Activision responds to PC gamer woes over ‘Marvel Ultimate Alliance’ port

By Gabe Gurwin August 3, 2016

Marvel Ultimate Alliance and its sequel were recently re-released across Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC at a slightly discounted price, giving a new generation of players a chance to try out the Diablo-like action game. The console versions, while perhaps unremarkable, have not attracted significant attention. The PC version, however, is a different story.

Input issues with controllers across both games, audio crackling, and a lack of DLC characters have fans rightfully upset, especially when each game is still $40. But Activision doesn’t plan to abandon the port now that it’s out in the wild.

“Both the standalone and bundled versions of Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 feature all of its original DLC. We are still working on making the DLC for the first Marvel Ultimate Alliance available in the coming weeks as a free update for everyone who has purchased the title on these platforms alone or as part of the bundle,” Activision said in a statement obtained by Eurogamer.

The last bit of that statement is what’s truly odd about this situation: “in the coming weeks.” This suggests that the two games were likely not ready for release and were rushed out the door anyway. Given that there was little to no fanfare before they were put on digital shelves, it’s confusing that Activision would not have delayed their release altogether.

“We’re focused on identifying and fixing the issues that have been occurring. Thank you for your continued patience as we address these issues,” the statement adds.

Marvel Ultimate Alliance isn’t the only PC game running into technical issues today, either. Batman: The Telltale Series, which recently launched its first episode, is reportedly a mess on the platform. Resolution and UI issues, crashes, audio glitches, and poor frame rate — a perpetual problem in Telltale Games — have all been mentioned. But the game is brand new, and doesn’t cost $40.

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Gabe Gurwin has been playing games since 1997, beginning with the N64 and the Super Nintendo. He began his journalism career…

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