Metareview: Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2

I'm digging it so far, but getting online on the PS3 seems to be a challenge :(

Damn, have to choose between this and ODST this month...

suggestions?

I like it so far. I just wish the fusions stood apart from each other more. In a few of the guided ones, the heroes lock arms and skip through enemies.

I completely forgot about this game but its getting decent reviews so I think I'll rent it.
Is it out alreadyé

1up kind of burned it there at the end. I am only a couple of hours into the game myself, but I am enjoying it as much or more than I did the original.

I believe Vicarious Visions made a good sequel to a good game. It is hard to do anything ground breaking in this genre, beat 'em ups are just that, and this is a damn good one.

It has been a while since I played the first game, but it feels like the leveling system has been streamlined a bit. Fusions are much more fun than I expected, but I feel like the first game had something similar in it, maybe to a lesser degree or it was limited to certain characters, again it has been a while since I played the first game so my memory is bound to be off.

Pleased with the purchase, it is a great game to tide me through the next few weeks and break up ODST.

I'm really looking forward to picking this game up, actually. Can't wait to get it.

Iron Fist ftw! is all I can really say about this game. Frankly, it's all I need to say as far as my concerns go.

Okay EA, listen up, I'm going to tell you how to make a TRUE Marvel game that handles a huge cast of characters and (if you like) includes the option for both a vast single-player experience and storyline as well as an unmatched, one-for-the-ages multiplayer side. It flies in the face of your repetitive, uninspired focus on button-mashing "action" and gets seriously TACTICAL.

Think of the possibilities of incorporating the (currently up-in-the-air) HeroClix license and turn-based gameplay system, realizing it across a huge variety of fully 3D, intricately detailed, destructible environments from cityscapes to forests, from constuction sites to remote planets. Using an engine similar to the one Sega employed in their amazing "Valkyria Chronicles", gameplay would be turn-based, but each time you began to move your character there would be real-time "under-fire" elements as you went from the enemy. Do you use Hulk's "tremor-tap" to trip up Juggernaut, or do you move in close to deck him with a fierce punch? Iron Man's physical prowess or his deadly ranged attacks? With literally hundreds of characters to choose from across decades of Marvel story arcs and locations, it would be your call. Team the X-Men against the Avengers, or see if a single character like Galactus can withstand the full-on assault of all of Marvel's mightiest heroes. With the addition of downloadable content including new characters, costumes, maps, and storylines, the possible combinations and depth of gameplay would be simply breathtaking.

Want to up the ante? Bring over the DC license and incorporate it into the EA HeroClix experience. And just as in the original tabletop game, fans could settle once and for all who would come out on top between the JLA and the Avengers, Hulk vs. Superman, Batman vs. Captain America, etc via a "Crossover" download which could use saves from either disc to play unlocked characters from the other. You ARE EA, you've got the cash to make it happen!

But wait, that's not all! If you order now we'll throw in two EXTRA team-based franchises you already have locked down for FREE!!! That's right, I'm talking about Transformers (the original animation-based models, NOT the movie-based ones, though you could always mix and match via downloadable content) and G.I. JOE!!! Imagine the fanboy reaction to literally living the excitement of the SunBow cartoons from the 80s, complete with both great story arcs from their respective TV shows, movies, and comics as well, in a fleshed-out, gorgeously animated turn-based environment where teams of Autobot Vs. Decepticon or Joes Vs. Cobras clash. In Transformers, do you stay in the more battle-ready warrior mode, or transform to zoom across the map quickly in vehicle mode? Do you prefer the long-range sniping skills of Low-Light, the mid-ranged area-effect attacks of Gung-Ho's "blooper", or Snake-Eyes' up close and personal style of ninja combat? A huge selection of playable characters and maps, along with File Cards reminiscent of those on the original toys' packaging (done along the lines of Valkyria Chronicles' Reference section) would make the games an encyclopedic resource as well as Game of the Year candidates. The multiplayer aspect would absolutely RULE here; think strategy games are boring? Not with these features, and these could literally last from minutes to hours depending upon the size and complexity of the map levels and forces used (and user-generated maps and downloadable content would seal the deal very sweetly).

Yeah, I've asked for this very thing before, from Sega, EA, as well as other game companies. And I'm going to keep doing so every now and then, as the opportunity presents itself. I think the SRPG genre is very underrated by game developers, but an effective use of licenses like this could easily push it into the mainstream.

So what do the rest of you think?

Renting not buying because this is an Activision product. DO YOU HEAR ME KOTICK!

Also I am still reeling from the greatness that was Arkham Asylum. Here is hoping that Marvel strikes back with a game that is just as good.

Rented it today. Here are a few impressions from the couple of hours I've put in so far.

