Marvel is now taking over video games, too

The rumored Marvel superhero game "Midnight Suns," from the acclaimed makers of “XCOM,” was officially revealed on Wednesday.

Why it matters: New games from Firaxis are always a big deal, but “Midnight Suns” also may serve as confirmation that video games, like movies before them, are now (and forever?) going to be a conveyor belt of major Marvel releases.

• The game is described as a turn-based tactical roleplaying game that doesn’t quite follow the “XCOM” rule-set (no permadeath, spaces to explore between missions).

Between the lines: The biggest mobile Marvel game in ages, “Marvel Future Revolution,” is out Wednesday.

• Then a “Guardians of the Galaxy” game from Eidos Montreal comes out in late October.
• “Midnight Suns” will follow in March.
• These follow last November’s release of “Miles Morales: Spider-Man” from Insomniac Games, a studio that is sure to make more games in the series.

The big picture: While a constant flow of Marvel releases could be tiresome, the strategy from Disney is setting up the games to excel.

• The entertainment mega-corp has focused in recent years on licensing its characters and franchises to external studios, rather than focusing on building its own studios.
• It’s clearly targeting partnerships with elite teams: Firaxis (owned by Take-Two Interactive), Insomniac (owned by Sony) and Eidos Montreal (owned by Square Enix) have all released critically acclaimed games.
• The caveat is that sometimes the best plans don’t deliver. Last fall’s “Marvel’s Avengers,” made by top-flight studio Crystal Dynamics, has been a critical and commercial dud.