Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls developer Arc System Works has revealed that the upcoming fighting game will feature an Episode Mode, a story mode designed with casual players in mind. This mode will be presented in an interactive comic book style. Initial reports from various outlets suggested that Episode Mode would not include any actual gameplay. However, updates have confirmed that this is not the case.
In an interview with the Japanese news site 4Gamer, producer Takeshi Yamanaka and director/lead battle designer Kazuto ‘Pachi’ Sekine discussed the game’s story mode. The initial publication implied that Episode Mode would only have a Guilty Gear Strive-style cutscene-based story mode with no gameplay. An update to the interview on May 13 clarified that 4v4 bouts will be included in the story mode.
According to Yamanaka, “In Episode Mode, playable battles are incorporated throughout. Battles occur that tie into the story, while the design allows everyone to enjoy it casually, just like reading a comic book. This allows the story to be experienced in a more interactive way.”
The Episode mode is set to feature around 10 hours of content and gameplay in total. The story will have variations depending on which of the five default teams players choose. The narrative will build up to a confrontation against Marvel Tokon’s brand-new, mysterious villains: The Champion and his henchwoman Promoter. Teams of four will battle it out to face The Champion in the final battle of the game’s Episode Mode and prevent him from destroying Earth.
The comic book-style cutscenes will be animated and voiced in 10 languages. Players will navigate through panels and scenes, and the interactive comic book will utilise the PS5 DualSense’s haptic feedback. Yamanaka noted that the default teams revealed by official channels have been put together with the Episode Mode storyline in mind. However, players who want more freedom can create their own teams in the game’s other modes.
Marvel Tokon’s 4v4 tag team battle system revolves around one of the chosen characters in each team being the leader. Yamanaka explained that “We want players to be able to freely select four characters that they like, so we’ve included a ‘Team Generation’ feature that automatically generates a team name based on the characters chosen.” The source words used for this name generation system were picked by the dev team and are selected based on the characteristics of the team leader and the other members. Players are also free to name their teams themselves.
Yamanaka revealed that Marvel urged the team to incorporate Arc System Works’ art style into the character designs, giving the superheroes an anime-style look. Sekine stated that “This is why one of our themes for this game is ‘from Japan to the world’ – the idea of drawing Marvel characters in Arc System Works’ unique style and sending them out into the world.”
In-depth discussions were held between Sony, Marvel, and Arc System Works on the character roster. However, the developers were given freedom by Marvel to interpret guidelines for each character, sending their work to Marvel for ultimate approval. Sekine also hinted that fans should keep an eye out for some interesting alternative costumes.
Yamanaka and Sekine emphasised that Marvel Tokon is not just for hardcore Marvel fans but also can be enjoyed by casual players and newcomers to the superhero franchise. Yamanaka said, “The Episode Mode includes glossaries and character bios – we designed the game so even Marvel newcomers can understand the world, the characters and the relationships between them. I’d be happy if Marvel Tokon served as a gateway for people to discover the movies and comics as well.”
Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls is set to release on PlayStation 5 and PC on August 6, 2026.
