Marvel’s Wolverine Review

Insomniac delivers a violent, character-focused Wolverine adventure with satisfying combat, strong performances, and a linear design that struggles to stay fresh.

Insomniac’s take on Logan delivers powerful combat, a personal story, and memorable character moments, but limited exploration and a lack of gameplay variety stop it from reaching the heights of the studio’s Spider-Man games. The result is an enjoyable and brutal Wolverine experience that succeeds most when it puts Logan’s character and ferocious fighting style at the center.

Marvel’s Wolverine arrives as Insomniac Games’ next major Marvel project after establishing itself through the Marvel’s Spider-Man series. However, instead of returning to an open-world superhero experience, the studio takes a different direction with a more focused, linear action-adventure.

Insomniac has built its reputation around adapting comic book characters into accessible, cinematic games, and Wolverine follows many of the same principles.

You get familiar controls, large action sequences, dramatic cutscenes, and a story built around a superhero dealing with personal struggles. At the same time, the studio attempts to make Logan feel different from Peter Parker and Miles Morales through heavier combat, a more violent presentation, and a greater focus on his damaged personality.

At first, Essex seems like someone who can help Logan understand himself, but the situation quickly turns more dangerous. Years later, Logan is a seasoned member of Team X, a mutant strike force in a world where mutants do exist but are becoming more and more hunted.

The main conflict is between Logan and Bolivar Trask, a powerful man who believes humans are better than mutants. His organization kidnaps mutants, and Logan investigates the disappearances to uncover what’s happening behind the scenes.

The story does not use Logan as a vehicle for violent action. It looks at his trauma, his trouble trusting others, and the conflict between his animal instincts and the compassion he tries to show. This balance is one of the story's strengths.

Logan is aggressive and intimidating one moment, unexpectedly calm and vulnerable the next. Liam McIntyre’s performance gives him a personality beyond the usual intense Wolverine portrayal, allowing you to see the character as someone who is always struggling with his identity.

The relationship between Logan and Jean Grey is particularly important.

Jean’s emotional presence helps to reveal a softer side of Logan that doesn’t come out when he’s surrounded by enemies. Their connection becomes one of the campaign’s central highlights, and their quieter conversations often work better than some of the larger action sequences.

Marvel’s Wolverine also takes a few liberties with familiar characters, including blending aspects of Cyclops into how it presents certain relationships. That choice might divide fans, but it gives the adaptation its own identity rather than simply repeating the same comic book material.

The supporting cast doesn't always get enough space to develop. Characters like Sabretooth and Mystique make appearances, but many of them feel like major figures passing through Logan’s story rather than fully developed characters with arcs of their own.

Obviously, Marvel’s Wolverine wants the story to stay on Logan, so the cast doesn’t get overly crowded, but some relationships and character motivations aren’t explored as much as they could be. This keeps the narrative focused, although it also makes certain supporting characters feel more like brief additions than meaningful parts of Logan’s journey.

One of the most striking things about Wolverine and Insomniac’s Spider-Man games is the way the world is built. Instead of giving you a large city to explore, Wolverine places you in a series of linear levels. You move through forests, buildings, streets, facilities, and other locations, usually following one of a few available routes toward the next objective. 

The problem is not necessarily that Marvel’s Wolverine is linear. 

A linear Wolverine game can work well, especially when the level design centers on strong encounters, environmental storytelling, and cinematic set pieces. The difficulty is that most levels don't provide enough interaction or meaningful exploration. You often go down a corridor, enter an arena, kill several enemies, and move on to the next section.

Traversal is fairly simple. Logan can run, jump, climb certain surfaces, move along cables, use construction hooks, and leap toward enemies. White paint often shows you where to climb, making the route easy to spot. You have more room to move than expected in some places, but Marvel’s Wolverine still limits where you can go.

Logan’s movement feels heavier than Spider-Man's. He runs with the weight of a powerful character rather than the fluidity of a web-slinging hero. That fits his personality and physical presence, but it also means traversal isn't a major attraction on its own. 

You can also use Logan’s senses to investigate locations and follow scents. These sequences let you follow people, locate objects, and discover story-related clues. Wolverine's heightened senses are central to his powers, and the idea fits him. But occasionally it feels too direct.

