After Insomniac Games successfully released three critically acclaimed installments in its Marvel's Spider-Man franchise, the developer decided to pursue a less friendly, neighborly path and instead shone the spotlight on a hero who's the best at what he does, but what he does isn't really nice.
Marvel's Wolverine was released on Sept. 15, 2026, and to say the launch was a little turbulent would be an understatement. Some reviewers felt the combat got repetitive towards its latter half; the two bike chase sequences sparked a lot of conversation about whether they could be completed by themselves without input from the players; and, most importantly, basically everyone disliked how "hand-holdy" it could be with its blue trails and visual indicators around its hidden collectibles.
Marvel's Wolverine won over some fans, and some feel optimistic about the future of the franchise (especially the rumored X-Men video game). But for the most part, the game was released to very mixed reactions, and that underwhelming reception has also affected its sales.
Marvel's Wolverine is Insomniac's slowest-selling Marvel game
Sony recently released its second-quarter earnings report, and the final numbers are in. Marvel's Wolverine sold 2.4 million copies as of Nov. 4, 2026, exactly 50 days after its release. On paper, selling that many copies would normally be seen as a big victory for most titles. However, that isn't exactly the case here.
For starters, Marvel's Wolverine is the slowest-selling Marvel title developed by Insomniac Games. To put the sales figures into perspective, here's how many copies the Marvel's Spider-Man franchise has sold and how Marvel's Wolverine compares to those titles:
- Marvel's Spider-Man for PS4 - 3.3 million copies sold in 3 days
- Marvel's Spider-Man 2 - 5 million copies sold in 11 days
- Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales - 4.1 million copies sold in 49 days
- Marvel's Wolverine - 2.4 million copies sold in 50 days
When Insomniac Games was hacked in December 2023, one of the company's internal documents detailing the budget for Marvel's Wolverine was leaked. The studio had originally intended to invest $300 million in the creation of its latest title during the planning stages. It is unknown whether that turned out to be the game's final budget, especially since there was cut content, such as Jean Grey being a playable character.
Maybe there were some cuts, or perhaps the opposite scenario occurred, and the game went over budget. But if we were to assume that $300 million was the final figure, then Marvel's Wolverine has yet to recoup its initial investment. After all, the 2.4 million copies sold roughly translate to $168 million.
Another key sign that the game has been struggling in the sales department is that it is already on sale on the PlayStation Store. If Marvel's Wolverine were meeting or surpassing expectations, then it's unlikely it would've received a discount so early in its life. However, since its performance is nowhere near as close to Marvel's Spider-Man saga, Sony and Insomniac are looking to draw in more players.
Over time, Marvel's Wolverine should become profitable. After all, highly acclaimed titles like Alan Wake 2 have taken over a year to break even. However, it's likely Insomniac was hoping to recoup that investment way sooner, especially given the caliber of the IP it worked with. On the bright side, it's unlikely this stumble will greatly affect the studio or Marvel's plans for the future. That means rumored titles like Marvel's Venom, Marvel's Spider-Man 3, and X-Men should still be made.
It's been a while since one of Insomniac's titles wasn't universally acclaimed, so the studio should try to gather all the feedback from Marvel's Wolverine and use it to create even more compelling and entertaining adventures in the future. So, with a bit of luck, not only will Logan return stronger, but he'll have more mutants by his side.
Marvel's Wolverine is out now on PlayStation 5.
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