Invincible VS devs say they’d be “surprised” if game’s original character doesn’t appear in the show

Invincible VS is getting an original character, one completely independent from the comics and show, but developers say they’d be “surprised” if she doesn’t show up outside the game.

I got the chance to sit down with the minds behind Invincible VS, a 3v3 tag fighting game based on the gritty, gory superhero IP of the same name, about the game’s newest character: Ella Mental.

As her name suggests, she can control the four elements: earth, air, water, and fire. She’s an explosive powerhouse of a fighter, and one who has a celebrity voice actress in Grammy-nominated rapper and singer Tierra Whack.

Knowledge about other voice talent in Invincible VS has been fairly limited, outside of JK Simmons returning as Omni-Man. When asked what inspired them to choose Tierra for their latest character, the team admitted they’d had her in mind from the very beginning of Ella Mental’s design process.

“Tierra is such a visionary in the creative and hip-hop world, and we had her on our radar very early on when we were thinking about Ella Mental,” Narrative Director Mike Rogers said. “With her character, we were looking for the right combination of talent and presence, and Tierra was a fan favorite who really enhanced the character we had set about to bring to the game.

“Tierra is very selective with her projects, so we were thrilled when she accepted the role. She’s an Invincible fan and really connected with Ella’s material; she brings a heightened level of depth and detail to the character. I was really excited to get to work with someone with as much passion as Tierra to build a new, original corner of the Invincible universe.”

Invincible creators had the idea for Ella Mental years ago

Executive Producer Mike Willette, also known for his work on the Killer Instinct fighting games, let us in on Ella Mental’s backstory, explaining that she is an heiress to her family’s fortune.

Thanks to her studious and hardworking nature, she quickly became her grandfather’s favorite grandchild, a title that granted her access to an ancient totem that gives her control over the elements.

“Personality-wise, Ella is a very positive and energetic person, but she’s also got a slightly sardonic edge, which Tierra really helped solidify in her performance,” Willette explained.

Dan Eder, Art Director for Invincible VS, was the first team member to bring up the idea of creating a completely original character for the game. Inspired by this, the devs asked Invincible co-creators Robert Kirkman and Cory Walker for their thoughts — and it turns out, they’d had an idea for a character named ‘Ella Mental’ for quite a while.

“’Ella Mental’ had apparently been a name they kicked around sometime ages ago but never went any further with… until now,” Rogers revealed. “There’s a lot of creativity that springs forth from the name alone, and it was a great starting point.”

How devs built a brand new character for Invincible VS

Ella Mental was the first character in Invincible VS with no prior appearances to draw from, presenting quite the conundrum for the developers. More specifically, her wide range of abilities were difficult to translate from concepts to the screen, especially where framerate is concerned.

“From a VFX standpoint, executing Ella Mental’s powers was a unique challenge,” Eder explained. “For the first time, we had a character with no source material – just a great sketch from Cory.

“When you’re dealing with attacks spanning all of the elements, there’s a lot happening on screen. We worked hard to ensure everything looks up to our standards visually without dropping from 60 frames per second.”

“Plus, we at Quarter Up love a challenge, so we decided to ask Dan’s team to make a character with 4x the VFX,” Rogers joked.

While Ella Mental is the first character in the Invincible universe to only appear in the fighting game, the devs aren’t convinced that she’s resigned to remain there forever. In fact, Mike Willette said he’d be genuinely shocked if she didn’t make her way to the show or the comics at some point.

“As far as if people expect to see her in more Invincible content: who knows. I’d be surprised if this is the last we see of her,” he said.

They also confirmed that Invincible VS will have 18 playable fighters at launch. The game will also offer a Year 1 Character Pack, which will introduce two additional fighters in the months following launch for a total of four new characters over the course of the Pass.

Invincible VS launches on April 30, 2026, on Xbox X|S, PlayStation 5, and Steam.