[HTML1]

Marvel and Gazillion Entertainment brought Marvel Heroes to PAX East in Boston over the weekend where they unveiled the official release date for the free-to-play PC action game. Looking back on how long it’s take for a Marvel MMO to become a reality - after Marvel Universe Online was canned years ago - all we can say is “finally!”

Marvel Heroes is a Diablo-style top-down action RPG, with loads of characters to choose from and even more loot to find. It lets players step into the shoes of actual heroes from Marvel Comics instead of creating their own characters in the universe and it launches with more playable characters than any other Marvel game in history.

The closed beta for Marvel Heroes has been running for quite some time, and we tested it out early in the process, taking characters like Hawkeye and the Punisher for a spin. There’s an overarching story in place, written by Brian Michael Bendis, that involves the Cosmic Cube (ake the Tesseract) - also seen in The Avengers movie - and the villainous Doctor Doom.

David Brevik, a co-founder of Blizzard North and a key mind behind Diablo 1 & 2, is in charge of Marvel Heroes as the President and Chief Operating Officer, Gazillion Entertainment:

Marvel Heroes will officially launch on June 4, 2013, but for players eager to get in as soon as possible and haven’t been accepted yet into the closed beta, there’s still time to sign up at the official site, www.marvelheroes.com.

For guaranteed access, players who know Marvel Heroes is for them, purchasing a Founders package will grant a few extra days of play, but not much.

Starter Pack purchasers will receive 2 days of Early Access beginning on June 2nd. Premium Pack purchasers will receive 4 days of Early Access beginning on May 31st. Ultimate Pack purchasers will receive 7 days of Early Access beginning on May 28th.

The real bonuses from participating in the Marvel Heroes Founders program are the additional costumes, heroes and boosts.

Marvel Heroes releases on PC for everyone on June 4, 2013.

-

Follow me on Twitter @rob_keyes.