.

Funnily enough, I first encountered the character-duping glitch by accident before hearing about it online. It was simply a matter of having the right character in the right spot while playing the Infinity Rift challenges. In short: if you went to play a solo-hero Rift, the game would i?nsert that same character into your party's first slot even if you already had them in a different slot on your team. From there, all you needed to do was bump the newly-created duplicate hero to another spot and repeat the glitch.

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 players, myself included, used the glitch as a way to quickly level-up heroes. I love this silly game, but it is a grind, and I was happy to use every last trick – intentional or otherwise – to speed that process u??p. I'm not too surprised to see Team Ninja patch it out. That's m??odern gaming!

I?f you haven't gotten the update yet, consider this your heads up.

The post Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3’s character dupe glitch fixed in new patch appeared first on Destructoid.

Shame we couldn't do that wooden gun trick on Magneto

In today's episode of Impulse, I sat down once again with my good friend Justin to talk about Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order and the DLC characters we're hopeful for. Now, o??bviously, we could have sat there listing off numerous X-Men characters all day, so we decided to only limit our picks down to thre??e and include only a single X-Men in each our of three picks.

So, it's time to relax, pour a glass of your favorite alcoholic beverage (unless you're CM ??Punk), sit down in your favorite chair, and enjoy the sights and sounds of video games being discussed on the internet!

The post Today on Impulse, we talk about the characters we wanna see as DLC in Marvel ????Ultimate Alliance 3! appeared first on Destructoid.

Mr. Stark I feel alright

You could delive??r brawlers to me by the truckload on a weekly basis.

They're like comfort food: both a reminder of a bygone era when they filled the arcades and my living room with joy. As I continue to harp on the importance of game preservation many brawlers are lost to the ether, including recent projects like the now de-listed Scott Pilgrim vs. the World: The Game.

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order mostly continues that legacy, and with a physical release, it?? won't suffer the same fate.

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order (Nintendo Switch)
Developer: Team Ninja
Publisher: Nintendo
Released: July 19, 2019
MSRP: $59.99

With a heavy Guardians of the Galaxy-fueled intro, we're thrust into an abandoned Kree warship and swiftly waltz into another take on the Infinity Stone saga. After uncovering those stones that would make Jean-Baptiste Emmanuel Zorg green with envy, they scatter; thus beginning the galaxy-trotting adventure. After roughly 30 minutes, much of the cast comes together �/span> as in all of the big?? Avengers, some X-Men, and a few odds and ends.

There's a clear attempt to tie recent relevant IP together, spanning multiple studio rights nightmares and film/television storylines. The first act is clearly a play on the popular Guardians films, and they consistently reappear in various cutscenes throughout. Next up is a send-up of Spider-Verse, then Netflix's now-dead Marvel uni??verse with Kingpin and The Defenders. These interactions existed decades ago on the pages of comic books, but you can see where the team was going to bring in more modern audiences. I dig the effort as it never feels too forced.

Koei Tecmo and Nintendo also do their best to sub in sound-alikes, with props to a particularly entertaining fake Samuel L. Jackson, and you can spot Steve Blum's many performances in an instant (give this man a raise, he plays like 10 characters). I don't agree with the notion that the looks and voices have to be directly MCU-related, as there are decades of history with older comic book character voices, and the cast mostly pulls it off here.

Comb??at, as one might expect, consists of fast and dirty brawler archetypes. There's light and heavy attacks at your disposal, as well as a block/dodge and an ability wheel (which can be triggered for solo or team-up attacks). There's an upgrade system for individual abilities (simplistic stuff, like increasing damage at the cost of AP/XP), a sphere grid-like progression system that branches into several trees, and gems you can equip for bonuses. It's mostly superfluous stuff for post-game challenge room grinding if that's what you want to do, though I never needed to grind for the main story. CPUs are mostl??y competent as they're aggressive, partially protected through CPU armor (so they don't stupidly die to boss mechanics), and can be prompted to use abilities. It all cuts down on the frustration factor.

