What better way to celebrate the release of X-MEN: FIRST CLASS on DVD today than to check out what two of the franchise’s most popular characters have in their closets for Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3?

MAGNETO

The Master of Magnetism hasn’t changed his core look much since his debut in the ‘60s. I’m using Jim Lee’s X-MEN #1 cover as reference here sheerly because it’s only the most awesome image of Magneto ever!!!

NEW to Ultimate MvC3

You may have already caught a glimpse of the EVE OF DESTRUCTION alternate, based on a story arc in the early 2000sr, in any of the demo builds of the game that have been popping up since San Diego Comic-Con. Some have taken to calling this skin “Grape-neto” – I won’t stop them.

NEW to Ultimate MvC3

As far as alternate realities go, Mike Carey’s AGE OF X universe has to be one of the coolest in recent memory. And not just because Magneto decided he really, really likes to wear white.

Returning from MvC3

This particular look for Magneto in the Ultimate Universe dates back to a time when Professor Xavier was actually still alive. And Peter Parker. And Doctor Strange. And Daredevil. And, well, quite a few other people you’ve heard of. They kill a lot of people in that universe. The mainstream line has it easy by comparison…

UPDATED for Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3

You might recall the MUTANT X alternate for Magneto from the previous game – but he didn’t have the cool X on his belt back then. The X makes all the difference, baby…

Returning from MvC3

…Or should I say "baybee"? You guys seemed really respond well to the inclusion of this MvC2 fan favorite before, based on a popular YouTube video, and we weren’t going to shut you out. In fact, you’re all diehard about “MAG-F$%#%-IN-NETO,” I’ll even let you pretend that the AGE OF X white variant above is is the white costume from that video. Go ahead, Mahvel fans. I don’t mind.

WOLVERINE

I hope Joss Whedon is able to break away from directing The Avengers long enough to check out the core look for Wolverine, which debuted in his ASTONISHING X-MEN series in 2004. I think he’d dig it.

Returning from MvC3

Remember how I said earlier that the best image of Magneto comes from Jim Lee’s cover for X-MEN #1? Ditto for Wolverine wearing brown.

Returning from MvC3

I think last time I told you guys this was based on X-FORCE. Well, let’s say this one is updated for UNCANNY X-FORCE and say we have a new look for Wolvie. (OK…it’s exactly the same. Still cool, though!)

NEW to Ultimate MvC3

If you haven’t read Mark Millar’s WOLVERINE: ENEMY OF THE STATE, you’re missing out on one of the best Wolvie stories ever told. You’re also missing out on all the blue (except for the shoulder pads) always being black. At first glance, this might not look so different from the core model, but pitted against each other, you’ll see they’re actually quite easy to distinguish.

Returning from MvC3

Much as I would have loved to have Capcom chop off that left hand for Wolvie’s AGE OF APOCALYPSE variant, it just looks plain weird if he’s delivering a devastating uppercut with a metal stub. I like to think this is AOA Wolverine just before Cyclops shot off his hand (which I’ll also presume is when he decided to go maskless… why not?).

NEW to Ultimate MvC3

Capcom had no idea they were creating a variant for one of their 2011 games when they introduced Evil Wolverine to one of their last Super NES games, Marvel Super Heroes in War of the Gems. Pit this variant against core Wolvie and prove to yourself that the color green has no weakness against yellow when it comes to super powers.

And in case you missed it on GameSpot this week...

GHOST RIDER

You kind of have to wonder how it took Johnny Blaze until this millennium to go all black for his modern duds. Seems like the perfect color for such a dark character.

When Ghost Rider's popularity rose off the charts in the '90s (and he actually wasn't Johnny Blaze then, either), he was quite the fan of navy blue with gray pants. By the way, with Ghost Rider taking on Punisher here, how awesome was this cover back in 1990?

This Fantastic Four interpretation has a couple of influences behind it. The concept originated when Ghost Rider, Hulk, Spider-Man and Wolverine formed the "New Fantastic Four," while the standard quartet was lost in another dimension. He didn't wear anything special for that, but the Mini Marvels version by Chris Giarrusso is a pretty obvious homage to that bit of '90s weirdness. Looks good, too!

How about some more Ultimate Universe for your Ultimate MvC3? That's where Robert Blackthorne -- Vengeance of the Ultimate Universe (while also being vice president of the United States -- really) -- killed Johnny Blaze and his beloved Roxanne Simpson during a satanic ritual. Johnny wasn't too happy about that. Why he chooses to dress like Blackthorne in this game is up to you to decide.

If you were a hardcore Ghost Rider fan in the '90s, then you know all about Noble Kale, who really enjoyed dressing like a pack of Fruit Stripes gum. I won't pretend that I know enough about Noble Kale to tell you all about him, though. That's what the internet is for.

