Shack Chat: What is your favorite Marvel Snap variant card art?

The majority of the Shack Staff are still hooked on the mobile phenomenon that is Marvel Snap. At some point, the topic of card art came up. This is some of the best card art we've seen in a game like this and we've spent hours across Discord calls and Slack chats talking about some of our favorites. Eventually, we decided to just make it a full-blown Shack Chat topic. We're looking through our Marvel Snap collections and naming our single favorite piece of card art.

(For more on this topic: Feel free to revisit our E6 interview with the folks at Second Dinner.)

Question: What is your favorite Marvel Snap variant card art?

Kingpin woke up this morning... - Ozzie Mejia, Senior Snap Editor

I have a soft spot for Wilson Fisk, going all the way back to my childhood where I'd watch him terrorize New York on the 90s Spider-Man animated series. When I looked at Kingpin and his effect in Marvel Snap, I had to add him to my collection and build something around him.

Even better was when I found this eye-catching Noir variant that takes Fisk and puts him in the Spider-Man Noir universe. He fits in perfectly with the Prohibition-era mob and looks like he'll either crack my face with brass knuckles or give the order for a fresh pair of cement shoes. This is total badassery and it's my absolute favorite variant in the game so far.

Goose does dress-up - TJ Denzer, Senior Captain Marvel fan & cat person

I like Captain Marvel a lot. I like her "cat" Goose a lot. So I doubly enjoy the idea of this deceptive and dangerous little feline being wedged into Captain Marvel’s outfit in a bit of pet dress-up, complete with cosmic energy bolts. Goose is also a pretty great late game card in general, really stifling your opponent’s ability to play powerful cards where they feel like it. Put this killer kitty in my deck alongside Carol any day.

Shang-Chi Knullified - Morgan Shaver, Also really enjoyed the Shang-Chi film

Out of all the cards in Marvel Snap, I feel like Shang-Chi has some of the best variant options in terms of art style, general approach, and variety among the variants. Of all the Shang-Chi variants, my favorite design wise is without a doubt Knullified as pictured above. Here, Shang-Chi is depicted in a more villainous manner with a sharp edge grin and sinister-looking claws. Runner-up, and it was very close between these two actually, would be the Peach Momoko variant for Mystique which gives me mystical tarot card vibes (Marvel Snap should release a set of those it’d be rad).

Baby Wolvie - Blake Morse, Best there is at what he does, bub

I am a huge Wolverine fan and have been one since my childhood. He was just the coolest thing ever back in the day and I still have a pretty impressive collection of his comics and figures. What I’ve been collecting lately though is Skottie Young variant covers. I just really dig his style. It reminds me of some of my favorite comic strips such as Calvin & Hobbes or Bloom County. So of course I was going to fork over some of my hard-earned Marvel Snap gold to snag the Skottie Young variant. It seems like they’ve labeled most of his art in the game as the “Baby” variants, which kind of bums me out because I’d love to see the dude get more credit and fans out of the game.

Venom - Sam Chandler, It’s not poisonous

I've got to say, while Spider-Man is my boy, I’ve always had an interest in Venom. The black, tar-like alien creature has always been such an awesome beast. He looks powerful, terrifying, and he’s got a wicked tongue. I love the fact he just consumes all of your cards at a location and adds their power to his own. That’s some pure hunger right there. Plus, Venom has some great variants on offer.

Doctor Doom Baby Variant - Bill Lavoy, Zabu Nerd

One of my favorite cards to play is Doctor Doom, as he can put points on the board in locations where you can’t play cards. It’s a great way to steal a round from an unsuspecting opponent, and the Baby Variant just makes this card that much more fun to play. Truthfully, though, I could pick dozens of favorites because part of the appeal of Marvel Snap is collecting unique card art and seeing what new variations are out there.

Misty Knight’s Captain America Variant - Donovan Erskine, Diamond-level Snapper

Misty Knight’s Captain America isn’t necessarily the coolest-looking Variant in Marvel Snap, but it’s the one that put the biggest smile on my face when I first saw it. The artwork is pulled directly from the cover of Captain America: Sam Wilson (2015) #16. It was one of the first comic runs that I read from beginning to end, and one that I still talk about/recommend to this day. The run focuses on the intense pressure, both internal and external, along with the heavy scrutiny that comes with Sam Wilson taking over the mantle of Captain America for Steve Rodgers. This particular issue finds Misty Knight having to temporarily take up the shield while Sam Wilson is indisposed. It’s not in my collection yet but you can bet I’ll spend whatever gold I need to the moment it’s available.

Those are our favorite Marvel Snap card variants out of a growing number. Now we'd like to hear some of yours. Join the conversation and let us know in the comments.

Shack Staff

Shack Staff stories are a collective effort with multiple staff members contributing. Many of our lists often involve entires from several editors, and our weekly Shack Chat is something we all contribute to as a group.