While there is some depth, particularly in regards to party composition and synergy, in the end this is a silly, flashy game. There's leveling up in combat, full-screen quadruple ultimates all going off at the same time (watching Venom eat someone with a symbiote while Kamala Khan pops off and Ghost Rider is burning everyone with his hell motorcycle is great), and sometimes, there's five or more heroes (including CPU-controlled ones) duking it out on-screen. If you're the type of person who enjoys beat-'em-ups you're going to sport many ??goofy grins throughout the campaign.

I am at odds with the roster, though. Rather than a big "this is the third game in the series" bash, it feels more like a reset button. I appreciate the out-there picks like the aforementioned Ms. Marvel, and seeing Miles Morales and Spider Gwen get their moment in the sun after Spider-Verse charmed the world is a warm and fuzzy feeling. A lot of staples are there like ??Wolverine, Iron Man, Captain America, and Daredevil that will keep most people happy. There's also variety from a mechanical standpoint, as many characters can fly, a few can teleport (remember, Deadpool has his belt), and a handful can web swing. The main issue is that it need??s more villains, full stop, but there are also a few glaring omissions that scream "we left this out for DLC or a sequel."

No playable Vision means I can't recreate team Avengers NES/SNES, and I consider the l?ack of a playable Cyclops at launch a personal attack. Strangely, Daredevil, L??uke Cage, and Iron Fist are all playable, but Jessica Jones is a fleeting non-playable character. Team Spider-Man is totally possible (Peter, Miles, Gwen, Venom) as are a few others ( The Avengers: Iron Man, Cap, Thor, Hulk), and again, the oddballs in the group like Elsa Bloodstone help elevate the roster above the line of "acceptable."

Most of the levels are smooth and there's a great deal of variety a??esthetically, with very light puzzles and some errant extras like character-specific advantages and secret walls to find (though exploration is very light compared to some past entries). Bosses are an absolute highlight, and when your game opens up with a partial Sinister Six reunion, you know they brought the fan service. Team Ninja took a page from MMO raid phases and juices up fights at specific health intervals, to the point where you actually need to dodge.

As you work your way through the campaign there's "Infinity" challenge rooms with rules and goals (think Devil May Cry), which are more of a post-game concept thanks to a bizarre technical implementation. Disappointingly, most of them are retreads of levels you just completed, and inexplicably warp you back to the main menu after completion, which is a pace-killer for local multiplayer. As you work your way through them after the story is over (which is roughly eight hours, with an additional post-game difficulty setting), they become more compelling (and unlock more challenges in turn in a web-esque grid). I had time to test out offline multiplayer, and the drop-in, drop-out mechanic works l??ike a charm.

You can also opt for local play with multiple systems or online connectivity. Either way, definitely plan on going in with friends given its short length. Otherwise, the wait for the GOTY edition (with three DLCs) is going to pay off. During my time with the game, the framerate was mostly stabl??e both docked and undocked, only dipping badly when said multi-ultimates happen (for a few seconds when you're invulnerable anyway). I also encountered two minor audio glitches where voiceovers didn't trigger properly, leading to a few seconds of underwhelming annoyance.

There's plenty of room for improvement, but I had fun playing through Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3. With the Marvel IP?? less muddled and the simplicity of this deal between Marvel and Nintendo, I'd love to see another with enhancements in tow.

_{[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher]}

The post Rev??iew: Marvel Ultimate Alliance ?3: The Black Order appeared first on Destructoid.

Wolverine will always have a spot

I wasn't going to get Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3, at least not at launch. I barely paid any attention to the game leading up to its release, and I'm not particularly attached to the series like many of you are. But when the big day arrived last week, I felt like I needed a fresh co-op game, and my spare Nintendo Switch Game Voucher was?? burning a hole in my pocket. I couldn't resist!? My impulses took over.

As it turns out – and this is still surprising to me, even now – I'm way the hell into Ultimate Alliance 3.

??In many ways, it's less ambitious than I think it could and probably should have been as a long-awaited sequel, but at the same time, there's this undeniable pleasure in its simplicity. I like knowing that at the end of the day, even if I'm groggy or distracted, I can hop in, clear a few Infinity Trials, and call it a night.

