As of now, Marvel’s Avengers fans have no real idea of what to expect after War for Wakanda. While Spider-Man is confirmed to debut on PlayStation platforms, and a UI rework for Marvel’s Avengers is also in the works, there is not much other content confirmed for the game. While there are plenty of characters that are rumored to make an appearance, no one beyond Spider-Man has been announced. While this understandably has fans concerned about the game’s future, Square Enix could surprise players with an unexpected crossover.
While it may not be a games-as-a-service title like Marvel’s Avengers, Eidos Montreal’s Guardians of the Galaxy game is confirmed to have some easter eggs that reference the larger Marvel universe. While these may be small nods to something like A-Day, they could lay the groundwork for a future crossover between the video game versions of the Guardians and Avengers. If such a crossover were to happen at some point, the Guardians of the Galaxy game’s main villain would be a surprisingly good fit for Marvel’s Avengers.
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Guardians of the Galaxy’s version of Lady Hellbender is much like the one in the comics. Not only does she boast the red hair, blue skin, and impressive height, but she shares the same obsession with collecting rare and dangerous species from across the galaxy. In the books, this was spurred on by a tragic origin story where her father had her pet monster killed in a gladiatorial competition. As such, her objective is not inherently evil. In fact, it can be seen as admirable from a certain point of view, as she is simply collecting the monsters so that she can take them to a sanctuary on her planet.
However, this obsession has led her to try and capture some entities that do not want to be taken from their homes, something that led to her hunting down Fin Fang Foom in the comics. When trying to collect the dragon, she found that it had been defeated by none other than The Hulk. As such, this made it clear that Fin Fang Foom was not the strongest being on Earth, as that title instead belonged to Hulk. As such, she captured the rage monster instead, taking him captive as she fled to her home planet.
This ultimately led to The Avengers chasing after Hulk, trying to rescue him from Lady Hellbender. Hellbender released some of her monsters to keep the heroes away, though once Hulk’s tranquilizer wore off, he freed himself and took down her beasts. Intriguingly, Hellbender did not purse further conflict. Instead, she accepted that Hulk was happy on Earth, telling him that he should contact her if he ever wanted to join her at the sanctuary. It remains to be seen if the Guardians of the Galaxy game will make Hellbender this considerate, however.
She-Hulk is one of Marvel’s Avengers rumored DLC characters, and this only makes Lady Hellbender’s introduction seem more plausible. For starters, Hellbender first encountered She-Hulk and Spider-Man when she made it to earth. The pairing took down her lackeys, as they were trying to track down Fin Fang Foom themselves. If Crystal Dynamics wants to replicate this story perfectly, it would have all the necessary pieces necessary to do so once She-Hulk arrives.
Still, given the fact that other hero additions in Marvel’s Avengers have come with their own Operations, some changes would have to be made for the story to work as She-Hulk’s DLC. After all, her and Spider-Man are only bit players in the story arc, with the focus being more on the male Hulk’s interaction with Hellbender. Given that She-Hulk shares so many of the same powers, though, she could easily take on the Hulk’s role in this story. Hellbender could try to capture her instead, or maybe both Hulks at the same time. With Totally Awesome Hulk being Hellbender’s captive and not Bruce Banner, a significant adjustment would need to be made to the story either way.
Given that this would need to be a full-length story Operation, having the same outcome where Hellbender lets Hulk go free would not work. As such, instead of Hellbender letting her captives escape, she would have to succeed at bringing them to her planet. This could open up the opportunity for fresh missions and a new region in Marvel’s Avengers. Seeing Hellbender’s planet could be a nice change of pace, and there could be potential for something similar to the Wasteland Patrol mode depending on its size. Regardless of which Hulk is captured, though, Hellbender bringing them to outer space sets up a perfect opportunity for the Guardians of the Galaxy to intervene.
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Similar to how the Taking Aim and Future Imperfect DLC came together to tell one complete story, another two-part expansion could be created for Marvel’s Avengers. The first half could be the She-Hulk DLC, setting her up as a playable hero before having her be captured by Hellbender. The Operation could then end on a cliffhanger, with the Guardians of the Galaxy showing up on the scene. Considering that they have a past with Hellbender already, explaining why they would be tracking her should be easy enough.
A surprise Guardians of the Galaxy crossover could see Star-Lord becoming playable in Marvel’s Avengers, with that game’s version of Peter Quill joining the growing lineup of heroes. Crystal Dynamics could base all of his moves off of the ones that are used in Eidos Montreal’s Guardians of the Galaxy game, while the same voice actor and character model can be brought back as well. Given the gameplay mechanics of Marvel’s Avengers, it is easy to imagine Star-Lord fitting into the game nicely.
Having Square Enix’s versions of the Guardians of the Galaxy and Avengers team up together would instantly open the door for a Marvel Games Universe. The team-up could set the stage for a confrontation with a more prominent villain like Thanos, with the Mad Titan being the obvious choice for a bigger event. While this is purely speculation, as it is unlikely that a proper crossover will happen between Marvel’s Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy, Hellbender capturing one of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes would be a nice way to get the ball rolling.
Marvel’s Avengers is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.