Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra has been officially revealed at GDC 2024, during the State of Unreal showcase. The upcoming game, set in World War 2, stars Marvel heroes Captain America (Steve Rogers) and Black Panther (Azzuri) as they learn to navigate their differences, to defeat the evil forces of Hydra together.
As previously announced, the game is in development at Skydance New Media, and is being helmed by Amy Hennig (Uncharted, Jak and Daxter, Legacy of Kain). Per the reveals at GDC 2024, the game is being built in Unreal Engine 5, with the MetaHuman Animator tool, which looks absolutely stunning in motion.
“When we’re telling a character-driven story, it’s critical for us to faithfully capture every nuance of our actor’s stellar performances,” Hennig said during the State of Unreal showcase. “So we’ve been incredibly grateful to partner with our friends on the MetaHuman team to tell our story.”
In the newly-released trailer for the game, you can see how the tool has been used effectively, with faces in Marvel 1943 looking incredibly well-designed, well-animated, and near-lifelike.
Read: Disney and Marvel Games Showcase 2022: Every major game announced
Alongside this flashy new story trailer, which sees Black Panther and Captain America butting heads over how best to deal with Hydra, Skydance New Media and Marvel have also revealed the game’s main cast, and a vague outline of the plot:
“Khary Payton plays Azzuri, T’Challa’s grandfather and the WWII-era Black Panther, while Drew Moerlein plays Steve Rogers, aka Captain America. Megalyn Echikunwoke plays Nanali, a Wakandan spy embedded in Occupied Paris, and Marque Richardson plays Gabriel Jones, a U.S. soldier and member of the Howling Commandos. Lyne Renée plays Julie, a key ally in the French Resistance, and Joel Johnstone rounds out our cast as Howard Stark.”
The team has also announced the game’s score will be composed by Stephen Barton, known for working on soundtracks for Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, Star Trek Picard, and more.
As detailed, the key players appearing in Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra are integral to the history of the Marvel universe, with Captain America being a bridge between the past and present of the franchise. It’s fair to assume there will also be cameos (Wolverine, anyone?) and other sly nods in the adventure, although we’ll have to wait to see what’s in store.
Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra is set to launch in 2025. It will join a vast array of other Marvel games in development, including Marvel’s Wolverine, Iron Man, Black Panther, Blade, and others. Stay tuned for more.