Would I be into Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 if it came out during a crowded time of year? Not to the same extent, I don't think. I? doubt I would've stuck with it past the campaign. But right now, before the August onslaught arrives, it has found this perfect opening in my relaxed gaming schedule. What can I say: I'm a sucker for challenge rooms and incremental stat upgrades. Once I'm invested in my character, I'm all-in.

I bet plenty of you are very much working through the story and unlocking the full roster, but I'm curious – who's on your team? While I'm still fine-tuning my lineup, I'm currently focusing on Wolverine, Crystal, Magneto, and Ghost Rider, though I'll be tempted to go full X-Men down the r?oad. I can hear it already...

It's a tough call. You have to think about not only who you enjoy as characters, but also if they're fun to play as, and whether or not everyone in your group h??as synergy. I just like who I like, honestly.

If you don't have Ultimate Alliance 3, I'll also accept made-up teams. Just rattle off four things.

The post Who do you have?? on your Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 team? appeared first on Destructoid.

A running list

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order is finally out, and there are a ton of great additions and glaring omissions when it comes to its roster. Amid some confusing messaging (and reader comments like "call me when [x] is in"), I decided to make a comprehensive list of characters that will be updated a??s more are revealed.

As expected, there are spoilers ahead. Feel free to bookmark the page if you're on the fence about the game, that way you can check back and see if your favorite ??made it in

Base game (*s denote characters that need to be unlocked via Infinity Trials):

• Black Panther
• Black Widow
• Captain America
• Captain Marvel
• Crystal
• Daredevil
• Deadpool
• Doctor Strange
• Drax
• Elektra*
• Elsa Bloodstone
• Falcon
• Gamora
• Ghost Rider
• Groot/Rocket Raccoon
• Hawkeye
• Hulk
• Iron Fist
• Iron Man
• Loki*
• Luke Cage
• Magneto*
• Miles Morales
• Ms. Marvel
• Nightcrawler
• Psylocke
• Scarlet Witch
• Spider-Gwen
• Spider-Man
• Star-Lord
• Storm
• Thanos*
• Thor
• Venom
• Wasp
• Wolverine

Free DLC:

• Black Bolt (leaked, expected as free DLC)
• Cyclops (August 30)
• Colossus (August 30)
• Medusa (leaked, expected as free DLC)
• Valkyrie (leaked, expected as free DLC)
• Vision (leaked, expected as free DLC)

Paid DLC:

• Blade (Marvel Knights - September 30)
• Moon Knight (Marvel Knights - September 30)
• Morbius (Marvel Knights - September 30)
• Punisher (Marvel Knights - September 30)
• Cable (Rise of the Phoenix - December 23)
• Gambit (Rise of the Phoenix - December 23)
• Dark Phoenix (Rise of the Phoenix - December 23)
• Iceman (Rise of the Phoenix - December 23)

In-game non-playable ally characters that are likely to end up as free or paid DLC:

• Beast
• Jessica Jones
• Juggernaut
• Mystique
• Thane
• Winter Soldier

The post Here’s an updated list of playable Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 3 characters appeared first on Destructoid.

Mild appearance spoilers

New datamining efforts from the retail edition of Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 3 have unveiled new playable characters. I'm going to dance around a bit in this intro to create a buffer between the mild spoiler reveals in case ?you're going in blind.

So, here they are! Spoilers!

As a reminder, Colossus and Cyclops, which are already in the game and not playable, are coming as free DLC on August 30. A Marvel Knights expansion is coming in the fall, and will consist of Blade, Punisher, Moon Knight, and Morbius. There are three DLCs in total, and this first one has set t??he precedent of four characters per D??LC, so a total of 12 premium roster additions is expected.

We already knew that from official sources, but based on information from Demonslayerx8, Black Bolt, Medusa, Vision, and Valkyrie are also going to be made p?layable, likely as free updates at some point. Note that all four of these are already in the game just like the aforemen??tioned C&C duo as non-playable characters.

More notes: Valkyrie is not based on her MCU incarnation, Black Bolt and Medusa are characters from the Inhumans saga from the comic source (and the recent failed TV show led by Scott Buck), and Visi?on is...well odds are you've seen ??one MCU film with Vision in it.

Demonslayerx8 [Twitter]

The post Marvel: Ult?imate Alliance 3 datamining efforts reveal four more playable characters appeared first on Destructoid.

