In our last report, we shed light on some of the upcoming Marvel titles from Insomniac Games. This time, however, our focus shifts away from the well-known PlayStation developer to another highly anticipated Marvel game.

In October 2021, Marvel Entertainment announced a partnership with Skydance New Media to create a new narrative action game. The project was to be helmed by Amy Hennig, a writer known for her work on franchises like Uncharted and Legacy of Kain. A year later, a brief teaser trailer revealed more details, confirming the game would center on Captain America and Black Panther during WWII.

The game’s true ambition got to be revealed last year at GDC 2024, with a stunning cinematic trailer that showcased a graphical powerhouse made possible with the power of Unreal Engine 5. The visuals were so impressive that it is safe to say they put the game on the radar for Marvel fans, if it wasn’t there already.

However, despite having two trailers, we have yet to see a single glimpse of actual gameplay. This could have led some to doubt whether the game’s action can live up to its stunning visuals. We can now say that’s about to change, at least in part. We’ve stumbled upon some early development material that provides a first look at the gameplay, along with a wide range of new images showcasing the game’s gorgeous environments.

Early Gameplay and Environments for Marvel 1943

The material we’ve come across this time was posted by a developer who worked on the game, and while we don’t have specific dates for the origin of each image, we do know the content was created between 2022 and 2023. It’s essential to consider this before judging, as changes could have been made during development.

The presented images showcase a wide variety of environments, from alleys and terraces to subway tunnels and more. It’s also notable that Captain America is absent from the footage, as we are only shown Black Panther. This could be due to the stage of development or simply because the artist only worked with this character.

The most important discovery that we’ll be able to notice in this gallery is a short clip of what appears to be gameplay footage of Black Panther in full action. While the camera is clearly positioned unconventionally, as this is raw development material, it offers a first look at the characters’ in-combat mobility.

 

In the clip, we can see Black Panther fighting several soldiers after storming a lounge entrance, a moment we can also see in the still images. The footage immediately highlights the degree of environmental interactivity during combat: soldiers shattering bottles while shooting, and Black Panther knocking over several objects as he jumps onto his enemies. We can also spot some basic moveset elements like long-range attacks and dodge rolls. The way we can see him fluidly move through the environment, jumping over tables and moving at a high speed, suggests that he will have an agile, parkour-oriented moveset. This makes us wonder just how different it will be from what Captain America will have to offer.

Returning to the images, some of the captures offer a glimpse of the third-person camera, with Black Panther exploring an alley and also a subway tunnel. If we add to this the fact that in another image we can see a grotto, it’s easy to assume that a section of the game will take place underground. Another location that could also be important is a hotel, whose detailed interiors we can see in a pic, and which appears to be the same place where Black Panther is seen bursting in from a terrace window.

It is worth noting that all these locations are situated in Paris, one of the two confirmed settings for the game. The second would be Wakanda, of which we have only an image thanks to an exclusive look from Entertainment Weekly. So we still have plenty to see from Black Panther’s hometown. It’s also worth keeping in mind that some of these locations could look drastically different or even absent from the final game, so this material should be treated as what it is: early development material.

Hopefully, considering the game is now scheduled for early next year following a delay, we can expect a new preview in the coming months.

One opportunity for this to happen could be the State of Play that is rumored to take place next week. If so, we’ll finally get to see the gameplay in all its glory, but for now, perhaps the best approach is to manage our expectations and wait patiently.

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