Marvel's Wolverine | Critical consensus

Insomniac Games' adaptation of Wolverine has experienced a tumultuous journey to release. Announced in 2021, the game faced challenges due to a 2023 data breach, which exposed early development stages, including gameplay footage and character information. Three years later, Marvel's Wolverine launched as an exclusive PlayStation title following a series of controversial decisions by the company, such as the discontinuation of physical disc production and the separation from Hideo Kojima and the Psychi project.

The reception to Marvel's Wolverine has been mixed, reflected in its Metacritic score of 78. Critics have highlighted dated gameplay mechanics, repetitive combat, and comparisons to Insomniac's Spider-Man titles. Keith Stuart of The Guardian described the game as "like its hero, an unreconstructed brawler," praising the rage-meter that enhances Wolverine's attack and defense stats but lamenting the lack of creativity in combat.

Stuart found the fights smooth and empowering but repetitive, akin to 80s beat-em-ups or PS3 brawlers.

Eurogamer's Chris Tapsell also rated the game 3/5, emphasizing that while the combat is satisfying, it lacks innovation. The combat, he noted, requires the backbone of a linear action game, but its monotony sets in quickly. Jordan Middler of VGC echoed these sentiments, describing the gameplay as highly repetitive and monotonous. He found the abilities limited and ineffective, and the enemies' repetitive designs led to monotonous fights.

VGC's Jordan Middler concluded that Wolverine's combat is never bad but never engaging, and barely evolves. Simon Cardy of IGN held a similar view in his 6/10 review, stating that wielding Wolverine's claws feels slick but the combat is lacking in progression. The fundamentals are solid, Cardy admitted, but the game's linear structure and repeated missions make it feel like a chore.

IGN's Simon Cardy also noted that while Wolverine's claws are slick, the game's linearity and repetitive missions make it feel less like a throwback and more like a relic of the past. The Guardian's Stuart found the linear format and invisible walls directing players back to the action particularly frustrating, likening the world to a theatrical backdrop rather than the vibrant, open city of Marvel's Spider-Man.

For Cardy, the linearity leads to missions that feel like a series of corridors opening into arenas, making encounters predictable.