Berserker barrage

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 is a brawler at heart, but there'??s a few tricky bosses to navig??ate.

Here's a few tips to help avoid that frustration.

• If you're playing solo, swap to another character if your health is low. The game kind of shields them so they don't instantly die from really hard-hitting boss abilities, so you can prolong your team for a bit longer if your health is in the danger zone. Also, equipping your CPUs with health-resto?ring gems (or picking characters with healing factor) is a good way to slowly recharge those swapped-out CPUs for an eventual reswap.

• You can actually trigger all four ultimates (the yellow bar) at once, with all four party members going crazy on-screen. It's generally a good rule to save your quad-ultimate for when a tough boss is just about to be staggered (their purple meter is low), which allows you to unleash your most powerful attacks on their more vulnerable health bar.

  Alternatively, you can spread out single ultimates in areas with lots of difficult elite enemies. One ultimate is usually enough to stun a group of elites, and if you need more help, trigger one more ultimate for the finisher: preserving the other two for a similar situation.

• Look around for crates to smash for help in any situation, including boss battles. They'll drop red (health) or blue (mana) orbs. Ultimates can also pop orbs, so think of them as a way to go invincible during full-screen boss attacks and heal in a pinch.

• This is a beat 'em up after all, so with all the smashing it's easy to forget that the upgrade enabling menus exist. Always remember to press start (+) and go to your "team" menu to upgrade skills, and use the S.H.I.E.L.D auto-save pads to go to the "lab" and upgrade your team's passive abilities. Work your way from the inside to the outside of the web and get more plentiful and cheaper upgrades first.

• The revive meter/counter stays where it was even if you're knocked away from your teammate. Try to lure a boss away from a revive point, stun them, then go back and safely recover your party member. You can also tough it out and you'll revive them eventually.

The post Marvel Ultimate Alliance?? 3 ?guide: Five tips to help you best the higher difficulty settings appeared first on Destructoid.

Also, first expansion pass details

There are a lot of superheroes in the Marvel universe, which means that the big get-togethers are going to naturally exclude someone's favorite. But, Marvel Ultimate Alliance is going to launch without some of the obvious names. Fortunately, a?? co??uple of them will be added in due time.

During this afternoon's Marvel Games panel at San Diego Comic-Con, we got word that Cyclops and Colossus are coming to Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order as free DLC. The update to add them to the roster is scheduled for August 30 -- six weeks after the game's launch d??ate of ??July 19.

Marvel also confirmed that the MUA3 expansion pass is made up of three different groups of superheroes. The first is the Marvel Knights, and the characters are Blade, Moon Knight, Punisher, an?d Morbius; this quartet releases sometime this fall. The second DLC will be made up of X-Men. The last characters in the expansion pass are from Fantastic Four. (There's not a lot of wiggle room here for speculating which four it'll be.)

But, the highlight is Cyclops and Colossus. They're a little far off, sure, but at least they'll eventually be included. They're such expected names that it's a little weird for Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 to omit them in the first place.

@NintendoAmerica [Twitter]

The post Cyclops and Colossus are comin?g to Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 as free DLC appeared first on Destructoid.

$19.99 for three packs

We already knew that Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 was getting a season pass, but thanks to a new official listing, we have an i??dea of what that actually entails.

Nintendo and Marvel have revealed the full schedule, with DLC 1 coming in the fall, DLC 2 arriving before the end of 2019, and DLC 3 dropping in 2020. "Playable characters, modes, and additional story," are in, and as announced at E3, Marvel Knights, X-Men, and Fantastic Four are guaranteed to be included. There's also an alt-color chef outfit for Deadpool as a pre-order bonus, just like the Yoshi/Shy Guy colors for the Mario Kart 8 Wii U season pass.

It'll be $19.99, and it can only be bought in bulk in pass form: as of right now, you cannot opt for individual season pass content, just like the recent Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 scheme. It probably won't ever be so????ld piecemeal either, as the listing plainly states "will not be sold individually."

$20 for three DLCs isn't bad on paper, but most of you will probably want to ?wait and see before you plunk down your cash: linking all three to a forced season pass probably makes the decision to hold off even easier.

