Walt Williams, the narrative director of Marvel’s Wolverine, discussed why it was crucial for him to make Logan noticeably shorter than the hulking Sabretooth, and why the emotional dimensions of their relationship needed to be portrayed in the game.
Now that Marvel’s Wolverine has officially launched and reached players, online discourse surrounding Insomniac’s latest superhero title has shifted in new directions. Beyond features like scent trails and Sentinel boss battles, Logan’s characterization has become a focal point of discussion; a vocal group of critics argues that Insomniac portrayed him as too “soft” and that this version of the character failed to fully capture his rage.
In an interview with journalist Gene Park on the Low Power Mode podcast, narrative director Walt Williams discussed the relationship between Sabretooth and Wolverine, explaining why the team needed to delve into their emotions rather than simply portraying them as two angry mutants defined by hyper-masculinity.
Williams went on to praise Brett Gipson—the voice and motion-capture actor for Sabretooth—noting his “commanding presence” on set and his delivery of what Williams considers his “favorite version of Sabretooth.” This led to an interesting anecdote regarding the height difference between Victor and Logan in the game. Williams added, “The character team deserves a lot of credit, too, because I really love the models they created. I love that size disparity because, early on, I said, ‘Guys, let’s be real here: Wolverine is supposed to be about five feet tall.'”