Rumors of an open-world Daredevil game in the general style of Insomniac’s Spider-Man have occasionally cropped up without much proof to back them. This weekend, we finally seemed to get that proof briefly, pointing to the possibility of Troy Baker taking a lead role. Those hopes were quickly dashed as Marvel’s Bill Rosemann denied the existence of a Troy Baker Daredevil game in development.
Over the weekend, IGN’s Jonathon Dornbush posed a hypothetical question on Twitter: “What is your dream superhero game and which developer would you want to make it?” It was meant to be a fun conversation starter, pairing unlikely hero and developer combos. Troy Baker quote tweeted his response, which was simply a cough and a nudge in the direction of Bill Rosemann, VP & Head of Creative at Marvel Games. In reply, Rosemann said, “You, sir, are clearly a man without fear.”
You, sir, are clearly a man without fear.
— Bill Rosemann (@BillRosemann) May 17, 2020
Marvel’s Daredevil—blind lawyer Matt Murdock by day, devil of Hell’s Kitchen by night—is commonly known as “the man without fear,” so this cryptic interaction between Baker and Rosemann immediately sparked speculation that the two might be collaborating on a Daredevil project. Unfortunately, it is not to be, at least according to Rosemann, who jumped back in to do some damage control after rumors and reports started feeding the flames.
In a thematically appropriate follow-up tweet, Rosemann posted a mock release “from the office of Nelson & Murdock” (the fictional law office of Matt Murdock and partner Foggy Nelson). Rosemann alleges that his initial reply to Baker was simply about their shared love of the character and desire to make a Daredevil game one day, not a confirmation of one actually being in development.
From the office of Nelson & Murdock: While Bill greatly admires the Man Without Fear, there is no Daredevil game in development. Bill’s tweet to @TroyBakerVA was an acknowledgment of their shared desire about creating said game & he apologizes for any confusion his tweet created. pic.twitter.com/tFI2LiqquD
— Bill Rosemann (@BillRosemann) May 17, 2020
It’s not all bad news though. This shows that one of the highest powers at Marvel Games and one of the video game industry’s most prominent voice actors both strongly desire a Daredevil game, and if the conversation this tweet created has proven anything, it’s that fans really want one too. Even if there isn’t a Troy Baker Daredevil game in active development, you can bet there are at least some conversations happening behind the scenes that could potentially make this one a reality one day.
Marvel has actually prototyped a Daredevil game before, back on the PS2, before canceling it. The past decade’s surge in superhero popularity—as well as improvements in video game technology—have made superhero games more possible than ever before. Marvel’s Spider-Man by Insomniac became an instant PlayStation 4 powerhouse exclusive, and we’ll soon get to become Iron Man on PSVR, stepping into the famed suit. It would be fascinating to see what kinds of ideas developers could come up with for allowing players to play as a blind superhero, or even to allow them to play as Murdock on the lawyer side of things as well. A Daredevil game in the style of L.A. Noire? Sign me up.
[h/t: IGN]