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 [Nintendo]

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Carnage

I'm still reeling at the chimera of a combination of powers that help brought Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order to life. We have Team Ninja, a Tecmo-owned studio, collaborating with Nintendo yet again (after a series of Warriors games), with Marvel ex??ecutives ?working closely with both entities. 

The MCU is at a turning point now with the possibility of the X-Men being introduced at some point, and although Ultimate Alliance 3 features a heavy focus on the MCU, there are plenty of classic Marvel characters in tow. Plus, the inclusion of Miles Morales and Spider Gwen, in light of the recent smash success of Into the Spider-verse, is no surprise. Also Carol Danvers and Kamala Khan? Plus Elsa Bloodstone? Not bad. We're not going to get a Marvel vs. Capcom Infinite ;roster "where is [x]?!" sticker shock with?? this. 

We have everyone from MCU darlings like?? Black Panther, to the fan-favorite Ghost Rider, to X-Men staples like Wolverine and Magneto. The gang is all here. Or are they? I mean there's a huge spread involved but I could go for some more villains. Carnage isn't confirmed yet even as a boss character, but as wacky as it would be, I'd love to see him w??reck shop.

A few characters like Jessica Jones and Cyclops are also present, but not playable (bummer on the latter, big time). Old reliable Scott Summers is probably my more realistic pick for those of you who will say Carnage doesn't make sense, even though many of these playable characters have made heel turns at some point in their careers, and a few villains are already on the roster. Oh and he was playable in Ultimate Alliance 2.

Sound off on who you want to see arrive later on, possibly as a secret unlock, or as part of the huge season pass-led DLC wave coming later this year.

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Still due in July on Switch

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 is still hitting the Switch exclusively in July. But today during E3 they introduced a new cog in the machine: an expansion pass. It'll have "content from" Marvel Knights, X-Men, and Fantastic 4 (!). That likely includes characte??rs but what else there is ??to these packs is still up in the air.

That's not? coming until the fall?, so while you can "get the pass today" it won't be day-one DLC. Elektra, Elsa Bloodstone, and Ghost Rider are also now a part of the base game.

If you're curi??ous as to what it looks like in action, Nintendo just gave us a lengthy rundown on their Treehouse segment of E3, which provided the most gameplay we've seen to date. You can wa?tch that below along with the new E3 trailer.

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These Sentinels aren't going to destroy themselves!

For many of us, X-Men and gaming go hand-in-hand, whether you grew up in the arcades, on 16-bit consoles, or with newer systems. As such, it's particularly lovely to see the old gang get back together for Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order, an upcomi?ng Nintendo Switch-only action-RPG. The plot once again centers around dear old Thanos, but this time, we have mutants fighting the good fight.

"In this new original story, Super Heroes unite in a race across iconic locations in the Marvel Universe to find?? the Infinity Stones before Thanos and The ?Black Order use them to unleash cosmic chaos."

A few X-Men were already confirmed for Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3, and today, with this trailer, another batch of playable characters joins the giant roster. Have we already started calling dibs? Am I too late? Magneto leads the pack, but Nightcrawler, Psylocke, Beast, Storm, and Wolverine are here for your consideration too. Actually, I changed my mind – gimme my guy Nightcrawler. He earned it.

Juggernaut, Mystique, Cyclops, and Colossus also make appearances in this latest game footage. Who are you crossing your fingers for? Any oddball requests? If all else fails, roster-extending DLC is always an option for Team Ninja and Nintendo. It's been long enough since the last Ultimate Alliance that I could see a lot?? of folks opening their wallets and going all-in. Once I'm hooked, I'm liable to do the same.

Rest assured, there will be more reveals before Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 touches down on July 19. This series has cemented itself as a simple pleasure, and most everything we've seen of The Black Order looks slick. Besides, I'm always st?oked to have more local? four-player co-op games on Switch.

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I'm not going to do it, but someone is probably going to drop Endgame spoilers in here

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 is coming in at just the right time. In fact, Endgame, which is approaching 2.3 billion worldwide in a bid to take over the spot for the most successful film of all time, will probably still be playing in theaters when Ultimate Alliance launches on July 19 (Captain Marvel is still active right now actually).

