Review: SMASH UP: MARVEL is a Fantastic Expansion for Newbies and Veterans Alike
The Op has released Smash Up: Marvel and provided me with a copy to review. Smash Up is one of my favorite tabletop games, so this is extremely exciting. In Smash Up, you take two different faction decks and shuffle them together to get awesome and sometimes random combinations. Smash Up: Marvel is the first licensed version of the game, and it’s handled very well. This version features the following 8 factions to mix and match: Avengers, Hydra, Masters of Evil, Sinister Six, Spider-Verse, S.H.I.E.L.D., Ultimates, and the Kree. You can grab Smash Up: Marvel from your favorite game store for $34.99.
I’m going to talk about the negatives of Smash Up: Marvel first. This list is incredibly short as the negatives are very subjective. First, the comic looks straight from the comics which is overall a big plus, but there are a few cards that I simply don’t like the art for like Ulysses Klaw. He looks so dumb! The other problem I have is that a big part of the charm to a game like Smash Up is the parody element to them. Licensed versions of the game remove that charm in my opinion. Also, the counters usually have some cool art or something to go with the expansion theme, but the counters in this game are bland.
That’s it. There’s a lot of greatness about the game. For starters, a lot of the art is fantastic. Second, on the dividers designed for improved organization include information about their faction including an estimated difficulty rating. This is a feature that’s great for new players. Another change that I appreciate is that while some cards in the past would say “Play this card on a base/minion” now simply say “Base/Character Modifier.” This revision is a very welcome change that I hope is used in future expansions.
All 8 factions are a lot of fun to play. There are definitely some combinations that don’t tend to work super well like Kree and Ultimates, but others are truly terrifying to even think about like Hydra and Masters of Evil. Marvel fans and Smash Up fans are going to enjoy this game.
At the end of the day, Smash Up: Marvel is a lot of fun. If you’re a Marvel fan who’s new to the game or a long time veteran, this is a great game to pick up. That’s right, even if you’ve never played the game before, this is a great introduction set.
