Story/Plot: Now I already have experience with movie games. In regards to games that are adaption from movies they usually do one of two things: They make it based on the movie with a few modifications so that it won't spoil the plot of the movie TOO much; OR they make it like a sequel after the events from the theaters transpired. Well this game did the latter of the two and directly after the horrifying events that took place with the Lizard. I have to say, I wasn't too impressed with the story since it was a bit predictable. Again I didn't expect very much, but I was also hoping to be proved wrong or astonished. It wasn't that bad, but it was far from great and it barely hit mediocre. Still, to scrutinize the plot and its execution too much would be rhetoric and not exactly healthy since over all outside the plot I enjoyed the game.
5.0/10
Gameplay: Now this is the game's most redeemable department. When I heard that they were going to put Spidey back in the sandbox genre I was excited and partially waiting for a disaster. Like I mentioned in a prior post about this game (
Slight Words on the Amazing Spider-Man), the last time that genre of a Spider-Man game had been touched was with Web Of Shadows, and prior before that was Spider-Man 3 (which to its defense it was a good enough game, but the fact that it derives from a very atrocious movie, it didn't have much quarters for success).
Part of the thing that had made Spidey games successful in the past is the idea and the feel of you web slinging your way to various places, sticking to anything, diving off the highest sky scrapers then using the web line to redirect that momentum to wherever the gamer pleases. Well true believers, Beenox brought it all back with some minor twists of their own and the result of this side of the gameplay rather sensational, if I do say so myself. Nothing brings satisfaction to a Spider-Man fan than getting the tingling feeling of swinging through the air, plummeting down in gravity's speed, then eye'ing a particular building to web to and then sticking to the structure so that one can scale up and do that same breath taking action again. It really feels like a Spider-Man game and roaming around the city was probably the fun factor's greatest asset. Now like the much revered Spider-Man 2 game, gamers are allowed to land to the streets next to an unsuspecting citizen and then find him/herself back at high altitudes with a web line or two. Of course traveling on the lower side of the vertical world (the streets) doesn't hinder Spidey one bit. The ability to use the 'web dash vision' to pick and choose anything to web to with immaculate precision makes cars v.s. Spidey seem like the rabbit v.s. the turtle race (with Spidey being the smart rabbit and never stopping to take a rest).
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| As Spidey, the city is yours to roam free! |
Now the other part of the gameplay is of course the fighting. Now I'm not going to go out on a limb and say that it was Amazing as traveling through Manhattan. I will say however that it offers a very similar fighting style like the successful Arkham City/Asylum. Those who had delved into the gritty world of Batman can say that the fighting sequence wasn't at all complex but it did offer some good variations on the very simple gameplay. Simplicity is a genius and one can just build up on combos with a single button, react and evade with another button, and every once in a while one can use variation button combination to use gadgets or finishing moves. Well, Beenox took some of that successful sequences and made it MUCH more simpler. Too simple sometimes that the fights seems a bit TOO one sided. The lackeys and the goons of course would be push overs, build a few combo streak, evade a few strikes, signature move (total of three buttons by now) and every once in a while if need be, one can even retreat if the going gets tough. OF course there are alternate route to defeat such minor baddies with the use of the webbing both projectile or long range melee methods, and in some parts of the game, using the ability of a discreet spider, Spidey can even perform stealth take downs which one can easily clear out a room no problem since AI's lack real awareness of their surroundings.
Bosses also depends a lot on knowing how to time the proper buttons when it is needed. While the game is well adept in putting the idea of 'does whatever a spider can' into the game, there is no real tactics in most boss fights. Rhino, Iguana, Vermin, Scorpion, or even Lizard didn't feel too different; just a bunch of button mashing, properly time evasion, then adhering to a few button sequence then the boss fights are over. The colossal Spider-Slayers offer great visuals, but in the end the fight feels the same way as fighting a cross species humanoid with the timed button sequence and a bit more web slinging tactics and less melee button mashing. The one entertainment that varies from fighting humanoid in contrast to the slayers is the fact that the more exhilarating method of web slinging is included in the tactic. One of the boss battle, a snake like Slayer slithers about the city and the gamer has to utilize the web slinging, the web zip, and all other methods to keep Spidey on his toes (or off of it) to ensure that weakness of the giant robot is always available to be struck. While those moments did offer an accumulative result of both battle and the sand box gameplay, in the end such gargantuan feats still doesn't shy away from the more mundane fights. Yet it feels grand, but I feel that the fights could've offered more.
Now some of the things that are offered are the side quests like minor petty crimes, car chase, web slinging challenges, and carrying people to the hospital for treatment. They even touch on Parker's photography hobby on certain quests! While they offer a bit more to the cumulative experience, they do get a bit redundant at times and one can always revert back to the fun level of web slinging. If one wants to add a bit more 'intense' side quests, there are always chasing Black Cat or the Rhino all throughout New York.
So in the grand scheme of things, it is a fun Spider-Man game, don't get me wrong. It's been a while since I have had a feeling that I was the web slinger free to roam around in an open world where his ever so prominent abilities are duplicated rather well. Yet in some manner, that could've been the downfall of the game. The fun factor rides too much on that ability and a lot less attention are given to the others. The boss battles lacks in the real distinction between each fight, the side quests can become redundant, and there's only so much fun in webbing, jumping, and using the finishing signature moves on an opponent. This game does nothing too spectacular, however I am not going to disdain to say that it doesn't really fall too short of being an Amazing game for those who are a fan of the comic book and the movie itself. Probably one of the strongest Spidey game in a while.
