Apologies for the absence, everyone. The last few weeks of school have been a killer and a half. To kick off my return, I've decided to do a list of my 10 favorite Marvel and DC video games of all time. A caveat, as I was born in '95, this won't be the most extensive list. There are a few from the late 90's and early 2000's I didn't ever get a hold of. For example, I never got to play the popular X-Men sidescroller arcade beat-em-up. I also never played the "Wolverine: Origins" game which I hear was pretty good. Also... I'm not the biggest fan of traditional fighting games, so don't expect to see "Injustice: Gods Among Us" or "Marvel vs. Capcom" on here. Anyway, on with the show.

10. Spider-Man 2

I played this game so much as a kid. In terms of high-flying, fast-paced, web-slinging action, this was one of the best. The web-swinging physics were incredible. The humor was funny, it had a myriad of bad guys, and the Doc-Ock fights are among the best boss battles I've ever played. It also introduced me to the magic of the Shocker, who is one of the best Spider-Man villains ever. Don't listen to anyone who says otherwise.

9. Ultimate Spider-Man

With all the good stuff in the "Spider-Man 2" game, "Ultimate Spider-Man" did it all, just a little better. The cell-shaded, comic book style gave the visuals an ageless appeal. There were more villains to beat up, and you got to play as freaking Venom. Admittedly, the Venom portions were a little annoying in that you had to keep him fed, but it was still really cool. The villains looked a little lackluster due to their costumes being based off the Marvel Ultimates iterations, but it was still really cool.

8. Justice League: Heroes

With the..."popularity" of the "X-Men: Legends/Marvel: Ultimate Alliance"-style super hero dungeon crawler genre, DC decided to make their own entry with "Justice League: Heroes." It was a pretty awesome game. It limited the teams down to two instead of four, the graphics were a little less cartoony, and it was surprisingly hard. I never actually beat it without the invincibility cheat on. That being said, it had a full Justice League team and a lot of classic rogues like Darkseid, Braniac, Gorilla Grodd and Killer Frost.

7. Marvel: Ultimate Alliance

That being said, "Marvel: Ultimate Alliance" did it all, just a little better. It had so many more heroes, more villains, and the upgrade system was... pretty good, not great. You could play as just about anyone in this game. Spider Woman, Luke Cage, Moon Knight, Hawkeye, Sabretooth, Black Panther, Ghost Rider, Blade, Silver Surger, Nightcrawler... so many awesome heroes. The story wasn't great, but it took you all over the Marvel Universe to the most notable places: Mephisto's Realm, Asgard, the Skrull Homeworld, Chandilar, Omega Base, the Sanctum Santorum, Attilan, Atlantis. The story was very comic booky, and that made it charming. Doctor Doom using a myriad of cosmic artifacts and a massive army of Masters of Evil to steal Odin's powers? That's just awesome.

6. Deadpool: The Video Game

Man, I hate that I love this game. A gory, funny, brutal hack-and-slash/shooting spectacle fighter in the vein of "Devil May Cry"? Yeah, regardless of Deadpool, I like it a lot. Between this and the movie, I can handle him in short doses. Just don't ask me to read an ongoing series about this guy.

5. The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction

This game was a lot smarter than it had any right to be. It delves into the psychology of the Hulk with the oft-forgotten Devil Hulk story line. It brings in the greatest Hulk villain: the Abomination. All of this, and you get to wreck a bunch of buildings, military hardware, and bad guys. The destruction in this game is awesome. It really puts you into the place of the Hulk, and it's... well, incredible.

4. Batman: Arkham Knight

This game is very flawed. From the obsession with the Batmobile, to some very lackluster boss battles, to an absolutely unforgivable dumpster fire of a PC port that cheated me out of $60, this game had a lot of flaws. It would probably be a lot higher on the list if it weren't for the PC port debacle. That being said, the game play was a lot of fun, the story was really solid, John Noble as Scarecrow was a fantastic casting, the game gets delightfully macabre, and the myriad of characters you could play as was awesome. The mystery of the Arkham Knight was a little predictable for those who know the history of Batman, and boy do they foreshadow it. The side quests explored some of the cool corners of the Batman mythos. Plus, the final portion is a complete trip into the depths of Batman's psyche, and it was a great finale.

3. Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2

This took the formula of "Marvel: Ultimate Alliance," streamlined the game play, improved the combat, and used the story of Marvel's "Civil War" to put together a pretty fantastic game. It did have fewer characters, the dialogue and voice acting left a little to be desired, and the ending had less bite than the comic book's. Despite that, it was a really fun game with some cool ideas, and I do hope it isn't the last of this franchise. Given Marvel's current fascination with mobile games, it may very well be though.

2. Batman: Arkham Asylum

The original in the franchise, this is a game that revolutionized a combat style which has been co-opted by games such as "Mad Max" and "Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor." Plus, this game had a creepy and menacing aesthetic which was honestly lost in the later entries. The boss battles were a little mediocre, but they only make up a small portion of the game. It was a tight and focused game, and it holds up to this day.

1. Batman: Arkham City

This. Game. Is. Incredible. Honestly, the "Arkham" franchise is the only super hero game franchise that I would say is the only truly great. The previous ones listed were... alright, but none that I would enjoy if they weren't super hero games. The "Arkham" games weren't like that. This game is fantastic, and the Mr. Freeze and Solomon Grundy boss battles are among the best boss battles I've ever played. The ending made my jaw drop, and the inclusion of Ras al Ghul was unexpected and awesome.

And that's my list. Let me know what you guys think, if I left anything out, and I'll be back again next week. Keep reading comics!