Square Enix released the second beta for Marvel’s Avengers on August 14, 2020. Even though the game definitely had some bugs that needed attending to, the substantially sized beta showed a lot of confidence from the developers at Crystal Dynamics in their product.
There was a surprisingly deep amount of content and references for players to discover. The game gave fans of the Marvel Universe a taste of things to come ,with tons of references to the events of the films, cartoons, and of course, the comics. But there are a few things gamers may have missed during their first playthrough.
10 The Daily Bugle
The famous Daily Bugle makes an appearance in the opening scenes of Marvel’s Avengers. The Daily Bugle is the New York City newspaper that Peter Parker takes pictures of Spider-Man for. However, instead of being just anti-Spider-Man, the paper seems to be anti-superheroes in general by supporting A.I.M..
Sadly, it does serve as a disappointing reminder to Xbox One and PC gamers that Spider-Man will only be making an appearance in the PlayStation 4 version.
9 Phil Sheldon
Those that watched the Daily Bugle reports on the TV will notice that the reporter is named Phil Sheldon. Sheldon had his own Marvel comic book series called Marvels, which looks at the world of superheroes and supervillains through the eyes of a normal human being.
In the comics, Sheldon is a photographer who works for the Daily Bugle that originally feared the superpowered beings he nicknamed the “the Marvels” until certain events changed his outlook. Whether the Marvels comic series will serve as an influence on the game’s story, Sheldon’s character development remains to be seen.
8 Ms. Marvel Is A Huge Fan Of The Avengers
For those who played the beta, it’s very obvious Ms. Marvel, Kamala Khan, appears to be completely starstruck and in awe of working with well-known superheroes in Marvel’s Avengers. However, if one wanted any further proof that she’s a huge Avengers fangirl, they only need to take a look at her bag.
It is full of pins and badges that represent superheroes like Captain America and Captain Marvel. It’s not clear if Kamala will gain any more badges in the main game, but it will be interesting to see if she can add any more pins to her collection.
7 The Avengers’ Rooms
Those willing to explore the Helicarrier will notice there are lots of rooms that are inaccessible to Kamala Khan. These rooms have names above them, which are Clint Barton, Tony Stark, Thor, Captain America, Natasha Romanov, and Bruce Banner.
Unfortunately, only Bruce Banner’s room is accessible to the player and there’s hope that the closed rooms will become available eventually in the full game as the main story progresses.
6 Banner, Rappaccini And Tarleton
While the majority of the Avengers’ rooms are locked off, Bruce Banner’s is open for business. Thankfully, the room reveals a lot about Banner’s personality and does a great job of making use of Marvel’s incredible worldbuilding.
One of the most fascinating features in Banner’s room is the framed picture, which features Bruce himself along with Monica Rappaccini and George Tarleton. Both work for A.I.M., with Rappaccini as a genius biochemist and Tarleton as a technician who becomes the supervillain, MODOK.
5 Indiana Jones Reference
With Captain America presumed dead after the events of A-Day, there are lots of his things just lying around the Helicarrier that players can interact with. One of these items is the modern version of his shield.
When Kamala interacts with it she makes comment stating “this thing belongs in a museum." This is quite possibly a reference to Indiana Jones and the LastCrusade, in which Indy makes a similar comment.
4 The World Still Has Faith In The Avengers
One of the coolest aspects of playing Marvel’s Avengers is the ability to play the game in free roam as Iron Man. It helps open up what is an otherwise fairly linear experience when it comes to the main story mode.
Furthermore, opting to play as Iron Man allows one to explore the game vertically ,too. This means that players can take a little peek into various apartments and rooms and doing so reveals that the Avengers still have lots of fans in the game’s world, with kid’s rooms decorated in posters and drawings of the superheroes.
3 Tony Stark’s Guitar
Another interesting item in the “To Find Olympia” mission is Tony Stark’s guitar. Apparently, it was a gift from his wife, Pepper Potts. Potts is also the CEO of Stark Industries and she also became known as Rescue using the Mark 42 Iron Man outfit which she also wore in Avengers: Endgame.
Hopefully, the Pepper Potts version of Iron Man known as Rescue will become available to use in the game at some point in the future.
2 Blackout By The Scorpions
While Tony Stark may have a love for rock music, Kamala Khan doesn’t seem to share the same taste. As many fans may have realized, she happily plays Sia’s song “Cheap Thrills” on her laptop. However, she totally recoiled at the rock song that started playing first.
This song was “Blackout” by the Scorpions. Hopefully, Marvel’s Avengers will allow players to select this song at some point in the full game when playing as Iron Man.
1 The Different Shades Of Hulk
A quick look at the available costumes and skins for the Hulk will reveal a lot of comic book film history that fans of the character will instantly recognize. One is the bright green-and-purple pants version of the Hulk as portrayed in Ang Lee’s Hulk from 2003.
Another popular character from the lore of the comics is the Joe Fixit character, who was also known as the Grey Hulk. This version is much smaller and doesn’t get as angry as the Savage Hulk incarnations, and he has a much higher level of intelligence, falling somewhere between Bruce Banner and the Hulk’s subconscious.
NEXT: Everything We’ve Learned From The Avengers: A-Day Prequel Comics
