Best answer: Yes. Marvel's Avengers has microtransactions. It has two different types of currency: Units and Credits. You can earn Units in-game, but credits you have to use real-world money to purchase. While the game is playable at the standard $60 price, if you want all the extras, that price is going to go up.
- Get the base game: Marvel's Avengers Standard Edition ($60 at Amazon)
- A few extras: Marvel's Avengers Deluxe Edition ($80 at Amazon)
What is Marvel's Avengers currency?
There are two different types of currency in Marvel's Avengers. The first is called Units, which is what you can earn in-game by completing tasks and has no real-world value. You can use them at Vendors, which offer cosmetics, gear, and resources for gear upgrades. Like most in-game currency, you can earn as many Units as you want.
The second is called Credits, and players exchange real-world currency for it. It translates to around 100 credits per dollar (so 500 credits equals $5). You can use them in the Marketplace, which exists outside the game and offers up more rare cosmetics. You can also spend it on Battle Passes. So, how much it costs equates to how much you're willing to spend.
How do microtransactions in Marvel's Avengers work?
Marvel's Avengers doesn't have a lot of microtransactions but they do exist in one key area: Challenge Cards, or the game's verison of a Battle Pass. Instead of just having one battle pass for a season, like in a lot of multiplayer games, Marvel's Avengers has one for each hero. Here, it's called a Hero Challenge Card, and it offers tiers that reward players with cosmetics like outfits, emotes, takedowns, and nameplates. There are 40 tiers of both free and premium awards, which players unlock by completing challenges and earning Challenge Points.
The premium award tiers are unlocked for each of the six launch heroes — Ms. Marvel, Iron Man, Black Widow, the Hulk, Captain America, and Thor. However, premium tiers on post-launch heroes will cost 1,000 credits each.
There are currently three heroes announced for post-launch: Kate Bishop, Hawkeye, and Spider-Man (as a PlayStation exclusive). To unlock the premium tiers on each hero's Challenge Card would cost around $10, so to unlock all three would cost around $30 extra. Dataminers have found a lot more post-launch hero opportunities, including Black Panther and Ant-Man, so that price could go up if you want to play each character's Challenge Card.
However, there is a way to save money. If you complete all the challenges on an activated Challenge Card, you'll get your 1,000-credit activation cost back. It's unclear at this point how tough that is to earn back, but for Iron Man, you get 100 credits after getting to just Level 3, so it might vary depending on the hero.
It's worth noting that none of these rewards affect gameplay. However, if you want cool costumes, you might want to take a look at the rewards on offer.
What separates the Marvel's Avengers editions?
There are four editions you can purchase of the game. The first is the Standard Edition, which comes with the base game and a few pre-order bonuses, including Marvel Legacy outfit back, a Ms. Marvel emote, and a dynamic PSN theme. It costs an appropriately standard $60.
The second is the Exclusive Digital Edition, which comes with a Ms. Marvel nameplate, early access, and 1,000 credits for $70 (interesting that the $10 price difference between this and the base game goes into those extra credits).
Next, we have the Deluxe Edition, which comes with the Obsidian Outfit Pack and Obsidian Nameplate pack. You get early access but no credits — all for $80.
Finally, there's Earth's Mightiest Edition for a whopping $200. However, with this, you get all the extras from the previous editions (minus the credits), along with a 12-inch Captain America statue, steel book, a Black Widow belt buckle, Iron Man armor blueprints, a Hulk bobblehead, and a more.
Marvel's The Avengers is set to release on Sept. 4, 2020 on PS4, Xbox One, and PC. It'll also be available on the PS5 and Xbox Series X.
What you need to get started
The Standard Edition of the game is probably the best deal. You get the standard game (and if you pre-order, a few extras). You can always choose if you want to spend more money later.
Some extra goodies if you want them
You certainly don't need what you get in the Marvel's Avengers Deluxe Edition, but if you want some fun cosmetics, this might be worth the extra $20.