- I have no idea how faithful a translation of the Civil War event the game is (I stopped reading most Marvel books after Decimation), but its story elements are a huge improvement over the first.
- Played immediately after Arkham Asylum, MUA2's characters and environments are distractingly drab.
- The realistic graphics make for enjoyable in-game cinematics, but I really would have preferred a more stylized, comic bookish aesthetic in the same vein as the first game, and not just for personal taste reasons. With the camera so far from the action, MUA2 is at times an indecipherable soup of grey.
- For OCD types, there is a lot to obsess about, which is a good thing. It's easy to get distracted from the shallowness of the core gameplay.
- Even at those times when you aren't distracted, MAU2 is at its worst a competently designed beat-em-up. If you spent any time at all with Castle Crashers you'll probably enjoy this.
- Iron Fist and Luke Cage are both playable. Yay!
- Playing Marvel Ultimate Alliance makes me wonder what a DC Ultimate Alliance would be like, but I don't think the first tier DC characters would translate well to this type of game. Superman is the army, Green Lantern is the air force, and Batman is special ops - a DC Ultimate Alliance would need to be about more than beating up robots for them all to feel utilized.

4-player local co-op means I will be picking this up at some point. More games need to do this.

[banned]

I'd probably love the game on co-op, but I just can't justify paying money for it. The character roster is pretty lame, they've mainly taken the same characters from the first game with pretty much all the same abilities. It's nothing but a prettier version.

It's fairly obvious they've done this, so they can charge $10 per new character. Also, each character only has one alternate costume now, as opposed to four from the original. Again, I imagine we'll be seeing costume packs coming very shortly..

As big a fan of Marvel as I am, I only liked the last one. This one, I am really into. The characters seem to start out more powerful then they were maxed out in MUA, and the environments are a bit more interactive. Was on the fence about it, b ut loving it so far. Hope they add some DLC characters to the game though, the lineup this time seems sparce.

Okay guys, I admit I got carried away last night with my writing. I figured I had to be pretty descriptive to actually SELL this idea to anyone from some game company who might be roving these boards (and no, I don't work for WizKids). In a nutshell, don't at least some of you think you'd like a turn-based SRPG based on those licenses (If they're not your thing, that's fine, but I don't currently see any other way a single player will ever be able to control an entire large group of characters on the fly)? I just got through playing Scenario 1 (English Version) of the fifteen year-old Shining Force III by Sega for the Saturn, totalling over 56 hours...and I still have TWO scenarios left. Guys, virtually NOBODY puts effort and longevity like this into games anymore. My PS3, XBox 360, and Wii have scarcely been touched lately, which proves to me that great games DO stand the test of time even if the graphical technology outstrips them. And yes, I do believe this idea is a great one and worth suggesting if there's even the SLIGHTEST chance something like it could eventually happen; how are EA or other companies going to know what we want if we each don't drop said suggestions every now and then as inspiration hits us?

Anyone else having it not unlock achievements for all players in a couch co-op game? So frustrating. Seems like they improved the online multiplayer and broke local for achievements. I loved the first game and want to love this one, but they're making it difficult to love.

So on Tuesday I waffled back and forth all day at work about picking this up and I finally caved after the reviews came out in the afternoon. I mean, I loved the first one, so how bad could this have been? I'm a few hours in and I've gotta say, this game is definitely a step backwards from the last one (a game that I put a shameful amount of time into.) It's really hard to believe that it took 3 years to make this. They got rid of the accessories and most of the alternate costumes...hell even the menus in MUA2 are boring compared to the first one.

Yeah, I'm glad Raven worked on the Wolverine game (which was like eleventy-kabillion times better than the movie) but I wish they'd come back for this instead of that shitty Guitar Hero port-house VV. Maybe this'll get better once I hit the Stamford Incident (I assume that's where the story really kicks in) but as it stands, I feel like I should have just played some Batman challenge rooms this week and saved my money for ODST.

I think this game is leaps and bounds better than the last MUA. They really did a great job of fixing all the things that were wrong with the previous one. The RPG elements are more streamlined and easier to use and understand and the over all action and story are both better.

Its ok but disappointing. Playing online with 4 people isn't as fun as I thought since it still requires everyone to be on the same screen. If I could go back to tuesday at midnight I wouldn't have bought it but rented it the next day for a few days.

I picked up this game and played through the first level. It's been fun so far but I haven't had enough time. And yes with ODST coming up, more of my time will shift to that game, but I'll keep coming back to MUA2 for the fun.

By the way, the Juggernaut room clearing rush is beast.

Every single one of these reviews compares it to the first game, as their main sticking point for giving it a low score. None of them can seem to get past that. I've never played the first one, but I think the second one is absolutely awesome.

Still........on.......the......fence....

So yeah obviously none of you have played it on the Wii, or else you'd see why all the reviews are comparing it to the first game. MUA2 is most definitely a step backwards in gameplay and graphics when compared to the first game. The Wii version was just an after thought that didn't have much time or care put into it at all.