Remember Marvel Heroes? You probably do! It was a pretty popular game, after all, and as we noted last year it was ultimately the implosion of its studio that killed it rather than a lack of players. It was also bizarre in how badly that sunset was managed, to boot. People really enjoyed that game. This stands in stark contrast to Marvel’s Avengers, which has been struggling to retain players and keep a stream of player interest… which makes it poetic that former Gazillion developer Brian Waggoner is moving on to Crystal Dynamics to work on the title as a Systems Designer. Something he nearly didn’t do after the Marvel Heroes debacle:
After what happened at Gazillion, I wasn’t ever sure if I wanted to work on another Marvel game again. Talking to the team at Crystal, seeing their passion for making a game the fans love and knowing the potential of the product were all big factors for me in making my choice.
Obviously, Waggoner’s position will not serve as an instant fix for the game’s issues or its overall playerbase woes, but fans are already excited to see someone known for doing good work on a beloved game in the franchise getting a chance to do more and maybe bring back some of that magic. We’ll have to keep our eyes peeled to see how his presence changes the game, hopefully for the better.
Well, the time has come. I can finally announce that at the end of next month, I'll be leaving @EASPORTS and joining @CrystalDynamics as a System Designer on @PlayAvengers.
I'm really excited to join that team and help them build new systems and features for the game!
— Brian Waggoner (@HeyItsBWags) April 27, 2021
One of the things that convinced me to take the job was the leadership of Crystal Dynamics telling me to give them honest feedback about the game and its issues and telling me there were no egos in the room. I did and they were very receptive to my suggestions.
— Brian Waggoner (@HeyItsBWags) April 27, 2021
