by Thundergoat
I have both and have enjoyed playing both. My two-five cents:Legendary is a mechanically interesting game. One of the best things about it is the villain track and the tension which this creates for the players. You occasionally have tough choices as a result with a selfish option (this guy is worth more victory points to me personally) and a team option (this guy is going to escape and potentially kill all of us in this scenario.)
Legendary's biggest value, in my mind, is the fact that it has a much higher replay score, at least on paper. Solo play is there, if you're into that, and the various scenarios do actually change the game quite a bit. Add to that a huge amount of variety in terms of heroes from game to game (random set of 4-5 out of 16 or so options in the box), and you've got a game with serious legs.
On the downside of things, Marvel really missed the mark on the character art. I didn't realize how much this bothered me until I played the DC game. Having every version of the heroes look the exact same except for the border is really terrible in a comic book game. I know that is a strong word, but lets be serious for a second... the whole reason people want to buy a comic book game is because they love the theme and characters. 2-5 pieces of artwork for 16 heroes is, I am sure, a costly prospect for any publisher, but if there as a place to spend the money, this is it. At least give me a different picture for the 1 "uber" card per hero... please?
DC on the other hand is the exact opposite in many respects. The system is much simpler, doesn't support solo play, and has a ton of great art. It is a delight to see cool artwork on virtually every card, and it makes you happy to see all your friends!
DC may have "shorter legs" on replay, but I haven't seen it yet. I bought it for my wife for Christmas, and we have been tearing through games ever since. Poor Legendary has been sitting on the shelf with a single tear rolling down its cheek... :cry:
Bottom line: DC plays faster and is a quicker, faster, easier pay off. Setup and break down is incredibly easy, as you don't have to break down the main play deck. You literally setup villains, set up two stock piles, shuffle the main deck, and you're cooking with gas.
Marvel is much more clunky, has inferior art, but is mechanically a very cool game. Setup and breakdown is a bear by comparison, but pales in comparison to behemoth games like Arkham or other strategy titles. If you want a longer and more thoughtful experience, this is the title for you.
P.S. I 100% disagree on the common perception of box design with these two games. The Legendary box is AWFUL. Why they couldn't just design a box like Dominion is beyond me, as you could practically drop Legendary into the Dominion box and it would work perfectly. Instead they give you these awful dividers and little plastic ridges that are, in theory, supposed to hold everything in a zero gravity state. It is terrible. You have to manipulate the decks like crazy to set the game up, and they are categorized even more granularly than dominion (ie mastermind, henchmen, heroes, villain groups, etc.) For god's sake, give us SLOTS IN THE BOX.
DC's box is fine because there are like 4 types of cards. If you want more space when expansions come out, it looks like it will hold at least 1. After that, who cares? There is one main deck! Throw out the insert and use bands or something like that after, lol.
Thanks, and I hope this helps. Buy both games so publishers give us more comics and comic book games!!! :D :D