A developer behind Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor is partnering with Electronic Arts to developer an all new video game based on Marvel’s Black Panther.
Promising a “reactive world” similar to that found in the developer’s Warner-published Lord of the Rings games, the upcoming superhero game is the second Marvel project in development under Electronic Arts. EA is also working on a AAA Iron Man game using Unreal Engine.
Developed by the new AAA game developer Cliffhanger Games, you’ll be put in the shoes of the Wakandan Protector as you explore the unique African civilisation and fend off aggressors. Portrayed through a third-person camera, we expect to see frenetic combat and acrobatics just like in the Black Panther comics.
Cliffhanger is spearheaded by Shadow of Mordor veteran Kevin Stephens and bolstered by a sizeable team of experienced AAA developers. With developers from Call of Duty, God of War, Halo Infinite and more, Cliffhanger could become a brand-new name in the same vein as Titanfall and Star Wars Jedi developers Respawn Entertainment.
“We’re dedicated to delivering fans a definitive and authentic Black Panther experience,” Stephens said in an EA blog post. “Giving them more agency and control over their narrative than they have ever experienced in a story-driven video game. Wakanda is a rich superhero sandbox, and our mission is to develop an epic world for players who love Black Panther and want to explore the world of Wakanda as much as we do.”
Few details were given regarding the new Black Panther game. However, considering EA’s recent portfolio of licensed single-player games, we expect to see large open environments, stealth systems and more, especially with the developer’s Middle-Earth background. Unfortunately, despite the Shadow of Mordor veterans behind it, the game likely won’t feature that game’s iconic nemesis system due to patents held by Warner Bros. Instead, that system is expected to appear in the upcoming Wonder Woman game by Monolith.
At the time of writing, the untitled Black Panther game is in early development. Cliffhanger is still building out its team, gathering more hands to work on the game as part of a diverse team. With this in mind, we shouldn’t expect to see the title for a number of years.
This also isn’t the only Black Panther game in development. Skybound is currently hard at work on a Captain America and Black Panther game based on a team-up comic with the two. The developer is also working on an all-new Star Wars game with the creator of Uncharted and the mind behind Star Wars 1313.
EA’s Black Panther game is currently years away, and no platforms have been revealed. We expect the game to launch on Xbox Series, PS5 and PC. At the very least, we hope so.