The X-Men have starred in some amazing stories over the years. The team's adventures have run the gamut of fantasy, sci-fi, superheroics, dystopian future tales, and multiversal shenanigans. Fans have thrilled to these stories, but many of them have wanted more. They wanted to live some of these classic stories. For years, fans have debated about what X-Men stories they want to live through as part of a video game.
Superhero video games are entering a new age as the video game industry gets better and better at adapting comics. Video games are at a point where they can become playable comic books, which bodes well for the future of superhero games. The X-Men have plenty of stories that would make for excellent video games, breathing fresh life into the comics.
10 X Of Swords
X Of Swords was a miscalculation for the resurgent X-Men line. The twenty-two part story put everything else on pause and pit the Chosen of Krakoa against the Champions of Arakko. The story's first phase involved the Chosen finding their special, prophesied swords, while the second phase outlined the contest between the two sides.
As a story, it was weirdly paced and not every fan enjoyed the second phase. However, X Of Swords would rule as a video game. Starting out with the sword quest levels, and then moving into the actual contests, this game would feature intense battles and amazing puzzle levels for the contests. Given the one-on-one nature of the contests, the devs could even style the game after the combat in DC's Injustice: Gods Among Us.
9 Onslaught
Onslaught doesn't benefit from a lot of fan love, but it would make an excellent video game. Starting with the X-Men's opening battle against Onslaught, the game would show players just how powerless they were. Then it would slam into the next phase of the story, as the heroes of New York City deal with an invasion of Sentinels that X-Factor couldn't stop.
From there, would have to keep Onslaught from getting his hands on Franklin Richards and X-Man. The final battle against Onslaught would have the greatest heroes in a massive war with the powerful psychic parasite. While a more modern action game style, like something from Platinum Studios, would be amazing, doing it like a '90s beat-em up would truly capture the '90s essence of the original comics.
8 The Morlock Massacre
The Morlock Massacre took place during "The Fall Of The Mutants" crossover, where various X-Men books highlighted terrible events. The Morlock Massacre was the conclusion, as Mister Sinister sent his Marauders into the Morlock Tunnels to slaughter the sewer-dwelling mutants. The X-Men found themselves playing catch-up, trying to stop the Marauders and save lives.
The Morlock Massacre, as a game, would pit the X-Men against the Marauders with the Morlocks in the middle. Players could concentrate on getting as many Morlocks out of the tunnels while defending them from attacks or go on hunts for the Marauders and prevent them from attacking. As one of the first Marvel events that led the X-Men to use lethal force, there's plenty of room to kick the combat up a notch.
7 Operation: Zero Tolerance
Operation: Zero Tolerance is a forgotten gem. The story crossed through multiple mid-'90s X-Men books, outlining the attack of the government run Operation: Zero Tolerance against the various X-Men teams. A group of X-Men is captured by the group's Prime Sentinels, forcing Iceman to put together a team of mutants to fight back against OZT.
A Operation: Zero Tolerance game could jump between Iceman and his team fighting the forces of OZT while Wolverine and the captured X-Men try to escape. The Prime Sentinels are nanite infected sleeper agents that can attack at any time — making them the perfect video game enemy. Even if the game didn't follow the story, there's a lot of potential for gameplay in this story.
6 Avengers Vs. X-Men
The Avengers and the X-Men have a contentious relationship. This started back in the Silver Age and got worse as the Avengers basically ignored the plight of mutants. Then came Avengers Vs. X-Men by writers Brian Michael Bendis, Jonathan Hickman, Ed Brubaker, Matt Fraction, and Jason Aaron and artists John Romita Jr., Olivier Coipel, and Adam Kubert. The event pit the two teams against each other with control of the Phoenix Force in the balance.
Avengers Vs. X-Men would give players big superhero vs superhero action like no other game out there. Most of the book is just a giant slugfest, fought in locales like Utopia, Wakanda, K'un Lun, and more. That makes it perfect for players who want a lot of action and want to explore Marvel's unique locations. Even better, players could choose a side from the start, allowing them to experience the game two different ways. For the side that supports the Phoenix Five, they might even get to wield the Phoenix's power as their own.
5 Inhumans Vs. X-Men
Few readers enjoyed Inhumans Vs. X-Men. Written by Charles Soule and Jeff Lemire with art by Leinil Yu, fans of both teams had dreaded the eventual battle between the two, which Marvel telegraphed years earlier. The story was panned by everyone, and it's frequently considered a black eye for the X-Men and the Inhumans alike.
However, a story where two teams of superheroes fight is a much better prospect for a video game. The story has just enough plot to keep a game going, and there are plenty of twists to keep things interesting. Similar to the game Ultimate Alliance 2 — which put its own spin on Civil War — Inhumans Vs. X-Men could make crucial adjustments that make te story better than before.
4 Fatal Attractions
Fatal Attractions is '90s X-Men perfection. Running through every X-Men book of 1993, the story involved Magneto choosing mutants to join him in his new space station, Avalon. This spurred the X-Men to fight back against Magneto and his new team of Acolytes, led by Exodus.
A fatal Attractions game would give the players the chance to battle against the Acolytes using the classic Blue and Gold Teams of X-Men. This roster of the Acolytes was full of interesting mutants with great powers, giving players new challenges. It would all end with the X-Men storming Avalon and battling Magneto.
3 X-Men: Inferno
X-Men: Inferno is another huge X-Men crossover. This one saw Madelyne Pryor, Jean Grey and ex-wife of Cyclops, team with the demons of Limbo and attacking New York. Mister Sinister and the Marauders were pulled into the battle as everyone tried to get their hands on Pryor and Cyclops's son, Nathan Summers.
A game where players can battle both demonic hordes and supervillains would intrigue just about any player. If devs wanted, they easily make it a Souls game with the X-Men. Inferno has so many amazing situations for players to get through, and could become a pioneering superhero game with the right dev team.
2 Days Of Future Past
Days Of Future Past is a terrible future for the mutant race. Written by Chris Claremont with art by John Byrne, the story takes place in a future controlled by Sentinels. Superheroes and mutants are basically extinct, with only the X-Men standing between the world and complete ruin. They send a member of the team back in time, in order to stop their terrible future from happening.
A Days Of Future Past game actually shouldn't follow the story at all. It should take place in the future, with the player battling against the Sentinel menace. The last level would be the X-Men sending Kate Pryde in time as the Sentinels attack them. It would basically be a boss rush, where the game would end if the team got wiped out.
1 The Age Of Apocalypse
The Age Of Apocalypse is a Marvel classic. The mid-'90s story ran through two bookends and ten miniseries. It took place in an alternate universe, one where Charles Xavier died long before he formed the X-Men. Apocalypse attacked without the X-Men around and smashed the US, taking over North then South America. Magneto brought together his own team of X-Men, working to save the remaining humans of the Americas and destroy Apocalypse's evil empire.
The Age Of Apocalypse would make a tremendous game. There would dozens of playable characters, just as many villains for boss fights, and a story that lends itself well to a video game. There's a fetch quest for a temporal crystal, battles against Apocalypse's Horsemen, a hunt for a little girl in a massive mine/power plant, the hunt for Destiny, and so much more. An AoA game would give players so much to do and they'd love every single second of it.