After 32 years, beloved X-Men arcade game becomes Marvel Universe canon with hilarious deep cut in NYX #4

If you’re a fan of a certain age, or an appreciator of vintage video games, you, like me, may have halcyon memories of plunking quarters into the iconic multiplayer cabinet of X-Men: The Arcade Game. 

And apparently, the kids of the Marvel Universe also had this formative arcade experience, as this week’s NYX #4 by writers Colin Kelly and Jackson Lanzing, artist Enid Balám, color artist Raúl Angulo, and letterer Joe Sabino contains not just a deep cut reference to X-Men: The Arcade Game, but proof that it actually exists in the Marvel Universe.

Light spoilers for NYX #4 ahead…

“Welcome to die!”

If those words mean anything to you, you’ve got one up on Sophie Cuckoo, who does not recognize the words spoken to Kamala Khan/Ms. Marvel by new mutant villain the Krakoan as they finally come face-to-face in NYX #4. 

Ms. Marvel herself, on the other hand, instantly recognizes the phrase as a notorious bit of slightly mistranslated dialogue from the final boss fight of X-Men: The Arcade Game, in which the phrase is exhorted by Magneto as he begins his attack on the player-controlled X-Men.

“Wow. Deep cut,” Kamala responds, once again proving her fan bona fides as one of the few superheroes in the Marvel Universe who started off as a superfan of the Avengers and other heroes before getting powers herself.

(Image credit: Marvel Comics)

As we stated though, her companion Sophie Cuckoo (one of the five Stepford Cuckoos) doesn’t get it at all. “Tragic,” says Kamala. “We’re going to an arcade when this is done.” It’s a pretty funny interaction that echoes the kind of conversations we’ve all had as fans, learning that our friends haven’t consumed a beloved piece of media.

It’s not totally surprising that there’s an X-Men arcade game in the world of the actual X-Men. There’s already a version of Marvel Comics within Marvel Comics that tells versions of the heroes’ adventures as a means of journalistic entertainment. In fact, the fictional Marvel Comics within the Marvel Universe recently played a major role in the Immortal Thor ongoing title, in which evil business minotaur Dario Agger purchased the rights to Thor’s stories, rebooting him as a vapid corporate stooge named Chad Hammer.

Still, it’s funny to imagine the X-Men themselves all crowded around an X-Men: The Arcade Game cabinet, perhaps critiquing the cult-favorite game’s liberal interpretation of the nature of their abilities and enemies.

NYX #5 goes on sale November 13.

Stay up to date on all the new X-Men comics Marvel has planned for release.