System: PC, PSP, DS
Dev: Konami
Pub: Konami
Release: July 3, 2007
Players: 1-2
ESRB Rating: Teen
Review by Cole Smith

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Review Rating Legend
1.0 - 1.9 = Avoid
2.0 - 2.4 = Poor
2.5 - 2.9 = Average
3.0 - 3.4 = Fair
3.5 - 3.9 = Good
4.0 - 4.4 = Great
4.5 - 4.9 = Must Buy
5.0 = The Best

Team attacks are useful and lend themselves perfectly to the Marvel universe since there are established teams such as the Fantastic Four and X-men. Other characters that are considered loners such as Spider-Man and The Hulk will have associates that they will be matched with based on the storyline of the single-player mode. You can't just include any characters; they have to be affiliated with that particular hero which is predetermined. Team attacks boost your attacking powers. But if you want to increase your defenses, you will place an affiliated character in the back row. This is called a reinforcement as they will help you absorb and recover quicker from an opponent's attack.

I'm not a statistician or odds maker, but there are so many different ways to employ the cards and effects in this game that it may well be incalculable. At this stage of the game I was just guessing at the results, and as long as you've got a reasonably powerful character you're guaranteed plenty of damage with very little configuring. Just power-up and it's clobbering time. It's the lesser-known knaves that I have trouble sizing up. For the most part, you seem to get what you pay for in terms of power but there are some anomalies which seem to give a poor performance despite their ratings. But to be fair, I also found some cards that exceeded my expectations so I guess in the end it all balances out. I would prefer something more concrete that I can count on and include it as part of my strategy. The randomness of the gameplay leads to a lack of control which in turns forces you to construct an unbeatable hand

This is a card trading game, and as such the multiplayer component is where the action is. Trade, buy, and sell cards and decks online. You can also play against other players that have the same cards sets as you. This ensures that you'll be evenly matched and not forced to play against some rich nerd that has nothing else to do but acquire new decks. Playing online is much more satisfying than playing the computer. The single-player mode goes on forever with its convoluted storyline, not to mention that the CPU seems to cheat by always playing the best card. If you're going to get this game, you're going to get it for the multiplayer. Treat the single-player mode as a tutorial, and a place to mine resources.

Marvel Trading Card is a decent looking game. It's certainly easier to read the cards and access the interface on the PC than on the PSP or DS. The music is repetitive as are the sound effects, but you can turn them off. You're not buying this game for the sounds or even the graphics for that matter. This is a card collecting game, and it appears that it will help keep the genre alive a little longer. It's more akin to a defibrillation than a Genesis.

By Cole Smith
CCC Senior Writer