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Marvel’s Avengers confirmed for next gen with first look at PS5 version
Earth’s Mightiest Heroes are going next-gen. Square Enix and developer Crystal Dynamics have just announced that the long-awaited Marvel’s Avengers, originally targeted as a PlayStation 4 and Xbox One title, will also be heading to the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X later this year.
Showing off new images that highlight the marked graphical differences between the previews we’ve already seen for current consoles and the game’s leveled-up next-gen counterpart, Crystal Dynamics’ Gary Snethen took to the PlayStation Blog this week to point out how the version of Marvel’s Avengers bound for the new consoles is far more than just a carryover, writing that the game's performance is "improved by an order of magnitude on PS5."
Better Still, Square Enix revealed on Monday that anyone who buys a copy of the game for PlayStation 4 or Xbox One will be able to upgrade to the PS5 and Xbox Series X versions, when they arrive, completely free of charge. Saving your game on older consoles won’t be penalized once you’ve unboxed your shiny new one, either: “Those moving their saves to next-gen will transfer their player profiles and progression so they can pick up right where they left off,” the publisher teased, adding that cross play between consoles from both generations will be fully supported.
Aside from the obviously improved graphics, what are the tech-y bits that make Marvel’s Avengers stand out on the higher-powered consoles? Writing about the PS5 edition, Snethen said to expect “lightning fast load speeds” of a mere 1 or 2 seconds. “When optimization is complete, loading content will be nearly instant,” he wrote, “allowing players to seamlessly jump into missions anywhere in the game world. And as Iron Man flies through content-rich levels, higher resolution textures and mesh will stream in instantly, maintaining the highest possible quality all the way to the horizon.”
PS5 players also will be able to choose between an “enhanced graphics mode” that favors a variable framerate to allow peak graphical performance. But if you want to assure your gameplay runs smooth and rock-steady, “Marvel’s Avengers will offer a high framerate mode on PS5, which targets 60 FPS with dynamic 4K resolution.”
First announced in 2017 under the codename “The Avengers Project,” Marvel’s Avengers reimagines familiar MCU faces like Thor, Iron Man, Captain America, Hulk, and Black Widow while adding comic book heroes like Kamala Khan to the mix of playable characters. Set five years after the A-Day Avengers celebration goes horribly wrong thanks to outside sabotage, the game’s story picks up on a long-running MCU theme from Captain America: Civil War onward by making the team fight back to earn the people’s trust after the good guys are blamed for what went wrong.
Marvel's Avengers is set to assemble on Sept. 4 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Google Stadia, and PC, with the upgraded PS5 and Xbox Series X editions set to debut when the new consoles hit the streets this holiday season.
