Marvel Ultimate Alliance

I resisted getting the PS3, not that I could've found one anyway, but I do still buy PS2 games now and then. I really pretty much like violent games. I can't even call it stress relief, as I've found my fingers are often sore later and I have been known to stay up into the wee hours playing them. Anyway, one thing I hate about most games is just how hard they are for the average person--you get through a few levels and then there's something that just fucks you up. I hit that wall on Scarface and while I will probably give it another try, I do feel burned by it and my inclination is to just move on to something else.

That something else was Marvel Ultimate Alliance, which looked very cool in the commercials. The graphics are only that good in the cinema segments, as the actual game has four Marvel heroes on a team at a time (with a fifth guest star now and then) against many enemies in a large environment, so detail on the characters is diminished. The game is a huge adventure where your team has to undertake many missions for Nick Fury and S.H.I.E.L.D. to bring down the Masters of Evil, led by Doctor Doom, who poses his worst threat to the world ever when he takes the power of Odin and starts using it, which threatens to rend the fabric of reality.

Your basic team begins as Spider-Man, Thor, Wolverine and Captain America, all in their Ultimate versions, except for Spidey, who is built and talks like the classic, twenty-something version rather than a teen. You start on the Helicarrier, going against A.I.M. agents and Ultron robots and against "bosses" like Scorpion and Mysterio. Each character has different moves and special powers, as the farther you get, the more you upgrade those powers and are able to unlock more abilities and alternate costumes ("hero skins") like Spider-Man's Symbiote and Scarlet Spider. That's one of the great things about the game, just being able to play as so many different heroes, because at a certain level you can change your team, selecting from about a dozen other heroes like Dr. Strange, Cage, Ghost Rider, Iron Man, Elektra, etc. There were a few in shadow that I never did unlock, though some, like Dr. Strange and Blade, show up in different levels and help you out. The other fun thing is that you really get to experience almost every cool setting in the Marvel Universe. There's no fighting in NYC; instead you travel to Atlantis, Arcade's Murderworld, the Sh'iar Throneworld, the Underworld, Attilan, Asgard, and eventually Latveria. What I loved was that you could play in the Easy setting, which was difficult at times but definitely doable. The bosses were hard but you could defeat them by using your head and figuring out the way to do it, which was usually pretty clearly hinted at in the environment. For example, to take down Ymir in NIffleheim meant avoiding his blows, taking out the other Frost Giants, and grabbing one of their spears to charge up his arm and stick it in his neck. You have to do this four or five times. The game even has Galactus in it, who they set up as the likely heavy for the sequel. Voices are for the most part very well done and it's clear the creators of the game are huge Marvel geeks, as evidenced by the trivia contests where you can score extra points. There are also lots of fun side missions you can unlock where you play as Blade or Strange or Elektra and more, and Arcade's Murderworld even has a videogame of Pitfall you can play with your character. It's a great game, and one of the few I've actually finished. Due to the different characters and a couple of different directions you can go, I might play again sometime.