A lot of people think Ghost Rider comics started in the '70s when Johnny Blaze entered the scene. Nope! The first Ghost Rider debuted in 1967. He wore all white and took a more equestrian route through town. Not Johnny, though. He's no cowboy. On a steel horse, he rides.

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See more new characters today on Capcom-Unity!

This Tuesday on GameSpot: Thor!

And now for the reminder you’ll see at the end of each blog entry:

As we count down the days until UMvC3 launches in November, Marvel.com, Capcom-Unity and GameSpot are all teaming up on Tuesdays and Fridays to show you the entire lineup of “fall fashions” for each of the 50 total playable characters. That’s six total looks per fighter – not just four like last time – that are all available as soon as you boot up the game. Outside of actually downloading the playable characters of Shuma-Gorath and Jill Valentine, no DLC is required (though there might just be some of that on the way as well…).

Just a couple things to remember, though (and the words to follow should be pretty familiar if you caught my similar write-ups the first time around):

1. Gameplay comes first, so the color scheme has to differ enough from the others to easily differentiate in the heat of battle.

2. The color scheme has to fit on the character model. For this reason, I hesitate to call these “alternate costumes” (although in some cases, they actually are).

Hey, True Believers! Chris Baker from Marvel Games here again...

One of the things I was most proud of concerning the release of Marvel vs. Capcom 3 in February was representing Marvel when it came to getting the alternate color schemes for characters in the game to actually mean something. While past Marvel fighting games by Capcom went the typical fighting-game route for alternates, simply creating different color schemes with no readily apparent rhyme or reason other than looking cool, we managed to provide comic-related reasoning for pretty much every alternate in MvC3 – and we’re doing it bigger and better with Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom.

As we count down the days until UMvC3 launches in November, Marvel.com, Capcom-Unity and GameSpot are all teaming up on Tuesdays and Fridays to show you the entire lineup of “fall fashions” for each of the 50 total playable characters. That’s six total looks per fighter – not just four like last time – that are all available as soon as you boot up the game. Outside of actually downloading the playable characters of Shuma-Gorath and Jill Valentine, no DLC is required (though there might just be some of that on the way as well…).

Just a couple things to remember, though (and the words to follow should be pretty familiar if you caught my similar write-ups the first time around):

1. Gameplay comes first, so the color scheme has to differ enough from the others to easily differentiate in the heat of battle.

2. The color scheme has to fit on the character model. For this reason, I hesitate to call these “alternate costumes” (although in some cases, they actually are).

While we’re doing numbered lists, it’s also good for you to know that there are essentially three classes of costumes this go-round, which I’ll be pointing out:

1. Returning: They worked great for us last time. We’re keepin’ ’em!
2. Updated: Because the idea to do this in the first place came relatively late in the development of MvC3, not every alternate was as close to the comics as it could have been (remembering Rule #2 above, of course). We did what we could to make a few even better.
3. New: Since we’re up from four to six now, every character has at least two of these – and probably more than you think will have more than that…

Beyond all that, I’m also excited that you’re not just hearing the Marvel side of the story this time via Capcom-Unity. Though Capcom may lack 70 years and thousands upon thousands of comics to pour through for reference, you might be surprised at just how much thought went into their alternate color schemes as well.

Now that all the setup’s out of the way, let’s get things started with a set of Marvel alternates you may have already seen, at least if you were lucky enough to get into Capcom’s UMvC3 panel at San Diego Comic-Con. She’s a great example of the three costume classes I noted above. I call her Jean. UMvC3 calls her…

PHOENIX

Returning from MvC3

Before she went totally nuts with that whole Dark Phoenix thing – and then again later on, shortly before she died for the most recent time (I say unironically) – Jean Grey donned this classic look. The Phoenix emblem itself varies by artist. Capcom likes it bigger, and I think it looks great like that.

Returning from MvC3

As it’s featured on the cover of the PHOENIX FORCE HANDBOOK, this reimagining of Greg Land’s white costume from PHOENIX: ENDSONG is arguably the most current "official" look for Jean. Funny side note: She’s never worn this look while alive.

UPDATE WITH CORRECTION: Thank you, Facebook commenters, for pointing out that this is actually known as the "White Phoenix of the Crown" costume, and though Greg Land's version is probably the most famous, it's actually appeared at least a couple times before: 1) Near as I can tell, its first appearance was in CLASSIC X-MEN #43, and 2) it later appeared courtesy of Marc Silvestri in the pages of NEW X-MEN #154 -- much like you see it here! (The funny side note still holds true, near as I can tell...)

UPDATED from MvC3

Jean had this basic look going on last time, but we’re one step closer to her NEW X-MEN duds now that the actual X-Men logo adorns her chest instead of a Phoenix emblem. (Too bad the belt is so off-model...)

