A couple new characters were shown off in addition to those were already knew about from last September’s trailer. Let’s run through everyone we know who will be in Marvel’s Wolverine, starting with the hairy short king himself.
1
Wolverine
Surprise! Wolverine is starring in Wolverine. Logan/James Howlett/Wolverine is one of Marvel’s most iconic characters, and has shown up in various Marvel games over the years. Marvel’s Wolverine will be his first time in the lead role of a game since the surprisingly good movie tie-in X-Men Origins: Wolverine in 2009.
Based on his rapport with Jean Grey (more on her in a second) in the new trailer, it seems like Insomniac’s version of Wolverine has already been aligned with X-Men and built relationships with them. (A contrast to Hugh Jackman’s outsider Wovlerine in the first X-Men film.) We’ve seen him in a few different costumes, like his iconic yellow suit, and there’s even a shot of him wearing a white tux and eyepatch as Patch, his alter ego when visiting Madripoor.
What we’re left wondering is if there will be any other Wolverines in Marvel’s Wolverine. Logan’s clone/daughter (comics are weird, man) Laura Kinney/X-23 also goes by Wolverine at various times. There’s been no indication yet that Laura will be in the game, but Insomniac wasn’t shy about introducing a second Spider-Man in its first Spider-Man game, so don’t completely rule out an appearance quite yet. Less famously, Logan’s son Daken has also gone by Wolverine at times, and he too has not been confirmed for the game.
2
Jean Grey
The big reveal from Tuesday’s trailer was that Jean Grey will be appearing in the game. She’s one of the original mutants from The X-Men #1 in 1963, and has become one of the team’s most famous members. At various points, like in the Fox movies, she and Wolverine have had feelings for one another and been in a love triangle with fellow X-Man Cyclops. (Making them a throuple in the Krakoan Age somehow made things less dramatic among the trio!) Time will tell what their relationship is like in the game, though Wolverine definitely seems like he has a soft spot for her in the trailer.
We seen Jean fighting alongside Wolverine, battling enemies with her telekinetic abilities while also stunning them and holding them in place for Wolverine to finish foes off. Both Marvel’s Spider-Man and its sequel had sequences where players could control Mary-Jane Watson (and Venom in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2), but game director Mike Daly told IGN that Wolverine is the star of the show in Wolverine. “This game is all about Wolverine and you play Wolverine the whole way through. We wanted to keep the focus on him throughout the whole story,” he said.
3
Mystique
Mystique briefly pops up at the end of both the latest Wolverine trailer and the one from last fall. She’s sometimes a hero, sometimes a villainous shape-shifting mutant assassin. We don’t know what role she plays yet in the game’s story, but expect her to wrack up her own fair share of kills, based on her appearances in the trailers. As Wolverine‘s story is in part about tracking down kidnapped mutants, it’s possible Mystique is on a similar quest.
4
Sabretooth
Sabretooth and his long blonde locks have long been a thorn in Wolverine’s side. Though, like Mystique, sometimes he works as an anti-hero and aids Wolverine — which is what he’ll be doing in this game. In that same interview with IGN, Daly said Wolverine and Sabretooth are actually on the same team in this game. Buddies! “Whereas Jean Gray might give you an opportunity to get a kill, with Sabretooth fighting alongside you, it’s more like, you think you’ve got a kill and he rushes in to steal it from you, and their combat banter brings out that dynamic and makes the whole fight more fun,” Daly said.
5
Omega Red
Omega Red and his weird metal tentacle… things… will show up in Marvel’s Wolverine. He’s almost always an evil villain — the man was a serial killer before becoming a KGB agent — and expect him to be exactly that in the game; he attacks Wolverine in both his appearances in the trailers. Omega Red is often working for a larger antagonist, and has previously been associated with The Hand, who may or may not have a part to play in Marvel’s Wolverine.
6
Bolivar Trask
While we haven’t seen him yet, Bolivar Trask will surely be in Marvel’s Wolverine. He’s the one who wants the mutants Wolverine and Jean are rescuing, and some of the goons they handily take out have “Trask” across their uniforms. Trask is the creator of the Sentinels, mutant-hunting robots that are very difficult to go up against. Speaking of which…
7
Sentinels
That’s a big boy right there.
Sentinels are traditionally a few stories tall and are capable fighters; in 2014’s X-Men: Days of Future Past, they could even adapt to mutant powers and utilize those powers for themselves. Sentinels come in smaller sizes too, and you can see a person-sized one at the 7:12 mark of the extended gameplay trailer.
8
Reavers
The Reavers are cyborg bad guys who often find themselves on the wrong side of Wolverine’s claws. He kills oh so many of them across the Marvel’s Wolverine trailers, and for good reason. They’re the ones who’ve been hired by Trask to track down and kidnap mutants. So, you know, don’t feel bad about stabbing them through the head. Donald Pierce is often their leader, though he hasn’t been confirmed for the game yet.
9
Leech
Leech is one of the mutants Wolverine saves. Like some other mutants, his mutation has caused a change in his physical appearance as he has green skin. As such, he’s often associated with the Morlocks, a group of outcast mutants who can’t pass as human because of their appearances and live in the sewers, TMNT-style. Leech can suppress the powers of other mutants, and a version of him was adapted in 2006’s X-Men: The Last Stand for its “mutant cure” storyline.
10
Whoever this guy in red is
I had to do a double take the first time watching the new Wolverine trailer thinking Insomniac sneaked in Deadpool at the end of the trailer. This character, clad in red, is not Deadpool, and more likely a random ninja who, unfortunately for him, crossed paths with Wolverine. It’s possible this is a The Hand ninja. While often depicted as Daredevil antagonists, The Hand has also crossed paths with Wolverine and the X-Men, so it’s possible they’ll be antagonists here.
