Disney's newest Marvel superheroes game is a huge letdown for 'Captain America' fans

Just glancing through the Amazon reviews of "Marvel Battlegrounds," there are generally two camps: Some people love it, since it's a multiplayer fighting game that even young kids can pick up; others are disappointed that there isn't more to see and do. I definitely fall into the latter camp, but your mileage may vary.

In the story mode, one or two players are thrown in to an exceedingly short adventure that sees you meeting and shortly thereafter beating up most of the fan-favorite Marvel characters. You can knock that out in maybe forty-five minutes.

After that...well, there are some pretty simple challenges, usually along the lines of "beat this character as that character." Most aren't really worth the time, unless you're a total completionist or just really dig the fighting system. Once you're done with that, all that's really left to do is beat up your friends or the computer in versus mode.

To its credit, the game features lots of varied arenas, featuring lots of destructable objects and environmental hazards — a SHIELD satellite features flamejets and an electrified floor. And the heroes get some upgraded, unique powers just for "Marvel Battlegrounds," alongside some new moves to make it more like a traditional fighting game.

But in my experience with the game, the fighting is pretty simple, shallow, and worst of all, repetitive. It doesn't take a lot of skill, and fighting is all there is to do.

It's not all bad news: To support the release of "Marvel Battlegrounds," Disney released a handful of new characters drawn from recent and future films: In addition to the included Captain America figure, new heroes include Ant-Man, The Vision, Black Panther, and a rereleased Black-Suit Spider-Man. They all have cool and varied powers, and look great.

Plus, the game supports the whole range of Marvel superhero figures, past and present, so it can give your old Infinity toys new life. And it has an in-game gimmick to let you try out superheroes you haven't actually bought yet in the game's versus mode, which might be a good bet for budget-conscious parents.

Ultimately, it's just a shame that all those great new characters don't have a great big story to go with them. And at a base retail price of $30, it's hard to recommend, unless you really want that Captain America figure or have three more likeminded superhero enthusiasts.