Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order is out on July 19 exclusively on Nintendo Switch, and is wholly separate from the Marvel’s Avengers project due out next year on PC, Xbox One, and PS4. It’s more of an arcade-y, cartoony take on the Marvel universe, a bit closer to the comics rather than the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and it’s already packed with characters, but Marvel fans will always want more. That’s why we need a Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 Season Pass.
The season pass has already been announced for Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3, and it’ll undoubtedly be filled with all manner of delights. We’ve got all the details we know about the season pass and all the DLC coming to the game here, including what players can expect. What Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 DLC is in the season pass? When’s it coming? How much will it be? We’ve got these and other questions below.
What’s in the Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 Season Pass?
During a Nintendo Direct livestream during E3, there was a new trailer for Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 that revealed not only the existence of the season pass, but also what players can expect from it. The pass will include three DLC packs, which are focused on three specific comic series: Fantastic Four, Marvel Knights, and X-Men. These DLC packs will include new and exclusive playable characters, modes, and additional story content for the game, and presumably new areas to fight in too.
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What is the release date for the Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 DLC?
The three packs of Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 DLC content that will be available in the season pass will get a staggered release of several months apart, and none of them will be available until at least a few months after launch. The first DLC expansion has a release date of Fall 2019. The second expansion will arrive towards the end of the year, possibly around December 2019. The third (and presumably final) expansion will not release until 2020, probably around Spring. Going entirely by the order shown in the new Nintendo Direct E3 trailer, the first may be the Marvel Knights DLC, then X-Men, then the 2020 DLC will be Fantastic Four.
How much is the Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 Season Pass?
The Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 Season Pass will cost $19.99 separately, although you can also pre-order a bundle of both the game and the season pass for $79.99 on the Nintendo Store. This is for an all-digital version of the game. As Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 is $59.99 on the Nintendo Store on it’s own, there’s not any saving for buying the bundle version. You’ll get it straight away, at least…
What is included in the DLC content?
As mentioned above, the season pass and DLC packs will include “playable characters, modes, and additional story” based around Marvel Knights, X-Men and Fantastic Four. Beyond that we can only guess as to what will be included in the expansions, but let’s give it our best shot.
Marvel Knights is the name for an imprint of Marvel Comics that contained standalone stories in the Marvel universe, away from any big events or continuity going on in the main comics lines. It’s also the name of a group of heroes based around New York that can include Daredevil, Doctor Strange, Shang-Chi, Iron Fist, Moon Knight, Black Widow, Cloak and Dagger, and Spider-Man. Spider-Man, of course, has already appeared in the game, but any of the others are possibly DLC recruits.
The X-Men already have a strong line-up within Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 already, so we’re surprised the second expansion is based on them. We’ve seen the likes of Wolverine, Psylocke, Magneto, Juggernaut, Mystique, Cyclops and Nightcrawler in action, but fortunately the X-Men roster of heroes and villains is vast, so it can easily accommodate a major story expansion with a load of new characters. It’d be cool to go up against Apocalypse, for example.
As for Marvel’s first family the Fantastic Four, they notably have not appeared in Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 in any way, so the entire DLC expansion could bring Johnny Storm, Mr Fantastic, Sue Storm, and The Thing into the game. The iconic Dr Doom and other characters like the Silver Surfer and Galactus have also not made an appearance so far, so they’d be more than welcome as DLC.
Will any Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 DLC be available at launch?
All of the three DLC expansions will be released long after the game comes out this month, with the earliest expansion being released in the Fall and the final one coming out next year. However, if you pre-order the Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 Season Pass, there is at least one piece of DLC you can get immediately as soon as the game launches. As shown off in a Nintendo E3 stream of the game, anyone who purchases the Season Pass will receive a special alternative color chef outfit for Deadpool. Try to hold back your excitement.
Is there a Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 Deluxe Edition?
As mentioned, you can order a digital bundle consisting of the full game and the season pass for $79.99 at the Nintendo Store. Other than that, however, there doesn’t not appear to be a physical version of this point, nor is there any sort of deluxe or collector’s edition of Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3. There are no extra bonuses or any pre-order exclusive content exclusive to stores, either. This is probably for the best, as we would totally have bought a version with any sort of Marvel statue.
