If this Thursday finds you in a superheroic mood, a recent addition to the Xbox Live Marketplace might just serve as an excellent outlet for you to dish out some costumed justice. Major Nelson recently confirmed that a demo for Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 has been added to the service. Sure, it's a bit tardy, considering the game came out nearly two months ago. Still, we'll happily accept any free opportunities we can get to pretend to be Gambit for a few minutes. We kin' try talkin' like dis', ma cherie, but ... well, it doesn't really cut it.

It wasn't clear when Sega would be bringing its previously announced Thor and Captain America games to market, though we assumed they'd arrive alongside the films starring the iconic characters. Marvel has confirmed our suspicions in an earnings report this morning, saying that Thor and Cap will come to consoles in May and July of 2011 respectively, the same points they're set to appear on the big screen.

Since we know practically nothing about these games, we decided that, in true internet fashion, this would be the absolute best time to pick which one is better. Excelsior!

Marvel has finally confirmed the price and release date for the first batch of DLC for Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2. The pack will debut on November 5 for $9.99 on the PSN and 800 ($10) on Xbox 360. Included in the pack will be new simulator missions, boosts and, most important of all, three new characters. Namely, players will be able to get their hot little hands on Carnage, Psylocke and Cable.

In addition to the DLC pack, Juggernaut will also be released as a downloadable character. Originally, he was available only as a pre-order bonus but, starting November 5, anyone will be able to tell Charles to get out of their head for the price of $1.99 on PSN and 160 ($2) on Xbox 360.

In a recent blog post, Marvel.com spotlights upcoming downloadable content for the superhero action title Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2, which will add simulation missions and the previously Wii- and PS2-exclusive character Psylocke to the game. According to Marvel Games Intern Randy Ma, the katana-wielding "ninja babe" -- his awkward words, not ours -- is a welcome addition to the HD version of the game, giving Jean Grey's mind powers "a run for her money."

In the spotlight, Marvel also reveals tidbits of information for two of the game's upcoming simulation missions. Insidious Alliance pits players against some of the universe's toughest bosses in an arena-style match and adds an achievement/trophy for defeating the mission without using any health canisters, perfect for gaming masochists. According to scenario designer Mark Webster, the mission Balance is an homage to classic 2.5D brawlers like (get this!) the original X-Men arcade titles. More DLC news is expected in the coming weeks.

[Update: Corrected quote attribution]

We can only imagine the meeting at Vicarious Visions where the development team behind Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2's DLC was arranged. "Well, we've already got Spider-Man and Venom, but we really feel like the game's still lacking in the Spider-Man spinoff department -- what about that other Spider-Man guy?" And thus, Carnage enters the fray as the game's first downloadable character.

Known for his stint in the super-violent Spider-Man mini-series "Maximum Carnage" and, um, that SNES game we played so long ago, Carnage will assuredly lend an over-the-top je ne sais quoi to MUA2's proceedings. We're not exactly sure what happens when you pair him with Spider-Man and Venom on screen, but we worry they might get eaten by Carnage, which could be really awkward.

For all our too-cool-for-the-room cynicism about video games, it's refreshing to hear the beautiful innocence of a child's perspective on them. In the absence of a child's perspective, however, we're willing to accept the perspective of an old, old man, which is basically the same thing. Speaking with The Guardian, Stan Lee admitted that we was fundamentally clueless about the mechanics of game making, adding "It's like a miracle."

Let's try something, just for today. Let's try to ape Stan Lee's attitude. Let's try to remember that from the games destined to be classics down to the games made by Destineer, they're all miracles; especially when you consider that 50 years ago, the industry didn't even exist. We're living in the future, friends, and if someone as rich and old as Stan Lee can realize it, we should be able to as well.

Excelsior.

[Image credit: vissago]

While Marvel's Ultimate Alliance of heroes doesn't appear to BIFF POW much new ground in Activision's new sequel, reviews describe the game as a solid effort that's likely to appeal to fans of the original outing. Even better, it features the return of any comic book lover's greatest nemesis: the Marvel trivia minigame.

• GameDaily (80/100): "Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 may seem like more of the same, dig a little deeper and you'll reap its rewards. A great storyline, satisfying beat-em-up action, nifty Fusion attacks and a cornucopia of familiar and new characters make this a very friendly Alliance."
• IGN (77/100): "I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that the trivia game and mission simulator are back and welcome distractions, but they're presented in the same way as the original game. It eventually gets to the point where you have to scratch your head and wonder why this game took three years to produce when it's so similar to the last one."
• Gamespot (75/100): "Not only will the campaign last you around 15 hours or so, but the branching story gives you a good reason to return. ... While Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2 may not take the series in a big and bold new direction, or benefit from the kind of refinement you would look for in a sequel, it does deliver the button-mashing, power-flinging, over-the-top action fans of the original would expect. And it's just good fun, even if you don't know Iron Man from Iron Fist."
• 1UP (B-): "It's still satisfying to have some buddies hop into a game and take out robots together. And I still smile when I answer a bunch of dorky Marvel Universe trivia questions in a row. I just hope that for the next Marvel Ultimate Alliance (or whatever they call it, maybe Ultimate Marvel Amalgamation or something), either Raven returns as the developer, or Vicarious Visions learns from its missteps and crafts a better game."

Sharp-eyed Shoryuken forum dwellers recently spotted a Marvel vs Capcom 2 Tournament Edition FightStick at a GameStop conference, and now Mad Catz has officially announced the peripheral, which will be available for both PS3 and Xbox 360 this fall. The stick features Marvel vs Capcom 2 artwork and, like its SFIV Tournament Edition cousins, is fully loaded with Sanwa arcade parts. The stick will be sold exclusively at GameStop, or online at the Capcom and Mad Catz stores. A price has not been announced, but it's likely the stick will retain the $150 price of the SFIV sticks.

