// October 4th, 2009 // 1 Comment » // Comics, Review, Scifi, Uncategorized
Marvel barbecues are always... interesting.
Though DC’s Batman: Arkham Asylum may have eclipsed news of any other comic-based game, it’s not the only big release out there. Late September saw the release of Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2, the latest in a series of multiplayer action games based on Marvel Comics’ characters. The original MUA game is actually third in line following the releases of X-Men Legends 1 & 2.
MUA2′s story primarily covers Marvel’s Civil War event from 2007. When a tragic accident kills an entire North American city, the US Government enacts the Superhero Registration Act, forcing all heroes to register and be trained as a licensed hero with SHIELD. The act splits the hero community right down the middle. Captain America rebels against the order and goes underground to fight. On the Pro-Registration side Iron Man, Mr Fantastic and Hank Pym lead a team of registered heroes to take down Cap and his rebels. Players can choose to be either a rebel or a government sanctioned hero. But that’s only part of the story. MUA 2 also covers Secret War which was published over 4 years ago, as well as diverging into an original story as well.
Iron Man is a dick.
Though MUA 1 was released on next gen platforms, the new game takes full advantages of those systems. The main release is intended toward the X-Box 360 and Playstation 3, but this game also sees a multi-platform release that even covers portable game systems like the Nintendo DS. That said, it is very clear that the game-makers had little interest in fully realizing the game’s potential on lesser powered gaming systems.
I’m currently about 3/4s of the way through MUA2 on my Playstation 2. MUA 1 was a thoroughly enjoyable game that expanded and improved upon the X-Men Legends series. MUA2, sadly is a step down somewhat in quality. While the game is extremely entertaining, it has a multitude of hindrances. The primary complaint is that it contains multiple glitches. At certain points the game simply locks into place so that the player can’t continue. The only way to fix these scenarios is to reload the most recent auto-save (a new feature which loads at check points). This can be incredibly annoying as you lose all progress, and if you’ve saved your game since the last time you auto saved, you may have to go back a whole chapter into the game.
While the auto-save itself is a nice touch in theory, it also contributes to one of the other major set backs. The game is incredibly slow to load. There are moments when one wonders if you could get your laundry done between levels. Since the average game player isn’t known for their patience, long load times are a big negative.
One of the best parts of the first game was the exotic locales you visited. Asgard, the Skrull homeworld, the Shi’ar Imperium, Lateveria and even HELL. Something new was always around the corner. It was a huge plus that fulfilled every fanboy’s childhood fantasies. With MUA2… not so much. Sure you go to the Negative Zone, but pretty much every level is arguably identical to the next. It’s frustrating. To put it another way, in the original you fought freaking GALACTUS. Here you fight Black Goliath.
Still, it isn’t all bad news. The gameplay is excellent. The character selection is really great. I’m personally a big fan of the inclusion of the Thunderbolts from Warren Ellis and Mike Deodato’s run. The fusion attacks are cool and fun, though occasionally they malfunction. The game isn’t easy for moderate players like me, so having a challenge is nice. The cut scenes are breath-takingly beautiful. And over-all it’s worth the 30 dollar price tag.
I’m giving Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 a 6 out of ten. Even though it’s fun, the glitches and load times are a real drag. Furthermore, one can’t help but feel like MUA2 is less like a sequel than it is additional content for the first game. Altogether, I feel like the game company has branded me a red-headed step child simply because I can’t afford to shell out 300 plus bucks for a PS3. That sucks.
