A few days ago, news broke out that Electronic Arts, one of the biggest game developers in the world, is reportedly working on a Black Panther project for Marvel. Jeff Grubs, the source behind this leak, called it the “big open-world Black Panther game”, suggesting that it’s not only most likely a single-player adventure, but also set in an open world.
Details on the project were scarce to say the least. Grubbs did mention that a new studio formed by EA was helming the game. You will play as the next-in-line Black Panther after the previous mantle-holder dies, an eerily similar situation to MCU’s current predicament after Chadwick Boseman’s tragic passing.
But that’s about it, we had no other information to go by. Fast forward to today and the story has taken an interesting turn. On today’s Game Mess Mornings stream, in conversation with another streamer recounting EA’s future slate, Jeff Grubbs said the following:
… They’re also making a Black Panther game, we talked about [that] last week, and they’re making another Marvel game that’s single-player.
According to that quote, EA is working on a different single-player Marvel game. The fact that Grubbs mentioned it alongside Black Panther leads me to believe that it’s similar in scope to that. He did not go onto mention anything else about this or even bring it up again.
Now, here’s where things get really interesting. Renowned industry insider, Tom Henderson replied to this clip saying he has heard from around town that this mystery Marvel game is actually Iron Man. You read that right.
There is a chance that EA might be developing a AAA, blockbuster Iron Man game, alongside Black Panther. However, Tom mentioned in his tweet that this is very much a rumor, and one that’s in such a gray area that he is still looking for credible sources to be able to report on it.
I’ve heard a few rumors that it’s Iron Man but I never had anything concrete to fully report on.
Put this heavily under the “rumor” category for now and if I hear/see more information that’s concrete I’ll report on it properly. Just thought it was worth mentioning. https://t.co/MF3ddG04yR
— Tom Henderson (@_Tom_Henderson_) August 3, 2022
So take this news with a big grain of salt. But, if you are an optimist and want to cling on the slightest of hope, a mainstream Iron Man game would be awesome. The last time we saw Iron Man in take the stage in a big title was back in 2010 in the Iron Man 2 tie-in game that was made for the sole purpose of promoting the movie at the time. There has never been a AAA Iron Man game in history.
Whether EA is about to change that, or if this is just another baseless rumor, remains to be seen. After all, Grubbs didn’t even highlight what studio is behind the “another single-player Marvel game” and even if an Iron Man title was in the works, it would be years before we actually see it fruition. For context, Spider-Man PS4 was conceptualized in 2014 and it took 4 years of development to turn it into a final product.
Let’s hope we hear positive things about this story very soon.