We now open the comments for the inevitable Happ vs Sanwa debate. Commence.

Activision isn't officially at PAX this year, the publisher just dropped in to hijack our eyeballs for the evening so we could spend some with with Blur, Tony Hawk Ride, and Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2. In the midst of the gaming and socializing, Acti revealed a few new playable characters in MUA2: Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and exclusive to the Wii ... Goofy!

Okay, we jest. The ink still isn't dry on that contract yet, but we hope that future versions of this game will gave us some sort of Disney hint, even if it's just a Scrooge McDuck level where you have to swim through gold coins. All kidding aside, MUA2 has added Iceman to the PS3/360 version, while the Wii inexplicably gains the cooler characters of Cyclops, Psylocke, and Blade. Where's the justice?!

While we go vigilante and deal with this news, feel free to check out the gallery below and the new Iceman video just after the break.

You probably heard the news today (oh boy) that Disney will soon acquire Marvel Entertainment. The deal will see shareholders receive $30 plus 0.745 shares of Disney stock for each share of Marvel they own. The transaction is expected to total approximately $4 billion. Of course, all we want to know is what will become of Marvel's booming licensed game business.

In a conference call following the announcement, Disney CEO Robert Iger briefly mentioned the company's plans regarding Marvel licensed games. He noted that Marvel "has smart licensing agreements with some of the best video game manufacturers in the business" and that even though Disney has been "moving in a vertically integrated direction," it's possible that it will pursue a "blend of licensed games as well as self-produced and self-distributed." He concluded that Disney has the "luxury" of deciding "what's best for the company" as the current Marvel licensing deals begin to expire.

In other words, expect Disney to bring at least some Marvel development in-house to its Disney Interactive Studios. It's important to understand the potential impact Disney's hold on Marvel could have. There are many, many Marvel games out there. Just to name a few, THQ, Activision, Sega, Gazillion and Capcom all have recently-released or upcoming Marvel titles. Activision in particular fills out a hefty portion of its portfolio with Marvel games, including Spider-Man, the recent Wolverine and the upcoming Ultimate Alliance 2. These companies may soon be faced with losing these properties altogether.

Update: Speaking to paidContent, Disney CFO Tom Staggs also had a few things to say regarding Marvel's game business. Scaggs noted that Marvel has "a number of good strong licensing agreements," adding that Disney will "enjoy the benefit of those deals." He also stated that Disney will "broaden the base of properties that [its] leveraging within Marvel," and concluded that there's an "opportunity" to expand Disney's gaming business as well.

Marvel executive Ira Rubenstein was super nice enough to give us a closer look at Sony's new Digital Comics service for PSN at GamesCom -- and we repay him by having a camera that apparently refuses to focus ... sorry. The comics, which Marvel suggests should cost roughly $2 each (Sony has the final say on price), will become available in December.

The company isn't currently discussing whether there will be a subscription model. The initial offering of comics will be from the "all audience" category, so we won't be seeing any of the niche Marvel stuff just yet. You can't really see it due to the focusing issue, but the PSP picture is beautiful. We're looking forward to seeing more of the service.

Marvel Executive Vice President of Global Digital Media Group (wow, long title) Ira Rubenstein tells Joystiq that Marvel is done making "crappy" movie-based games. The executive told us that while the company would like to have games tied to the release of movies, each character should stick to their own worlds. He used the recent X-Men Origins: Wolverine game as an example of what the company is looking to do. The M-rated Wolverine game was clearly not based around the PG-13 escapade in theaters.

"We are not doing movie-based games anymore," Rubenstein said following yesterday's announcement of Digital Comics for PSN at Sony's GamesCom press conference. "Actually, wait ... we are not doing crappy movie-based games anymore. You can quote me on that." Oh, we did.

Rubenstein tells us that work on Iron Man 2 has been in process since the first game wrapped. He wasn't involved in the first one, so he asked us not to blame him for that wreck. However, he swears the second one is going to be good. He's also really excited about the Thor game and seems proud with the team working on it. If Wolverine is any indication of future Marvel games, it seems that Rubenstein is doing his best to make sure fans of the comics won't be served watered-down Hollywood entertainment.

Sony had two big announcements for the PSP at GamesCom today. First up was the "PSP Minis" service, which opens the platform to bite-sized, iPhone-esque applications under 100MB in size. Launching the same day as the PSP Go, the service will greatly expand the content available on the PlayStation Store. The initial lineup of games, seen in the video above and gallery below, include a variety of little-known titles like Break Quest, Melody Bloxx, Circles, Flexis, Puzzle Scape, Sudoku, Tetris, Zombie Tycoon, Little Track. This is but a small sampling of the Minis' launch lineup.

Additionally, Sony made the Digital Comics service for the PSP official. The first announced partner is Marvel, but many more are to be announced in the future. In a chat with Eric Lempel, we found out that details like pricing and placement on the XMB are still being determined. You can check out a video of the service after the break.

After trotting out a mess of new information about PlayStation Home earlier today in Germany, SCEE prez Andrew House announced Sony's upcoming digital comics initiative on the PSP, the Digital Reader. According to House, Sony has worked out plans with Marvel to launch with "hundreds available, including the Marvel Comics stable."

Additionally, the service will give PSP-owning comic fans access to Archie and Image comics. Unfortunately, he didn't specify if the service will be a free firmware upgrade to the existing PSP software or pricing for the comics themselves. But alas, GamesCom has just started! We'll poke around and see if we can get some more information as soon as the Sony press conference ends.