Like many titles that launched on the back-end of the last generation, Marvel’s Avengers is receiving a free upgrade that will include Hawkeye as a playable character, which we got to see from the latest War Table showcase.
Crystal Dynamics’ co-op superhero romp was released in September to middling reviews, plagued by bugs and performance issues. The player count has dwindled since launch, with many fans waiting on the dedicated PS5 and Xbox Series X/S versions to arrive.
During the War Table, the developer listed several of the various improvements coming with the free upgrade. These included enhanced visuals, higher frame rates and faster load times. It’s additionally worth noting that PS5 users will experience unique haptic feedback for each playable hero.
Players will be able to transfer their saves and progression over to their new consoles. On top of this, cross-play will also be active, although it will only integrate Xbox and PlayStation users.
Future Imperfect
The bulk of the presentation, however, centred on the eighth playable character – Clint Barton, a.k.a Hawkeye. The second chapter of Season One is titled ‘Future Imperfect’ and will finally bring players to a new location. Barton’s story takes place on a future Earth, in an area known as the Wasteland.
Avengers’ First New Location – The Wasteland
Picking up shortly after the first DLC, Kate Bishop’s Taking A.I.M, both Clint and his apprentice become re-united. Leyla Karasuma went into depth on the PlayStation blog regarding the plot, which is influenced by both the ‘Old Man Hawkeye’ and ‘My Life as a Weapon’ storylines.
You will be taking Clint on a perilous journey to a future Earth and stepping into a new biome known as the Wasteland to find the missing Nick Fury, come face-to-face with the villain Maestro, and save the world.
The presentation ended with a showcase of Hawkeye’s unique abilities, such as grapple-arrows and tripwire shots. This served to differentiate him from Kate Bishop, even if their core mechanics are still strikingly similar.
The new Wasteland area is much-needed to refresh the game, which has been struggling after making a significant loss due to underperforming sales. New stories and playable heroes will also contribute to gaining players back, although there’s still a lack of enemy variety.
Marvel’s Avengers is receiving its PS5 and Xbox Series X/S upgrade, alongside the Hawkeye DLC ‘Future Imperfect’ on March 18, 2021. The enhancement is free for all existing owners on both PlayStation and Xbox.
