Marvel's Avengers Players Reject Red Room Event Skins & Rewards
Players are speaker out against the new Red Room Takeover event in Marvel's Avengers. The multiplayer action-adventure superhero title, developed by Crystal Dynamics and released in 2020, allows players to step into the shoes of Earth's Mightiest Heroes. The game was criticized upon release for its technical issues, lack of content variety, and microtransactions but praise has been directed towards the game's story and gameplay.
The latest event in Marvel's Avengers, titled Red Room Takeover, recently began with a lead-in event called The Rooskaya Protocols. The event tasks players with defeating hordes of the game's Synthoid enemies in order to collect Protocol Chips, a resource that unlocks special event-specific animated nameplates for the game's heroes. The Rooskaya Protocols also saw the addition of a new matching costume set for the Avengers, called the Red Room Outfits, to the game's Marketplace. Marvel's Avengers' very first outfit inspired by the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Black Widow's outfit from Avengers: Endgame, was also added to the Marketplace when the event began on May 6.
Numerous Marvel's Avengers players such as Deaf30, E_Barriick, and WolverineKuzuri93 have spoken out on Reddit about the game's Rooskaya Protocols event. The significant backlash against the event has resulted from the fact that the Red Room Outfits set, specifically added to match the event's theme, is available for purchase from the game's Marketplace rather than acting as a reward for participation. Participation in the Rooskaya Protocols instead rewards players with only a single nameplate, cosmetic items which appear on the menu screen, with other character-specific nameplates also buyable from the Marketplace. The backlash is part of a larger disdain for the game's microtransactions, with players forced to pay up to $14 for a single skin with little opportunity to earn them through gameplay.
While Crystal Dynamics continues to support Marvel's Avengers through in-game events and updates, the game seems unable to escape criticism and backlash. While outfits inspired by the Marvel Cinematic Universe have been long-awaited by players, many fans are unhappy with Black Widow's Avengers: Endgame outfit because it does not include her memorable red-and-blonde ponytail from the film. Doubts about the game's future have begun to arise, especially because the game's creative director, Shaun Escayg, recently left Crystal Dynamics in order to return to Last of Us developer Naughty Dog.
Despite attempts by Crystal Dynamics to provide ongoing content to the game's player base, Marvel's Avengers has consistently struck out since release. The Rooskaya Protocols event is the latest in a string of disappointments for fans, but hopefully, the second part of the Red Room Takeover event will be more impressive when it launches on May 20. If Crystal Dynamics wants to turn Marvel's Avengers around, a massive overhaul of the game's gear and cosmetic systems may be required.
Marvel's Avengers is available now on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S and PC.
Source: Deaf30/Reddit, E_Barriick/Reddit, WolverineKuzuri93/Reddit