Gaming Trend

Gaming Trend Review

by Keith Schleicher

The X-Men are one of the properties that have leapt from the pages of comic books to the movie screen and television.  The X-Men cartoon from the early to late 1990’s really brought a lot of attention to the franchise.  The first X-Men movie was one of the few comic book movies that could bring mass market appeal to the big screen.

X-Men 3 came to the movie theaters to mixed reaction, but a high-profile movie tie-in couldn’t be overlooked, especially since we had one last year with X2: Wolverine’s Revenge.  Instead of focusing on the events of the movie, X-Men: The Official Game follows the events preceding the movie.  You follow in the footsteps (mutant-steps?) of three members of the X-Men: Wolverine, Nightcrawler, and Iceman.  You’ll need to use each of their unique abilities to complete the levels in the game.

X-Men: The Official Game takes you back to Alkali Lake.  Those of you who saw X-Men 2 know that this is the place of the climax of the movie, as well as the origin of Wolverine.  It appears that there Alkali Lake hasn’t been sitting idle since your last encounter there.

The PS2 is the oldest of the current generation of consoles, unless you count the Dreamcast.  It is also the least powerful, and it really shows in the game.  It’s not that Z-Axis didn’t make an impressive looking game for the PS2, it’s just that the limitations of the PS2 really hamper the look.    The anti-aliasing in the game is pretty bad, and while the graphics are decently done, there are some areas where the game looks a bit square.

The animations of the game do look good, especially for the main characters.  The models of the three main characters are strikingly close to their on-screen counterparts.  Even Nightcrawler’s markings are present when up close.  However, you’ll see these animations over and over again.

The lighting effects are also well done.  Lightning bolts from Storm or the electric spears light the room.  Gas clouds linger while fire effects burn through your enemy.  Bullets have trails that show their path.  The blue puff of smoke from Nightcrawler’s teleportation ability is very reminiscent of the effects used in X-Men 2: X-Men United.

There is actually quite a bit of variety in the enemies you face.  While there are a couple of minor changes, there is a unique look to them.  You can easily tell whether you are facing an enemy with a spear, a gun, or claw attachments.  Some clipping issues do occur with enemies though.

The story is told through cutscenes that use a technique that is like comic book panels, but includes a little bit of movement.  The technique takes a little getting used to, but it works well.

The game has the benefit of using the resources of the movie for the game as well, and it has taken some of those resources and used it to full effect.  The music in the game is taken directly from the movie score, and it sounds fantastic.  It adds the right balance of tension and excitement to the game.  It never overpowers the on-screen action.

Hugh Jackman and Patrick Stewart have reprised their roles from the movie in X-Men: The Official Game.  Patrick Stewart is only used in cutscenes, but Hugh Jackman contributes to the game scenes as well.  There are a few times where the lines come out a little flatter than I think they should, but I have heard a lot worse voice acting in many other games.  The voice acting of the other characters is admirable, even if it doesn’t sound exactly like the actors of the movie.

Since you play as three different characters with unique abilities, the controls are unique for each of the three.  There are some general similarities though.  Movement is done with the left analog stick while the right one slightly controls the camera.  The face buttons are your attacks.  While playing as Wolverine and Nightcrawler, hitting the buttons in different patterns perform different combos.  It’s nothing as complex as Mortal Kombat or Street Fighter, but it has more depth than something like Final Fight.

The L and R buttons are very character specific.  On Wolverine they let him block, heal, and release his fury.  On Nightcrawler they enable him to lock on a target, heal, and teleport.  On Iceman they do a quick 180 degree turn and make him slow down.

Controlling Wolverine is fairly easy, and the developers have done an admirable job to let him attack multiple enemies at one time.  Still, there are times when you’ll attack thin air because of how hectic the screen can be.  You’d think that Nightcrawler would be the most difficult to control because of his teleportation ability.  However, he is the easiest and most natural to control.  Iceman is the most difficult.  While his abilities are neat, his controls are a bit floaty, and it is difficult to control his speed throughout the levels.

X-Men: The Official Game starts out easily enough.  You start out with a training mission for each character.  Two of them even take place in the Danger Room, where the X-Men perform their training, so it seems appropriate.  However, once you get past that the real fun, or frustration, begins.

Playing as Wolverine reminded me a bit of Prince of Persia: Warrior Within.  Wolverine has claws and isn’t afraid to put them to good use.  He hacks and slashes his way through enemies.  He also has the power to heal, which is something that you’ll need to do between each wave of enemies.  Unfortunately he doesn’t have any kind of ranged weapon, so all of his fights are up close in person.  He is the character you control through most of the game.

While Wolverine gets most of the attention, Nightcrawler is no slouch in the gameplay department.  He is a natural to play, and his levels are a lot of fun.  Being able to teleport behind an enemy and smack him around is a blast, especially since the controls allow you to do this so easily.  Playing as him felt a bit like playing a simplistic version of The Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time.  The teleportation is very easy because a blue point that pops up to show you where you would teleport to and the spots you can teleport to are very intuitive.

Finally, there is Iceman.  He gets short shrift though the game, but you don’t mind it that much because his powers aren’t very well implemented in the game.  He has an ice beam and frost shield, but controlling his speed is difficult which makes aiming his attacks hard.  In a way, since he doesn’t see much action, it’s almost a good thing you don’t play as him through most of the day.

After completing each mission you are able to upgrade your characters by increasing the stats of the character.  Each character has five different areas to upgrade which correlate to their unique abilities.  This helps give you a sense of customization for your character.

The gameplay is pretty basic.  You go through a stage of the game, get attacked by a wave of enemies, complete a task, and occasionally fight a boss.  Rinse.  Repeat.  The boss battles are interesting, as they require a little bit more than just beating up the waves of enemies around.  While it seems alright at first, it gets repetitive very quickly.

Secondly, the game is not easy.  It’s tough.  While it’s not to the point of Ninja Gaiden tough, it is very difficult.  One of the early stages playing as Wolverine you go through is the “Testing Chamber.”  This area should be considered a gauntlet.  It barely gives you any time to heal between waves of enemies, and they come in hard and fast.  Not only that, but you need to avoid traps on the ground as well.  That’s only the first part of that area.  At least there are checkpoints throughout the levels, but if you turn the game off during a mission, all your progress is wiped out.

The game does have unlockables that you can collect throughout the game.  Throughout the levels Weapon X tokens and Sentinel tech pieces can be picked up.  These unlock different costumes for the X-Men as well as Danger Room Missions that you can hone your skills on.  Also, the upgrades you choose to make with your characters through the game get you to keep playing through the game again.  You also have three different difficulty levels for each mission, and you can select which difficulty level to use before starting each mission.  However, once you have played through the game once, there isn’t any real reason to go back and play through the game again unless you absolutely have to unlock everything through the game. X-Men: The Official Game has a lot going for it, even if you only get to play as three of the X-Men characters.  A lot of the game is enjoyable, especially the parts with Nightcrawler.  Yet, the difficulty and repetitive nature of the levels does eventually wear down on you.  The game is decent for a movie game, but a little more time and effort would have made this a truly enjoyable game.

Gaming Trend Score

70

1. Graphics: 74
2. Audio: 85
3. Controls: 78
4. Gameplay: 60
5. Value/Replay: 65
6. OVERALL:70