Moon Knight, a long-standing but often overlooked Marvel Comics character, has accrued a surprising number of video game appearances over the years. The superhero, who was first introduced in Marvel Comics' Werewolf by Night in 1975, has been a regular fixture of the Marvel Universe for several decades. Moon Knight's popularity is set to take another upward turn once his eponymous MCU series debuts on Disney+ later in 2022, which sees Oscar Isaac in the role.
Marc Spector, a former mercenary turned vigilante crime fighter, originally became Moon Knight after being resurrected by the Egyptian moon god, Khonshu. Spector is later diagnosed with dissociative identity disorder, giving his character a deeply sympathetic story arc. Marvel has defined its brand of heroes by their flawed and relatable character, and Marc Spector's story would be a perfect fit for a video game, with some fans requesting he join Marvel's Avengers as a playable character in 2022.
Even though Moon Knight isn't playable in Marvel's Avengers yet, he has appeared in a number of solid Marvel video games over the years. Not every appearance has allowed players to take control of Marc Spector, but it's still great to see Moon Knight even if he's just a cameo. Some of these cameos have seen him exert a minor influence on a given game's story, but given he's not as popular as other Marvel heroes this is somewhat rare. The character has featured in games starring the Avengers and Spider-Man, and most are worth tracking down for those Marvel fans particularly enamored with him.
Moon Knight Is Playable In LEGO Marvel Games & Ultimate Alliance
Unlike Hawkeye, who received his playable Marvel game debut in the 1990s, Moon Knight had to wait until 2006 for his first video game appearance. This was in Raven Software's Marvel Ultimate Alliance, a title that spun out of the studio's X-Men Legends series. MUA is a highlight of the character's video game resume, although there are other titles that have done the character justice. Moon Knight has an impressive list of cameo and playable character appearances, including:
- Marvel Ultimate Alliance
- Spider-Man: Web of Shadows
- Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3
- Marvel Pinball
- Marvel Avengers Alliance
- Marvel Heroes
- LEGO Marvel Super Heroes
- Marvel Avengers Academy
- LEGO Marvel's Avengers
- LEGO Marvel Super Heroes 2
- Marvel Contest of Champions
- Marvel Future Fight
- Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order
- Marvel Strike Force
LEGO Marvel Super Heroes 2 was a smorgasbord of Marvel references, boasting a whopping 191 playable characters and one of the best in-game versions of Wakanda ever. The game's character roster featured a number of left-field characters, including Moon Knight. This version of the character touted an extendable staff, the ability to glide using his cloak, and Moon Knight's signature crescent-shaped weapon. While it was interesting to see the character in LEGO form, it left much to be desired in terms of gameplay.
Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order features another fully playable version of Moon Knight, but with much more detail and flare. This iteration of Moon Knight also included a staff and throwable crescent weapon, but matched those with bombastic special attacks that dealt massive damage and obliterated enemies. This made Moon Knight stand out as a rough-and-tumble melee character, just as he did in the original Ultimate Alliance game that released a decade earlier.
As awareness of Moon Knight grows, so will the potential for his inclusion in future Marvel games. Marvel Ultimate Alliance 4 could embrace a multiverse story, continuing to feature Moon Knight as another unlockable character. New characters will join Marvel's Avengers in 2022, and an appearance from Marc Spector as a possible tie-in with the release of the Disney+ streaming series could be a welcome update. With so many previous iterations of the character, and name recognition at an all-time high, it looks as though Moon Knight has a bright future in video games.