8/10
Graphics: I can't really hide the fact that the visuals isn't exactly the game's strongest point but not exactly its weakness. Like a lot of games, there are a few and far between aesthetic between the player's controlled character and the rest of the world, whether we are talking about NPC's, environment, or just some random piece of 'decor' within the game. So Spidey looks great. He looks like Spider-Man and his movements doesn't shy away the details that makes him recognizable. The details put into his outfit is rather appreciating (and of course the alternate outfits themselves will make a good addition to the beauty of fan service, but unfortunately I don't really have all of them!). The background of Manhattan isn't exactly eye popping, but again it doesn't make me cringe to think that I am playing a ps2 game. So all in all the graphics takes the mediocre stand point. Some parts looks above, while other ares fall under the norm.
The CGs (or lack of?) aren't worth calling out since I didn't think it would suffice. The special affects aren't completely flashy but it does the world and the vibe well enough. I do think it has plenty of improvements, but again, in the grand scheme of things, I was impressed!
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| The Extra suits look Amazing!!! The Scarlet Spider (2012) for sure! |
7/10
Difficulty: While I only played it on the default mode for the entire time the vibe I got from it is that the more pressing difficulty won't be that much of a difference. While I had already stated that the gameplay itself on the battle mode is simple with a few variation of 'difficulty', the overall impression I had received from the AI and the boss battles doesn't give a fair share of promise. Meaning to say, the game itself didn't offer too much in this department. Again my judgement may not be as potent since it was only beaten on the default difficulty, however the amount of 'reactive' button sequence that allows players to stride through the game's most 'epic' boss battle with ease doesn't exactly give players too much to handle. That and the intelligence of the AI's falls too short and the mere act of retreating and 'stealth' take downs makes the battle ground far too easy.
Meaning to say that some aspects of the game had made Spider-Man a super discreet and very elite SHIELD trained Spidey or maybe he is just going toe to toe with some of the most incompetent people of the whole entire Marvel Universe. Not only are they inadequate to spot him in his not so illusive costume, but when they do have him in sight they don't have the capability to keep their crosshairs on him for one web zip and he can vanish in thin air! And maybe outside closed buildings like being in Manhattan does provide Spidey with the vastness to escape... however everywhere else doesn't suffice for a very convincing 'ninja vanish'.
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When finding myself in a dire situation, all I simply have to do is web retreat a few times and eventually I won't will be in the shadows again.
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So while the game's fan factor still falls pretty high in comparison to a lot of the Spider-Man games lately, it still lacks an obvious need to make a few parts of the game challenging enough to make one feel that Spider-Man can do whatever a spider can including getting a few scrapes along the way.
6/10
Voice Acting/Audio: Humor is one of the main things Spidey fans think about when the Wall Crawler pops up in their mind. Despite his rather disheveled life outside the red and blue tights, Peter Parker is nothing short of his skill to use his words to either distract, annoy, or merely keep himself entertained when fighting his colorful band of rivals and villains. Now while the voice actor of The Amazing Spider-Man did not lack the charisma that Spidey usually has, the script itself fell short and it seemed that his jokes on the whim was rather too bland or just plain redundant. While some games do have the major flaws of having their characters repeat the same thing more than enough times to notice and to annoy the gamer, this one seems to be a bit more outstanding on that notion. Maybe because I listen to Spidey's barbs and jokes since I find them hilarious which made me really catch all the redundant quotes and less than impressive lines.
The music itself offered more gratifying feel to ill in the mood of the game. But it doesn't do that much of a justice to help this department, but let me just say that it was more tolerable than the voice acting. I'm not saying that the actors themselves did a bad job (Felicia Hardy seems to be familiar. She sounds like Black Cat from the Animated series way back when.... probably not her though), but the dialogue they were given didn't really compel to entertain.
I guess I was really disappointed with the Spidey's way with words in this game. One of the things that makes Spider-Man him is the wise crack and the ever so wonderful ways he uses humor to insult and/or keep the battle upbeat for him; and that said statement goes for Spider-Man's appearance in comic books, movies, video games, etc. etc. But I guess since I don't really recall TOO much funny things that came out of the Peter's mouth in the movie, this game echoed that lacking perk of being Spider-Man.
5.0/10
Overall: I can't remember the last time I felt this way about a Spider-Man game. Yeah I enjoyed Shattered Dimension for what it was but I feel like the most fervent way to imitate the Web Head in the game is through an open world genre like this one. By its own right this is a great game with many things to offer a person who happens to be both a Spidey and a gamer! While I have pointed out that this game is not the immaculate piece of disc to probe your console, it still has something a slight flare that can keep one feel like s/he has power and the responsibility to use it as a Spider-Man should. While I can't exactly say that this will have some video game awards from me and the rest of the gaming world, it can still have a place in the wall as a positive stepping stone to the Web Head's gaming career. It may not be the definitive of 'Amazing' at all times however the occasional times that it captures that said word will make me say that the game lived up to a few expectations and didn't do half bad for being a movie based game.
7.5/10
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