The Hero Within...the Wii Remote

[Macawmoses]

*note: pics oming soon*


Game: Marvel Ultimate Alliance
Platform: Wii
Publisher: Activision
Developer(s): Raven Software, Vicarious Visions
Release Date: Nov. 19, 2006
Rated: T

Overview:
24 of the world's greatest superheroes team up to take down evil, and you can control ALL of them. The likes of Spiderman, Wolverine, Iceman, Elektra, Thor, and more at your disposal when taking down the Masters of Evil, a group led by the menacing Dr. Doom. You start the game on SHIELD's armed transport the Helicarrier as Spidey, Cap, Wolverine, and Thor and have to fight your way to Nick Fury. After you make your way to Fury you will be able to start customizing your team however you want to destroy the Masters of Evil. On your way you will travel through numerous locals, taking the fight with you.

Story:
This is where the game truly shines. After saving Fury and the Helicarrier he will make a task force of Marvel's greatest heroes, all trying to take down the down right worst villains. There are so many plot twists in this game that I would have to literally put hundreds of spoiler alerts. I can say however though at one point in the game you get to choose one Marvel character's life over another, and it is a tough decision when they are both beloved veterans.
During each of the levels you will be given side missions to carry out, and based on the choices you chose to make you will see what happened because of them. This adds to the depth the game has because it really lets you choose how much of a hero you will be. Unfortunately the game seems to focus more upon the more popular heroes and leaves the others in it's wake. However due to the comic book like story line, and numerous cliffhanger plot twists I think the story in general was well done.
My rating: 9.5/10

Gameplay:
Due to the fact this was a Wii launch title it obviously had to be all motion controlled. This worked out well actually. You learn to use simple movements with the wii-remote to pull off simple attacks such as tripping and punching. Adding b to these moves lets you pull of a special move if the character has enough energy. However each character doe not have it's own special movements due to their being so many different characters. So if you had plans pulling off claw slashes as Wolverine you better think again because the specials are generic. For the most part I found myself using the a button for general attacks and scrolling through the b moves in a tight spot. The gamecube controller would have worked wonders here.
You control four heroes at once. Playing as one character the others follow you and will engage the enemy as they see fit. You can give them general commands like be defensive, or aggressive but they choose what to do. But you can switch to any of the other four heroes on the fly by hitting the control pad to match the corresponding hero.



My Rating: 7.5/10
Sound:
The music in this game is amazing. It ranges from heavy metal to a nearly orchestrated piece. The music adds tension to the game during boss battles, and adds some peace and quiet while you are in one of your numerous hubs. Voice acting was superb in this game as well, when I heard Spiderman I knew it was him. Sound FX are well done as well. You can hear the clanging of feet, and the sound of each unique move being performed. Kudos to everyone who worked on sound.
My Rating: 8.5/10

Characters:
There are literally hundreds of Marvel characters in this game. You face numerous villains from Shocker, to Mandarin, to Bullseye. You will also encounter several good guys along the way along with the playable characters. Professor X and Wong are just a couple of examples. As far as the NPC's the characters were excellent, the problems came with the Playables. Because this game tends to focus on the more popular characters others such as Dr. Strange and Luke Cage are overshadowed. They are equally deserving as Spidey but don't get the respect they deserve. Along with that the 24 playables comes to much clutter. The overshadowed characters will often be overlooked and it is not deserved. However there is a great diversity in all the characters making the game quite enjoyable.
My Rating: 8/10


Unlockables:
Throughout the game there will be plenty of bonuses for the comic book lover. Unlockable artwork that you find as you play acts as the load screen. You can also get comic book covers. There is also a trivia section on each hub to see how much you know about the Marvel Universe. The comic book missions are quite fun, you control one character against one of the games bad guys in various parts of the huge levels. Beating them all is quite the task!
My Rating: 10/10



Graphics:
The game plays in top down fashion which works out well. Actual gameplay's graphics aren't bad but they aren't superb either. The cutscenes however look amazing and the characters look life like. This unfortunately only takes up a small part of the game but are well worth it.
My Rating: 7.5/10


Multiplayer:
There is no head to head but there is co-op mode. When you are controlling four characters it can get hectic so this game encourages you to get some buddies to come play. At any time during the course of the game someone can sit down beside you and hit the + on the wii remote to join in. You then share the four characters. This game is rather difficult at times and things go a lot smoother with a friend or two. I only wish I has some to help me through the game This is the ultimate coop game.
My Rating: 9/10

Summary:
This game features the most comic book characters ever, and that is not a joke. Back stories on characters keep the hard core marvel fan entertained and the new to Marvel fans enlightened. Virtually everything in the game was excellent, especially the story. However gameplay and the characters in general were lacking something. It is entertaining to the hard core comic book fan getting to toy with the lives of Marvel's best ( and worst ) but is also fun to those who know little about Marvel. Hopefully you can get some friends over to play this gem with you because it is well worth the 50 bucks.
My Overall Rating: 8.5/10

[Java]

This game was really a great game.

I couldn't put it down!

I think you give it a fair rating.

However, I'm curious, how would you rate the lasting appeal of the game?

[Macawmoses]

This game was really a great game.

I couldn't put it down!

I think you give it a fair rating.

However, I'm curious, how would you rate the lasting appeal of the game?

That is indeed a tough one! In my opinion, it is a 7 or 8!

My reasoning, I dont like comic books....at all! This game was memorable for the storyline presented, and the cliffhanger ending has me drooling waiting for a sequel. Then again, graphically and originally it wasn't THAT impressive, the comic book parts of it truly made it stand out though!