UPDATED from MvC3

Last time, this alternate featured the Phoenix emblem and was meant as an homage to the color scheme for “my” Jean Grey by Jim Lee, first admired by me and countless others in the ‘90s X-Men cartoon. But now we’re ditching the bird and calling it an X-MEN FOREVER alt. Someone asked me at Comic-Con if there’s any chance we’ll get the ‘90s look, even though we’re not showing it here. I won’t say no...

NEW to Ultimate MvC3

I’ve heard people say that Phoenix is the cheapest character in MvC3. I’ve also heard that X-Factor is the cheapest gameplay feature of MvC3. So why not X-Factor with Phoenix in her ‘80s X-FACTOR outfit to really make people hate you?

NEW to Ultimate MvC3

Sometimes you’ve just gotta be a little bit selfish. The AGE OF APOCALYPSE storyline hit right at my comics-reading peak, and I freakin’ LOVED it (and continue to, as it’s recently been featured in the pages of UNCANNY X-FORCE). So I made Capcom put an AOA-inspired look in for Jean this time. We even got that weird symbol over her left eye in there, as you can see above. I know a lot of folks will be using this variant for the same reasons I will, but I’m also forced to wonder if it will prove popular for putting skin where the fowl goes. 

Today on Capcom-Unity: Haggar

This Tuesday on GameSpot: Hawkeye! Doctor Strange! Dormammu! 

Guest-starring on today's entry to Blip: The Marvel Games Blog is Johnson Lightfoote, who just completed his summer internship at Marvel Studios in Manhattan Beach, CA, en route to graduating from USC in spring 2012. Here's what he had to say about his time at Marvel:  

I had a great experience working at Marvel Studios in Manhattan Beach this past summer. I have always been a fan of Marvel characters including watching the animated X-Men and Spider-Man cartoons, the live-action movies, and playing their video games. Getting a chance to work with a company with as many compelling storylines and characters as Marvel was incredible.

I was a member of the Interactive department, which deals with creating, marketing, and collaborating with other companies to make video games based on Marvel characters. I spent most days playing builds of upcoming Marvel games, and I evaluated their game design, player approachability, and respect to the Marvel brand.

I also read game bid proposals from game companies to Marvel and rated which projects would offer the greatest probability of success to make a game that properly represents Marvel, delivers great gameplay, and is profitable. In addition, I sat in on business meetings with game companies including Activision, THQ, and Capcom in which I saw first hand how relationships between entertainment companies are forged. As if all of this hands-on experience weren’t rewarding enough, I attended both E3 and San Diego Comic-Con. It was humbling to see how the business behind entertainment is so complex and layered, yet is able to give meaningful experiences to people of all walks of life.

The highlight of my internship was working on Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 and playing the game months before its release. I am an avid fighting-game player, so getting a chance to see the business and creative process behind this game was a rare opportunity. I even met Capcom’s Combat Advisor Seth Killian at Comic-Con and spoke with him as a fellow colleague and fighting game player.

Working at Marvel was an honor and a privilege. I was fortunate that my summer was spent busy with meaningful work instead of other lackluster tasks that can be associated with other internships. This summer was great, and I appreciate Marvel for helping me with my first steps on my journey to a career in the entertainment industry. 

If you haven’t already seen it, the E3 trailer for Spider-Man: Edge of Time (coming to Marvel.com early next week) was released last night. Most comments I’ve seen have definitely been on the positive side -- which is great, because Beenox is once again really nailing a great Spidey gaming experience. Of course, the trailer’s big reveal is the video game debut of Anti-Venom, who’s seen beating the wall-crawler to a pulp. Case in point:

Though the buzz is generally positive, some of the more astute Marvel fans out there have made observations like NDI_Drake on Kotaku: “I don't like that Anti-Venom is portrayed as a villain in this game. He is a reformed Eddie Brock in the comics and host to the strongest symbiote on a holy type crusade to cleanse evil as a vigilante. Kind of like his Lethal Protector persona.”

And he’s exactly right. Well, I’m here to assure Mr. Drake--and the many others out there who have the same concern--that we’re well aware of this, and it’s something that’s addressed in the game. Want proof? Well, here’s an actual clip from Peter David’s script for the game.

"Why--?", indeed. I won’t say any more at this point, but I hope that alleviates your fears at least a little, Mr. Drake et al.

Oh, one other thing while I’m on the subject of concerns. I’ve seen a few people commenting that Anti-Venom really isn’t that big in the comics. Oh, but he is sometimes! Just ask Frank Castle...

But if you absolutely love seeing Anti-Venom smaller and more traditional, I can confirm that that’s in there too. See?...

Let me know your thoughts, either here or via Twitter (me: @cbake76, Marvel Games: @MarvelBlip). And come back to marvel.com/games early next week to see WAY more from Spider-Man: Edge of Time!

Excelsioryuken!

C-Bake

[Edited By Moderator]