GENRE
	Action
	DEVELOPER
	Treyarch
	PUBLISHER
	Activision
	NUMBER OF PLAYERS
	1
	CONNECTIVITY
	no
	BUY NOW AT

Comic book games of the past failed because the essence of the hero was always missing. Activision changed that with the release of Spider-Man 2. They showed that a game based on a comic book must accurately capture the superhero to be successful. The game had a number of shortcomings, but all was forgiven because it was so much fun to swing through the city; the game made you feel like Spider-Man.

Enter Ultimate Spider-Man, essentially the sequel to Spider-Man 2, the difference being its specific source material. The Ultimate line is a rework of a number of Marvel properties with a new art direction and story line (for a better understanding, read ND’s interview with USM Creative Director Chris Busse). Aside from the look, this game acts just like its predecessor. Not surprisingly, what was good is still good and what was bad is still bad.

visuals

The graphics are popping. The game uses what Activision calls 3D Comic Inking Technology. It is similar to the now-popular cel-shading technique, and it is used to great effect. This New York City is arguably more lifelike than the realistic New York City of SM2, mainly through the use of color. Everything is in high contrast-- brick-red buildings with vivid blue windows alongside bright yellow cabs driving by rich green trees. And that’s only during the day; it looks even better at night. Some more subtle effects, such as concrete crumbling under Venom’s weight and the best looking fire I’ve seen in a long time give the game a nice polish. It is all a sight to see and combines to absorb the player into Spider-Man’s world like never before.

The graphics are also popping, as in pop-up. While entire buildings suffer from this, it is actually most evident when you are swinging at street level, where cars, light posts and pedestrians suddenly appear, sometimes just as Spidey reaches them. Buildings more noticeably suffer from lack of detail at too great a distance. As Spidey approaches a building, you first get a flat building face, followed by the sudden appearance of windows and finally extra details like flag poles and awnings. However, it doesn’t affect gameplay, and it’s a necessary and desirable trade off for the sheer enormity of the city.

USM takes full advantage of its comic book origin with an excellent presentation method. Individual panels are used during play not only as a fun graphic element, but also as an alert for new events. The panels are also well done in the game’s cut scenes. The original story, written by comic book writers Brian Michael Bendis and Mark Bagley, is told through these scenes, and the style keeps the player’s attention.

audio

The voice acting is not anything special, but it's not annoying either. Spider-Man is as quick with a one-liner as ever, and you’ll hear a lot of them. He even makes fun of his own corny jokes. Effects like explosions and gun fire are what you would expect, but Venom received the best work. The sound of his feet crashing into the ground from the landing of his jumps portrays his massive size. If Venom tries to escape to the top of a building from the armies chasing after him, the soldiers shout “He’s on the rooftops!” While minor, it adds a nice touch.

Some of the background music seems out of place. I never envisioned Spider-Man swinging through the city while listening to techno music on his iPod.

gameplay

Much like SM2, the game involves two main types of play-- city goals and story missions. The four different city goals are those tasks that can be completed by freely roaming throughout the city. Spidey must complete a certain amount of each to unlock the next story mission. City events, such as stopping bank robberies or taking injured people to the hospital, happen at random and become rather repetitive. The others-- token collection, races, and combat tours-- can be completed whenever you want, and remain rather fun. This time around, the game does not force you to play the story missions right away. You can wander the city and sharpen your skills between missions as long as you want. This allows you to take a more leisurely stroll through the game.

Which is something I suggest doing, because the main game is short. Really short. Oompa Loompa short. If you advance through USM at the pace the game suggests, it will give you no more than eight hours of gameplay before the main story is complete. This was the biggest complaint of SM2, which makes it even more disappointing that Activision and Treyarch didn’t work harder to create a longer experience.

It’s a shame too, because the story missions are really where the game shines. Most of the missions involve Spider-Man chasing a boss through the city. If Spidey lags too far behind, the mission must be restarted. What are great about the missions are the quick detours Spidey has to take. In the first mission, Spider-Man is following Rhino and his path of destruction. As Rhino rips through walls and flips cars, Spidey must rescue the people hanging from those walls and stuck in those cars. These detours get more intense as the game progresses. It all adds to the feel of being Spider-Man-- the hero risks allowing his enemy to escape in order to save the innocent people caught in the middle.

Of course, in USM, there is also a feel of being the enemy. You still use Spider-Man for all the free roaming aspects of the game, but Venom is available for some story missions. His levels are similar to Spider-Man’s, but Venom has different abilities. For one, he cannot web swing. Instead, he makes tall leaps to bounce along rooftops. Venom is more powerful, able to throw cars, tractors, and most anything else. His levels do a good job of allowing Venom to use the environment to his advantage. Also, the Venom suit is self-damaging. To counteract this, Venom must find people on the street to feed the suit in order to regain life. Deciding when to run off and eat someone adds a puzzle-like aspect to the fights. His levels are some of the best in the game.

Because of the short main game, USM ends up being all about swinging-- at least that is what Activision hopes. The speed and freedom is as good as ever. Treyarch did change the swing mechanic. It took some getting used to, but in the end it is a simpler design. Also, they removed the hit detection from some parts of the city, most notably the stairs on fire escapes. This is actually a blessing as Spidey shouldn’t get his web line stuck in there anymore. The game has some unlockable content, the best being able to roam the city as Venom after completing the main game. He even has some specific races that can only be played while Venom. The extras that take the longest to unlock, such as production art and new costumes, are the least exciting.

multiplayer

N/A

overall

Ultimate Spider-Man is a difficult game to rate. I think of it as a sequel to SM2, which influences my opinion. Had SM2 never existed, I would undoubtedly recommend USM to anyone who remembers that video games are about having fun, because this game is fun. If you have never played SM2 and prefer to try the comic book presentation over the movie presentation, you will not be disappointed.

However, for SM2 veterans, the story mode is just too short for a full recommendation. Outside of a new visual style, this game has nothing that requires its purchase if you have already spent hours upon hours experiencing the sheer joy of web swinging in SM2 like I have. USM does not do anything worse, but it does not do anything better.

7.2/10