Good X-Men games do not come around often, but Marvel’s Mutants have starred in some great titles in their day.
The X-Men is arguably one of the most popular superhero teams in comic books. Their characters’ powers and exploits beg to be depicted in video games, but it is surprisingly scarce to find such games nowadays to quench that itch to rip apart a Sentinel or two.
However, there was a time when the X-Men were right alongside the popular Batman and Spider-Man games, and Marvel’s mutant team’s games have actually been responsible for some lasting developments in gaming. That said, here are some of the best X-Men games that showcase the team’s collective powers and teamwork against varying obstacles and nefarious villains.
Updated on January 23, 2024, by Mark Sammut: The specification for every X-Men game has been added, along with their Gamefaqs scores since most of them predate Metacritic. That said, the scores are only one piece of the equation and not the sole metric behind the rankings.
Only games focusing on the X-Men team will be included; therefore, no X-Men Origins: Wolverine or Deadpool. 10 X-Men: Gamesmaster’s Legacy
The Game Gear handheld console system was Sega’s 8-bit answer to Nintendo’s Game Boy and featured some exclusive games that were actually pretty decent, provided that a gamer’s Game Gear had enough juice left to play.
X-Men 2: Gamesmaster’s Legacy improved upon the gameplay of the first Game Gear X-Men game, and featured a story right out of the comics that introduced unique characters like Trevor Fitzroy, Sienna Blaze, and Shinobi Shaw to new fans. The game also featured both Bishop and Cable as playable characters, which makes it at the very least a memorable game for the X-Men. 9 X-Men (Genesis)
1993 saw the release of X-Men on the Sega Genesis, which was quickly classified as one of the hardest X-Men games ever played. That’s saying a lot, considering Spider-Man and the X-Men: Arcade’s Revenge exists, but it’s the truth.
Players could choose Cyclops, Wolverine, Nightcrawler, or Gambit to move through the difficult levels with a quickly dwindling mutant power bar. The game even featured a rare ending that required players to lightly hit the Reset button, going against years of warnings against doing that exact thing. X-Men can be difficult to revisit in this day and age due to an overabundance of difficulty spikes and stiff platforming controls that make most stages frustrating rather than challenging; however, the game has positives as well.
While sharing many similarities, the playable characters have unique moves that set them apart from the crowd, and they are brought to life well by generally solid animation. X-Men looks pretty good for its era, and that goes beyond just the heroes and villains. There are also a few neat touches that might delight fans; for instance, if a character falls off a stage, they are brought back by Jean Grey. 8 X-Men: Mutant Academy 2
The first X-Men: Mutant Academy was a 3D fighting game for the PlayStation that was just okay, but Paradox amplified what worked about the game and fixed what didn’t for the sequel.
