Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls‘ second beta test is on the horizon, and it will add two new playable characters–Spider-Man and Ghost Rider, and two new stages–Savage Land and X-Mansion. The latter is an intriguing addition as it features three of the five original X-Men members (and several others) as background characters, and it’s probably not a coincidence.
Interestingly, Storm is the only mutant part of the base roster so far in Marvel Tokon. If you’re a fan of X-Men, you’re probably curious about who else will be playable, presumably even more so after the X-Mansion stage reveal.
All X-Men characters appearing in the X-Mansion stage in Marvel Tokon
As mentioned above, three of the five original X-Men members appear as background characters in the X-Mansion stage. These are Angel, Beast, and Iceman. As for others, you can spot Colossus, Gambit, Nightcrawler, Psylocke, Professor X, and Rogue.
While this doesn’t confirm they won’t be playable, it’s worth noting that these characters’ designs look slightly too basic to be playable characters in Marvel Tokon in their current forms.
For this game, Arc System Works has opted for a hybrid style, blending the nostalgic American cartoon design with Japan’s more stylized anime ones. The result is hybrid yet intricately designed characters that feel authentically unique to Marvel Tokon.
To that end, these background characters, particularly Nightcrawler, look quite underwhelming compared to the likes of Storm and Ghost Rider.
For those curious, here is the full list of X-men characters who appear in the X-Mansion Stage background:
- Angel
- Beast
- Iceman
- Colossus
- Gambit
- Nightcrawler
- Psylocke
- Professor X
- Rogue
- Sentinel
Will the background characters be playable?
Does this mean these X-Men characters will not be playable in this game? Not necessarily, as background characters in other fighting titles, such as Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat, have made it to the main roster via DLC upgrades. For instance, Guile appears in the background in the Carrier stage but is also a playable unit in the game.
Of the characters who appeared in the new stage, Gambit looks the part. We mostly get a backside view of his character in the X-Men Mansion stage, which may have been a deliberate choice. However, the glimpse of his side profile, and arguably, his character design is slicker than most background characters.
6v6 team-based hero shooter Marvel Rivals‘ Season 5 added Gambit and Rogue to the roster on Nov. 14, which could be a reason why Gambit has not been showcased as a playable character, yet?
Gameplay-wise, among all the background characters in X-Mansion, Nightcrawler would be the most unique addition. His agile nature fits the archetype of good support character, similar to Storm.
Takeshi Yamanaka, producer at Arc System Works, said during the game’s reveal that the team wanted to “leave room for characters who have never been playable in a fighting game before.” Nightcrawler is not available in Marvel Rivals, nor is he playable in any of the Marvel vs Capcom games, which makes him an appealing hero for Marvel Tokon.
Which X-Men characters could be playable in Marvel Tokon?
Fan-favourites like Cyclops, Magneto, and Wolverine have a fair chance of making it to the playable roster at launch, especially since they are absent in the X-Mansion stage.
That said, it wouldn’t be appropriate lore-wise for villains such as Magneto to appear frolicking outside the X-Mansion as background characters, so that’s something to consider as well. This goes for other X-Men villains as well, such as Apocalypse, Mystique, and Juggernaut.
Jean Grey is another potential fit, not just because she isn’t seen in the new stage, but also due to the giant M’kraan crystal looming behind Iceman in the stage. Her telekinetic ability has plenty of potential to cause manipulation and mayhem on the battlefield.
Marvel Tokon features 4v4 tag team matches, where you can swap teammates during assists to switch up tactics. Assembling a team that synergizes well with each other is integral to gameplay. But it’s also a great way to flesh out character dynamics and the overarching narrative. For instance, Storm boldly calls out Star-Lord “Quill” when he’s being carefree during a match, which hints at the depth of their relationship.
With all this in mind, it would make sense to add X-Men characters to Marvel Tokon’s roster that synergize well story and gameplay-wise. Storm shares a romantic history with Wolverine in the X-Men comics, and that’s another reason for them to share screen in Marvel Tokon. Furthermore, Wolverine could be an Assault archetype who rushes in to deal heavy attacks after Storm inflicts Cold Embrace to freeze the opponent–there’s no harm in speculating, right?
The 4v4 option also opens up possibilities for assembling hero or villain teams and competing against each other. Marvel Tokon’s character lineup already consists of five members from the Avengers, so it would make sense if there were an equal number of villains in the roster. We already have Dr. Doom, but more popular choices include some X-Men characters such as Magneto, Mystique, and Apocalypse.
Overall, there’s plenty of room for X-Men in Marvel Tokon’s roster, and the developers definitely knew what they were doing by including so many characters in the background. For fans of Magneto and Wolverine, the odds are in your favour.
