Marvel MaXimum Collection Review

Marvel MaXimum Collection published by Limited Run Games is a bumper compilation of classic Marvel arcade and console games, featuring modern enhancements like online multiplayer, save states, and rewind options. It is super exciting for everyone, retro, arcade fans and comic book fans who never had the chance to play these in their heyday.

There isn’t a singular narrative here; instead, you’re getting a crash course in Marvel history. The collection does a fantastic job of setting the stage. Each game comes with high-resolution scans of the original box art and manuals as well as the soundtracks. Reading through the 1990 instructions for Captain America and The Avengers before jumping into the game adds a layer of “Saturday Morning Cartoon” magic that modern titles often lack as well as a bit of nostalgia. It’s less about a cohesive story and more about experiencing how different developers from Konami to Data East interpreted these iconic heroes during the 8-bit and 16-bit eras. This collection offers 6 games and 13 versions covering Arcade, Megadrive, SNES, NES, Game Gear and GameBoy.

With a collection like this in the modern era it of course offers modern day enhancements which are very welcome because most of these games are notoriously known for being rock solid (looking at you Spiderman and Silver Surfer!) but this is to be expected as arcade ports are known to be coin swallowers back in the day. The X-Men game offers online multiplayer, whilst save states, rewind options and cheats can be activated to make your experience a lot more pleasant. A few fun facts is that it includes the first home console port of the 6-player X-Men Arcade in over a decade. Also, features rollback net code for online play and the Carbon Engine for emulation, but I did have a few issues with it when playing with stuttering and people backing out. Note that the X-Men game is the only game that offers multiplayer online, the rest are only local unfortunately.

X-Men Arcade & Captain America are the highlights. The combat in X-Men is fluid, and the 6-player co-op is a chaotic joy. The controls are super snappy and had my partner on the 2^nd controller giving it the great co-op feel it offers through the entirety of the collection. I found myself doing most of it on my own, but the odd opportunity arose I could pass another controller it automatically elevated the fun to be had with these titles so I would recommend getting someone else involved to really let these games shine.

with Maximum Carnage and Separation Anxiety are classic side scrolling beat-’em-ups. They are repetitive, yes, but they capture the gritty 90s Spiderman comic aesthetic perfectly. The “red cartridge” nostalgia is strong here and boy does it kick your butt! Both games feature a great display of baddies but once again the arcade challenge that is on display in these there is no way on earth you can get through the entire game unless you have studied patterns and become an expert. I found myself throwing out profanities just trying to climb up buildings and that was only the 2^nd level!

Speaking of brutal the Silver Surfer (NES) and Arcade’s Revenge (SNES/Genesis) are notoriously difficult. Fortunately, Limited Run has included Rewind and Save States. Without these, most modern gamers wouldn’t make it past the first level of Silver Surfer. These quality of life features turn frustration into challenging but doable.

Visually, the engine does a stellar job. You have access to various CRT filters that mimic the warm glow of an old tube TV for those wanting to feel young again, and the borders (optional artwork on the sides of the screen) are vibrant and era appropriate adding those small details into the game that put a smile on your face.

The audio is where this collection truly shines. The Silver Surfer and Spiderman soundtracks remains one of the greatest chiptune compositions in history and hearing it uncompressed through modern headsets and speakers is a treat. The digitised voices in X-Men (“Welcome to Die!”) and Captain America (“Thank you, Avengers!”) are preserved in all their crunchy, low-fidelity glory. It’s campy, it’s loud, and it’s perfect and you get an achievement for hearing those iconic lines which just shows the detail to attention.

For a collection priced at £24.99, that price point is very hit or miss for people who are on the fence or not that into Marvel and just wanting some side scrolling action. The value proposition is strong if you’re a Marvel purist or played these before on original hardware. You aren’t just getting one version of a game, you’re often getting the Arcade, SNES, and MegaDrive versions side by side. Seeing the graphical differences between the 16-bit ports and 8-bit is a fun “spot the difference” game for enthusiasts.