Well he's not quite an Avenger, but he'll do - Rocket Raccoon, the capable pilot, tactical genius, skilled marksman, and spacefaring Guardian of the Galaxy is going to be playable in Marvel Heroes. Perhaps it's just the nerd in me laughing but the fact that Marvel remembers Rocket Raccoon touches a spot in my heart. Or maybe it's all a part of the eventual Guardians of the Galaxy movie? The sharpshooter comes with high accuracy and agility, but not so much in the way of strength. 

Today marks the release of Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #1, the comic that introduces readers to Miles Morales. He's the new half-black, half-Latino Spider-Man that has replaced Peter Parker in Marvel's Ultimate universe. The character is being added to Marvel Super Hero Squad Online's roster of heroes, and you can find a code in the comic that will give you a chance to win the in-game character for free!

According to the official rules, Gazillion will be giving out 30 Ultimate Comics Spider-Man heroes to lucky winners. There's a good chance that Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #1 will be flying off the shelves; if you can't find a copy, simply redeem the code MILES2011 on the Marvel Super Hero Squad Online site by September 28 at 12:01 p.m. Pacific time.

In addition, Gazillion will be releasing a new mission in the game soon that will require you to battle Venom. They've also promised that there's "even more Spidey content coming soon," so keep an eye out!

The new Villainville game world is now live in Marvel Super Hero Squad Online! As you may expect from its name, Villainville acts as the base of operations for Doctor Doom's Lethal Legion. Players can battle the Abomination and MODOK in a pair of new combat missions or take on the role of a darker class of heroes with Red Hulk, Dark Surfer, Iron Patriot and Red She-Hulk.

All players are welcome to explore Villainville for free. The Dark Surfer can be purchased for free by saving up Silver coins. Red Hulk, Red She-Hulk and the two new missions can be purchased using Gold coins, which require real money. Iron Patriot is only available to subscribers.

Gazillion Entertainment just announced that the new Villainville zone is coming soon to Marvel Super Hero Squad Online. The team didn't provide any further information, but it certainly looks like bad guys will finally have a place to call home in the kid-friendly MMO.

The three current worlds in Marvel Super Hero Squad Online are Spider-Man's Daily Bugle, the Fantastic Four's Baxter Plaza and Thor's Asgard. Players can immediately travel from zone to zone whenever they choose simply by clicking a button.

Deadpool, everyone's favorite merc with a mouth, is now playable in Marvel Super Hero Squad Online! He is now available to Jr. S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents in this free-to-play kid-friendly MMO.

The latest patch also includes improved scoring in the missions, new HQ items and lots of fixes and updates. If you'd like to try out the game now, all you need to do is head over to the Marvel Super Hero Squad site and create an account!

With "Thor" currently in theaters, now's the perfect time for Marvel Super Hero Squad Online to release the Asgard game world. Here are the details:

• A whole new game world!
• Two new heroes… Ultimate Thor and Valkyrie! (Ultimate Thor is exclusive for subscribers). And coming soon… Classic Thor!
• A new mission… can you survive the mischief and mayhem of Thor’s brother, Loki, in “The Gods of Thunder?”
• And coming soon… don’t get caught in the middle of the ice against fire war of Ymir and Surtur, in the upcoming mission “Freezer Burn!”

Marvel Super Hero Squad Online officially launched a couple weeks ago. This kid-friendly free-to-play MMO allows players to take control of some of their favorite Marvel heroes in their browser.

Gazillion Entertainment and Marvel Entertainment announced today that Marvel Super Hero Squad Online is now live! This kid-friendly free-to-play MMO allows players to take control of some of their favorite Marvel heroes. It's accessible through your browser, so all you need to do is head over to the game's site and hit the big "Play Now" button to get started.

While the game is free-to-play, players can subscribe to unlock additional heroes, missions and rooms for the HQ. They can also spin the Prize Wheel for additional in-game Gold, Silver and items. You can watch the new launch trailer below.

The Super Hero Squad Online launch announcement follows yesterday's reveal of the first details for Gazillion's upcoming Marvel Universe MMO. This game will also be free-to-play, but promises to focus on core gamers rather than children.

On Wednesday, Cryptic Studios and Atari announced that Jack Emmert has been appointed CEO of Cryptic Studios following the departure of former CEO John Needham. This morning, Gazillion Entertainment announced that Needham has been named CEO of the company.

Prior to joining Cryptic in 2008, Needham was the senior vice president of business development and operations at Sony Online Entertainment. He is now "extremely excited to be a part of Gazillion."

“Like the team here, I believe that in the near future, rich console-quality games will be delivered through the browser," he said. "With great creative talent like [Gazillion President and COO] David Brevik and massive brands like Marvel, we’re going to create browser-centric, free-to-play games that set a new standard for quality and deliver a deep, compelling experience.”

In similar news, Gazillion founder Rob Hutter is now chairman of the company.

Gazillion Entertainment announced today that Super Hero Squad Online has entered closed beta. This kid-friendly game is filled with Marvel Universe characters like Spider-Man and the X-Men, and it's free-to-play through your browser.

If you'd like to try out the game before it launches, head over to the Super Hero Squad Online site and register for the closed beta. You can also pick up an original comic at Taco Bell right now for an exclusive code that gives beta registrants sneak peek access and an exclusive Super Hero.

David Brevik, the former president of Blizzard North and a major force behind the Diablo series and Blizzard's Battle.net service, has been promoted to president and COO of Gazillion Entertainment. Prior to his promotion, Brevik was the studio director and project lead for Gazillion's upcoming Marvel Universe MMO.

In addition, Jeff Lind was named vice president and studio head for Secret Identity, the Gazillion studio that's developing Marvel Universe. Lind was formerly a director of development for several projects at Electronic Arts and the director of engineering for Turbine West.

Gazillion is a developer and publisher of various MMOs, including Marvel Universe, Marvel Super Hero Squad, LEGO Universe and Jumpgate Evolution. We've been excited at the thought of a Marvel Universe MMO since Gazillion announced its partnership with Marvel Entertainment back in March 2009, so we'll definitely be keeping an eye on how these developments affect the game.

For more details, check out the press release after the jump.