The future of MUA has a franchise-defining decision to make

Marvel Ultimate Alliance it's a far cry from what it used to be. Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order may have a similar formula with different visiting settings and their associated characters to recruit or fight, but its menus and insistence on ISO-8 farming unfortunately make it something of a differentiator than the previous two Marvel Ultimate Alliance games have never been accepted.

Everyone Marvel Ultimate Alliance the game had its own means of boosting stats and abilities—gear, medals, and ISO-8, respectively—and which ones are better or worse will be subjective, as each part is vastly different from the other anyway. That is, if the fourth Marvel Ultimate Alliance ever in the plans, one would have to learn from them all and decide what the way forward is for the franchise.

Relatives

Marvel Ultimate Alliance deserves a sequel to Civil War, but it can't make the same mistake

The future of the Marvel Ultimate Alliance franchise is once again uncertain, but with any luck, the modern installment will be able to correct the history of Civil War.

Marvel Ultimate Alliance has a decent base with equipment

Marvel Ultimate AllianceGear comes in the form of individual items associated with heroes and villains that grant different passives and buffs to the characters they are equipped on, with some gear that can only be worn by a specific character. Each character could only have one piece of gear, meaning that players had to constantly review whether a new piece of gear had a passive stat boost or buff that they would prefer to use for any particular character, and with so many pieces of gear, which fill players inventory often they were a decent source of SHIELD credits when deconstructed.

Aside from the sheer number of items, gear is perhaps the simplest stat distribution system to manage from the inventory menu, and is also the most rewarding and meaningful in gameplay. Enchantress removes Aura of Seduction gear, giving enemies a 5% chance to become allies for 30 seconds on melee hits, which is quite unique and worth e.g.

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 oversimplifies gear in medals

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2Medals include gear, offering similar passive abilities and buffs, but they apply to each character and must be equipped with slots that increase sequentially as players progress through the story. The sequel starts with only one medal slot and the game ends with four; There are also four medal categories to choose from: hand-to-hand combat, strength, defense, and special skills that can be combined.

Only one special medal can be equipped at any one time as they are a bit more unique and powerful, and eventually different quality grades are introduced for each medal category: bronze, silver and gold, with bronze and silver obviously becoming redundant in comparison with all that gold medals have to offer. Medals are easier to manage than gear, but with only four outfits, players lack the breadth of ability- and stat-enhancing items that the first game boasted, and characters can feel less empowered or specialized as a result.

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: Black Order ISO-8 is highly controversial

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black OrderISO-8, the most controversial of the three stat-heavy RPG features, leans more towards gear than medals, but is so underwhelming in its presentation and progression structuring that it makes the entire game feel alien. Equipable to individual characters, ISO-8 comes in the form of colored crystals earned through various Infinity Rift actions and rewards.

Looking for gear is never super fun Marvel Ultimate Alliancebut Black OrderMenus and inventory management can be a lot of work when it comes to UX. ISO-8 also encourages farming/grinding more than the previous one Marvel Ultimate Alliance the games never had, and the extra Infinity content that players enjoy isn't very varied when it comes to offering easy twists on levels or campaign stages.

Of course, much, if not all, of this content is optional; some players might like it Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order encourages more investment to level up characters, especially with a much larger roster and multiple expansion packs, while others probably wish its systems were more similar to the first and second Marvel Ultimate Alliance names.

An argument could be made that the ISO-8 formula should either be reworked or discarded, and it would probably be better if something closer to gears were considered for the fourth Marvel Ultimate Alliance game Otherwise, the new entry may be successful in further experimenting with this system and exploring other options. A lot of it will depend on the game Marvel Ultimate Alliance 4 it turns out, for example, when it encourages grinding or simply immerses players in the rich Marvel atmosphere they live in, with an emphasis on lore rather than leveling up.

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