Recent rumors indicate that Microsoft is in talks with Marvel to bring back delisted Marvel games to the Xbox storefront. According to a source, the games in question include Deadpool and Marvel Ultimate Alliance.
Emergence of Rumors
According to insider Shpeshal Nick, Microsoft may re-license delisted Marvel games such as Marvel Ultimate Alliance and Deadpool. These games were initially published by Activision Blizzard but were delisted after the company lost the rights to them.
Popularity Surge and Backward Compatibility
Nick shared the rumors in episode 225 of the Xbox Era podcast, stating that Microsoft may re-license the games. While no timelines or dates were given, it is speculated that the rising popularity of Deadpool and Marvel Ultimate Alliance could be leveraged. Thanks to backward compatibility, Deadpool and X-Men Origins Wolverine games, which were originally compatible with Xbox One, can now run on Xbox Series consoles. The popularity of these games has surged following the release of the Deadpool and Wolverine movie in theaters. The comic book sequel has grossed $1.086 billion worldwide in 23 days since its release, making it the highest-grossing R-rated movie of all time.
Price Surge of Secondhand Copies
The popularity of the Deadpool and Wolverine movies appears to have influenced the prices of secondhand copies of the Deadpool and X-Men Origins Wolverine games. According to video game price tracking website PriceCharting, the price of a complete in-box copy of Deadpool for Xbox One has risen from a low of $30 recorded in November to $96. Similar price surges have been observed for copies of X-Men Origins Wolverine for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. However, Marvel Ultimate Alliance has not experienced such a price surge. In 2021, Insomniac Games announced they were developing a Wolverine video game, but no release dates were provided. Insomniac Games, which developed Marvel Spider-Man titles for Sony PlayStation consoles, indicates ties between Marvel, Sony, and Insomniac Games. These ties present a major obstacle for Xbox and Microsoft's plans to republish old Activision Blizzard games, as Marvel retained the rights to Deadpool and Marvel Ultimate Alliance along with the games' characters.
Rumors of older Activision Blizzard games coming to Xbox have also surfaced in 2022 from episode 123 of the Xbox Era podcast but never came true. After Microsoft acquired Activision Blizzard in 2022, gamers hoped to see the return of dead titles in Microsoft's stores. In June, Transformers games made their way to Xbox and PC via Steam after their product pages were restored following previous delisting due to licensing issues.
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