The glowing scent trails, big visual cues, and constant instructions make it hard to feel like you're really exploring. Instead of observing the environment and figuring out where to go, you are often given the answer immediately.

The same problem affects some of the game’s puzzles. One example involves a young mutant named Leech, who asks Logan for a password. You walk around Essex’s manor and collect drawings that contain clues. However, Logan automatically works out the answer when you return to the locked door, meaning you never actually have to solve the riddle yourself.

This hand-holding isn't always disastrous, but it does reduce the feeling of involvement.

Insomniac clearly wants Marvel’s Wolverine to remain accessible, and the useful indicators will help you avoid getting lost. Still, there is a difference between guiding the player and completing every small task for them. Wolverine would benefit from more moments where you examine clues, make decisions, or use the environment without Marvel's Wolverine immediately explaining what to do.

Combat is the main attraction, and it captures Wolverine’s physicality better than almost any other part of the game. Logan’s claws are his primary weapons, and you spend most encounters grabbing, slashing, kicking, smashing, and throwing enemies around. 

Triangle lets Logan leap toward enemies, which helps when you need to close distance or reach opponents above you. Circle dodges, while L1 handles parrying. Learning when to dodge and parry becomes important because enemies can attack from different directions, fire weapons, or interrupt your combos.

The Rage system is one of the most effective ways Marvel's Wolverine makes you feel like Wolverine. When the meter fills, you can enter Rage Mode and unleash devastating attacks that let Logan rip through enemies faster and with more power.

Critical strikes can also trigger brutal finishing moves, while later abilities give you more ways to clear groups of opponents. The screen changes visually when Rage is active, reinforcing the feeling that Logan is losing himself to his more violent instincts.

The violence is a major part of the combat presentation. 

Enemies can lose limbs, suffer devastating finishing moves, and be thrown into environmental objects. The animation work makes the claws feel dangerous rather than simply decorative. You can slash through enemies, kick them off ledges, and launch them across the battlefield.

Logan’s healing factor is another important part of the design. Rather than constantly searching for health packs, you recover over time when you avoid taking damage. This is a smart choice, as it reflects Wolverine’s abilities and keeps the focus on maintaining momentum during combat.

The Last Stand mechanic also allows Logan to survive situations that would normally kill another character. It gives him a safety net that fits his reputation as a man who won't stay down. This mechanic makes his toughest encounters feel more manageable without taking away the danger of combat.

Combat is satisfying at first, but as the campaign progresses, its simplicity becomes more apparent. You learn techniques like Tornado Spin, Spiral Strike, and Brutal Assault. These abilities can be assigned to four slots on the controller for use in combat. You can also upgrade each technique, giving you some control over what attacks you use the most.

The problem is that the system does not develop enough over the course of the game. 

You gain access to many useful abilities relatively early, and the techniques don't significantly change how you approach most encounters. Combat remains enjoyable when you launch Logan through a group of enemies or use a powerful move to clear an arena, but the same actions start to lose impact when you repeat them across many similar fights.

Enemy variety helps to some extent. You will face enemies with swords, guns, bows, grenades, shields, and more. You also have to contend with robots, snipers, and tougher enemies that require different responses. Some enemies die in a flash, but others must be carefully parried or struck in the right place.

However, the encounter design does not always take advantage of these differences. Many fights take place in big, flat arenas; some enemies fight on the ground in melee, while others attack from high platforms. You dodge incoming missiles, switch targets, and wait for the opportunity to parry or strike. 

Other encounters are less impressive, with certain fights relying on repeatedly attacking a large target or hitting the same body part for an extended period. These battles feel less suited to a modern action game and do not always match the quality of the game’s strongest set pieces.

Stealth is available, but it is optional and relatively basic.

You can use Logan’s senses to locate enemies, sneak behind them, and perform stealth takedowns from the ground or above. Eliminating an enemy quietly can be satisfying, but Marvel’s Wolverine doesn't force you to use this approach.

