Insomniac Games has been developing Marvel’s Wolverine for several years now, but has only revealed scant clues about its direction – its plot, characters, and vibes. We know it will star beloved Marvel anti-hero Wolverine (obvious, yes) and that it will be inspired by Marvel’s comics, but beyond this, developers have stayed relatively quiet about what’s in store.
That said, some details have slipped through the cracks – some of which are known only because of an egregious ransomware attack targeting Insomniac Games and its employees. These details are very insightful, of course, but it’s worth noting their origins are unfortunate, and it’s poor that most of what we know about Marvel’s Wolverine is due to this subterfuge.
With that in mind, here’s everything we know about Marvel’s Wolverine so far.
Currently, Marvel’s Wolverine does not have a firm release date, or a release window. It’s simply marked as TBD on the Insomniac Games website. While there have been some rumours of a late 2026 window, based on leaks, it’s best to dismissed these for now.
As for what the game will release on, we know it will be a PS5 exclusive on launch. Given Sony’s recent moves, it may eventually wind up on PC – but nothing to that effect has been announced yet.
The plot of Marvel’s Wolverine has not been detailed officially yet, but there are clues scattered throughout the game’s first trailer, and further information was revealed, post-ransomware attack.
In the trailer, we’re introduced to a mysterious bar, where various men lie prone after what seems like a brawl. A man with a knife approaches another man, seated at a bar, wearing flannel and a cowboy hat, and this man squeezes his fists and pops his claws.
The early assumption about this bar is that it could be located in Madripoor, a lawless destination that features heavily as a stomping ground of Wolverine in Marvel’s comics – whether as himself, or as his crime lord alter ego, Patch. This is not confirmed at all, but some have claimed this will mean Marvel’s Wolverine will be a “ground level” adventure featuring lower-level street fights and subterfuge.
Of course, that’s a lot to assume from a single scene, but should this be the case, we could see a far more grounded Wolverine tale than we’re used to seeing on screen.
Other leaks revealing the appearance of a classic X-Men villain suggest this game could also cover familiar ground by touching on the Weapon X experiments, and how Wolverine became a hero.
The footage in the first trailer for Marvel’s Wolverine was labelled clearly as not being actual gameplay, so there’s not much we can learn from it. Certain details revealed after hackers posted Insomniac’s data online have gone a bit further towards revealing more of gameplay.
Documents filtered throughout social media following this hack revealed the game will feature a third-person perspective, and that Wolverine will have access to a range of particular abilities, including an elevated sense of smell which will be used to track enemies. There are also suggestions of a “memory” function of sorts which will allow him to revisit his history, and other snippets of gameplay also revealed the ability to claw up and along walls.
Given some of this information is derived from an in-development version of the game, we can’t assume all of these reported abilities will end up in the final game.
Again, the information we know about Marvel’s Wolverine and its cast of characters largely stems from online leaks. As reported by a variety of outlets, the documents shared indicate the game will feature cameos from a range of X-Men stalwarts, including Jean Grey and Mister Sinister.
The documents have further outlined the cast for the game, alleging the following folks will play these roles: Krizia Bajos as Jean Grey, Liam McIntyre as Wolverine, and Troy Baker as Mister Sinister. It’s important to note this has not been confirmed, but should this leak be legitimate, McIntyre would be the second famous Australian to play Wolverine.
Corroborating evidence for these appearances is that the Insomniac ransomware hack revealed a timeline of upcoming games in development that included a mystery X-Men adaptation, likely starring Wolverine and his pals. Should thispart of the leak be legitimate, we can assume Marvel’s Wolverine will tease an X-Men team-up in some form, or lay the groundwork for future X-Men adventures.
Image: Insomniac Games / Marvel
Insomniac’s Spider-Man franchise is incredibly popular, and there’s no doubt many people would want it to officially cross over with Marvel’s Wolverine. There are some ties between Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 and this upcoming game, in the form of a Wolverine-inspired costume for Miles Morales, but for now, Insomniac Games is playing coy about cameo appearances.
At the very least, we do know Marvel’s Wolverine and Marvel’s Spider-Man will be set in the same universe, so these characters could appear together in future.
Read: Insomniac confirms Spider-Man and Wolverine share the same universe
“They’re all 1048,” Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 game director Bryan Intihar confirmed to Kinda Funny in late 2023, referring to the game universe’s designated number. “I think I got that right.”
“We wouldn’t be true Marvel fans if we didn’t have discussions [about a crossover], but I think for us it was, ‘Hey, working on these games is really hard. They’re really complicated.’ And I think it was just like, ‘Hey, let’s let the Wolverine team cook.’ Let’s let them cook and if something ever happens in the future, great,” Intihar said.
“Right, now let’s just make sure that let’s not box anybody into a corner and let’s just make sure that they have a clear runway to make the best Wolverine possible, and it’s going to be awesome.”
Based on what we know, it appears Marvel’s Wolverine is heavily inspired by its Marvel Comics source material, but like Marvel’s Spider-Man, it will likely tell a completely original story.
As those who played Marvel’s Spider-Man will know, this franchise takes certain liberties with Marvel storylines, weaving them into new, streamlined plots for a wider audience. While there are familiar elements – villains, characters, relationships, twists – the lore has all been reinterpreted for a standalone story that pays homage, while treading new ground.
We expect Marvel’s Wolverine will do the same.
Insomniac Games has been relatively quiet following the ransomware hack which leaked much of its company data to the public – and that’s fairly understandable. It’s likely the team is regrouping and staying quiet as it continues to work diligently on new projects, hopefully with a bit more privacy and security than it was previously afforded.
At this stage, it’s unclear when the studio will be ready to publicly reveal more about what it’s working on. As implied by documents leaked in the ransomware attack, the studio could be working on multiple projects, including new Spider-Man games (a Venom spin-off appears as the next Insomniac game in a leaked production timeline), as well as Marvel’s Wolverine, so it could be some time before we hear more.
Our bet is on the The Game Awards 2024 or Summer Game Fest 2025 for potential Wolverine updates and a new trailer – but that’s pure speculation. For now, it’s best to stay patient and keep an ear out for more news.
Marvel’s Wolverine is one of the next big games in development at Insomniac Games. Here’s what we know about it so far, and when it’ll launch. Read More