Helmed by Team Ninja, the beat 'em up features a whole host of Marvel characters as well as Sony friends (Venom): video games do what film doesn't. Game Informer has revealed two new h?eroes too, in Hawkeye, and Kamala Khan (Ms. Marvel). As expected the former will be ranged-based, and the latter w?ill feature her stretching powers.

Ever since Captain America and the Avengers on the NES I was enamored by Hawkeye, who was eventually made even cooler by Matt Fraction's fantastic comic run on the character. He pretty much had to be in Ultimate Alliance 3, but I'm glad he made it in all the same.

Exclusive New M??arvel Ultimate A??lliance 3 Heroes Revealed [Game Informer]

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All superheroes are avengers, it's what they do

Reader, I assure you it is not a Good Content S?trategy to tell people they need to speak another language -- a differe?nt one than the post is written in -- in order to appreciate the material. This headline was a very dumb decision.

But, I don't know, a lot of people are talking about Avengers today, and Marvel Ultimate Alliance seems like Avengers on steroids. It's all the same people, plus the X-Men (and more), without half ??of them convenientl??y culled because a purple geologist completed his rock collection. This may be of interest to some of you, even if it's in Japanese.

Also, the stakes are way lower. It's 30 seconds rather than three hours. If you need to pee halfway through, you can just hit the pause button. Make the responsible choice and watch this Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order trailer rather than go to Endgame. They're basically the same thing.

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Still a Switch exclusive: crazy, right?

You'll be able to relive your X-Men Legends and Ultimate Alliance glory years all over again very soon, as Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order launches in July exclusively on the Switch. Nintendo revealed the new release date on Twitter alongside of a look at the official box art, which is very reminiscent of Marvel vs. Capcom (tag?? out to pay respects) in all the best ways.

The cover gives us a look at some obviously confirmed MCU characters like Spider-Man, Black Panther, and Iron Man,?? on top of X-Men like Storm and Wolverine. Sony even gets a bit of love with Spider-Gwen and Miles Morales, and FOX (now Disney, haha) has representation with Deadpool. Video games do what Hollywood can't.

In that same reveal tweet Nintendo reminds us that the plot of the game deals with the Infinity Stones, which will be three months after the Infinity Saga is resolved with Avengers: Endgame in theaters later this month. This could very well be one of the biggest years M?arvel has ever had.

Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 3 is curiously being handled by Team Ninja, who worked with Nintendo on Hyrule Warriors and Fire Emblem Warriors. Previously the series was helmed by Rave??n Software and Vicarious Visions, both of which are technically still alive at Activision

Nintendo of America [Twitter]

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Give a nice warm welcome

Marvel's next big film is Captain Marvel and nobody's goi??ng t??o pass up a golden opportunity for cross-promotion.

During this afternoon's Nintendo Direct, it was revealed that Captain Marvel is one of the playable superheroes in Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order. It'll be her first appearance in the Marvel Ultimate Alliance series.

But, only Switch owners will get a chance to play as her (or any of the other heroes). Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 launches exclusively on Switch this summer.

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The Black Order

We're only?? 15 minutes in, and The Game Awards 2018 is already bringing the heat.

Marvel has resurrected a long-gone comic book action-RPG series: Marvel Ultimate Alliance. The third of these games is coming next year, Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order. The kicker? It's only on Nintendo Switch. Tea??m Ninja is the developer and Nintendo?? is publishing it.

Here's the description, straight from Marvel: "In this new storyline, heroes and villains unite in a race across the Marvel Universe to find the Infinity Stones before Thanos and The Black Order use them to unleash cosmic chaos. From Avengers Tower to the X-Mansion and beyond, every stop on the dangerous quest to thwart Thanos results in unexpecte?d collisions of fan-favorite characters and iconic locations."

The recent glut of Marvel content across all mediums means that Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 has more familiar faces than ever before. The Guardians of the Galaxy folks are all there. Same with all The Avengers. Of course, the X-Men are back too. It wouldn't be a Marvel Ultimate Alliance game without the X-Men. Personally, I could not be mo?re excited ab??out this announcement.

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