Progression is divided between experience points, technique points, adaptations, and collectible resources. You gain XP by defeating enemies and destroying certain boxes around the levels. As you earn more experience, you gain technique points you can spend on new abilities and upgrades. 

Another way to customize Logan is with adaptations. These abilities can affect things like recovery after parries, rage-related mechanics, or filling up special techniques. As you level up, you can replace these with a setup that matches your preferred fighting style. 

Collectibles also have a practical purpose. Material caches contain resources used to unlock suits and claws, while whiskey bottles help you obtain adaptations. Numerous suit and claw designs draw on Wolverine’s history, including references to his comic book and film appearances. 

The nightmare doors offer optional challenges scattered throughout the levels. 

These activities include combat trials, traversal challenges, and gauntlets against waves of enemies. Each challenge is timed and scored, so you can try to improve your score. The gauntlets are the most fun of the three because they are combat-based, and you have to survive waves of enemies over and over. 

Completing nightmare challenges rewards you with extra adaptation points and short story pieces tied to Logan’s memories. This is a good way to link optional content to the character instead of making every activity feel like a disconnected task. 

Still, some challenges feel like filler because they do not introduce enough new mechanics. Marvel’s Wolverine also lacks traditional side quests, so once you finish the main story, your main options are collecting remaining items, completing nightmare doors, replaying missions, and starting New Game Plus.

The short length is not automatically a problem. A focused campaign can be more effective than an overly long open-world game filled with repetitive activities. The issue is that Wolverine’s combat and level design don't evolve enough to support the full experience.

Visually, Marvel’s Wolverine is one of the stronger parts of the experience. 

Insomniac also makes combat feel more physical by using environmental destruction. You can smash machines, cut through plants and fences, and leave claw marks on walls. These details make the world feel more reactive while reinforcing the raw power and aggression behind Logan’s attacks.

Marvel's Wolverine includes a photo mode with options for focus, aperture, character positioning, and filters. This gives you a lot of control over how you shoot Logan and the environments. And performance is good too, based on the reviewed PS5 Pro experience, with performance mode aiming for 60 frames per second. 

So far, performance has been stable, with occasional visual glitches and the environment blocking the character in some situations. Players who want visual quality over frame rate can choose fidelity and other display options.

The sound design only heightens the violence and intensity of combat. Claw strikes, enemy responses, and finishing moves make each attack feel impactful. Marvel’s Wolverine also has quieter moments focused on Logan’s character, juxtaposing the brutality of fighting with more intimate conversations at the cabin or during investigations. 

But the campaign’s tone can feel uneven. 

Marvel’s Wolverine often moves between intense bloodshed and quiet emotional scenes without always creating a smooth transition. Some of the strongest character moments happen in cutscenes, while the missions themselves feel disconnected from the story’s emotional developments. 

Marvel’s Wolverine understands the basic appeal of its main character. You control Logan as he tears through enemies with his claws, survives damage that would kill most people, and grapples with the memories and relationships that shape him. 

The combat is responsive, the presentation is polished, and the story has enough character work to keep you invested. The dynamic between Logan and Jean is especially successful, and the worldwide setting gives the campaign momentum without needing an open world.

At the same time, Marvel's Wolverine does not offer enough mechanical variety to match its presentation. The combat starts strong but becomes repetitive because the techniques don't change your approach much. The levels are often predictable, the exploration is limited, and the puzzles rarely ask you to think for yourself.

Comparisons with Spider-Man are unavoidable, not because Wolverine needs to be an open-world game, but because both titles share many of Insomniac’s design habits.

The familiar controls, cinematic cutscenes, and accessible gameplay make the connection obvious. Wolverine’s linear structure is not inherently a weakness, and the more old-school approach can be refreshing. However, Marvel's Wolverine needed stronger ideas to make its structure feel like a deliberate advantage rather than a limitation.

The final experience is enjoyable, especially if you are a fan of Wolverine or Marvel. The violence is satisfying, the story has memorable character moments, and the presentation delivers the polished superhero spectacle Insomniac is known for. 

But the campaign doesn't offer enough depth in its combat, exploration, or progression to stand alongside the studio’s strongest work. It's a solid Wolverine adventure that shows promise but too often settles for functional rather than exceptional.