Amazing Spider-Man (PS3) Review

 

The Amazing Spider-Man (PS3)

Review

  Back in the golden days of the Playstation 2, a tie-in game saw the light of day and proved to be a fun game. Not just that, but it stood as a bright beacon of hope that not all adaptations need to be stinkers. This game, was Spider-Man 2. Ever since then, only one game has managed to be nearly as good as that one, and that was Ultimate Spider-Man, a game released not shortly after SM2.

  We've had a few glimmers of hope since then, but a Spidey game as good as that one was turning in to something of a myth. Until now. Published by Activision, Amazing Spider-Man saw the light of day because of developer: Beenox. The latter being responsible for the latest set of games, of which none were set in an open world.

  Unlike regular tie-in games, this one takes place after the events of the ASM movie. Firstly, I'd like to address the matter of spoilers. Basically, there are two big spoilers from the movie featured in this game. One being the most painfully "The Lizard loses, guys", whilst the other one might only be known by those more versed with the Spider-Man universe. One that won't be spoiled here. Though, I will say that it is the conclusion of a pretty big story plot in the comics. 

  With the game being set after the movie, Beenox was given the incredible opportunity to really make the game their own. They create their own villains, their own story and their own little elseworld, whilst at the same time subtly tying it in to the story of the movie. This is a sequel through and through, and that's why the story works. 

  The game begins in first person, where we find Peter Parker visiting Oscorp with Gwen Stacy. Meeting Alystair Smythe, we find our young heroes given a grand tour of the facility. A facility filled with cross-species creatures. Basically, whereas Doctor Connors is a human crossed with reptile, these creatures are basically animals crossed with humans. 

  Being the tail end of extended research, these creatures are bound for the furnace. This because of the valiant work of a Nanotechnology giant named Alistaire Smythe. However, as they reach the end of their tour, it quickly becomes clear that Peter's mere presense pushes the buttons of these creatures quite fiercely, meaning that they all find their escape. 

  Oscorp enters a quarantine lockdown, and Peter is the only one who managed to get out in time. On the outside, his only hope rests with the man who is responsible for the entire mess: Doctor Kurt Connors. 

  Various Cross-species are on the loose. Peter frees Connors from his jail, and unfortunately also the rest of the insane asylum. Crime is rampant in the streets. Alistaire Smythe sent out his cross-species neutralizing robots, that think Spidey is also a threat. And if that wasn't enough ... well, the cross-species are carriers of a virus, that transform people in to their own through contact. 

   Unlike Spider-Man 2, this game's story entirely fits in. There's not one villain in this game that isn't a part of the story, or has been introduced through it. It's all one big, flowing narrative. And I loved it all the way through. It's everything you might want from a comic-book game. It's not deep, but it's involving and entertaining. 

  With it being in line with the movie universe, most of our villains are mindless creatures. All of the cross-species for example, are just aggressive animals. Luckily, this is counter-weighed by very well written villains, that are given more personality than any one ever had in a Spider-Man game. 

  And, the same goes for the heroes. In this game, our heroes feel a lot more fleshed out and real than even in the Sam Raimi movies. 

  The voice acting provided for this game is spot-on. Whilst not any of the actors from the movie reprise their role, this game provides more than competent enough actors including an extremely awesome Nolan North and a groovy Bruce Campbell. It's roles like Alistaire Smythe and The Penguin that make Nolan North one of the best voice actors currently in the business.

  Graphically, the developers provided some nice eye candy for us to behold. Whilst nothing revolutionary, they do get the job more than done. I've only gotten a problem with the main Spider-Man costume, that gets wear and tear the more Peter gets the crap kicked out of him. The wear and tear itself just looks silly, and eventually even quite ugly.

  For the rest, I only have nitpicks. Only one locations stood out as having been put some imagination in to. The rest also looks good, and it's quite detailed. But it's nothing special. The bank, on the other hand, looks like it got some attention put to it. 

  And as far as open world problems go, I only encountered one or two problems throughout the entire game. One time I got stuck in a structure and another time Spidey got stuck on something, requiring some tinkering to get him away. 

  Lastly we have the gameplay. The meat of the game. And definitely the best piece of Spider-Man I have ever played. 

  Swinging around town is loads of fun, with the camera all zoomed in and Spidey capable of performing some amazing acrobatic feats. Web zipping is now slotted to two buttons. One web zip is basically an escape button. Whilst the other one is known as "Web Rush". You'll constantly see golden, see-through versions of Spidey of where he can web rush to, whilst you're also capable of manually selecting where to go. The fun part comes in stringing all these locations together, resulting in a fast paced run and zip throughout Manhattan. 

  Combat is lifted straight from Batman: Arkham Asylum. You have your attack button, jump over people button, dodge button and daze button. With the daze button also functioning as a webbing people up button. Outside of combat, you also have the ability to stealthily take enemies out. A system for another hero, yet all of it suits Spider-Man's powers absolutely perfectly. 

  There are also a few mini-games present, acting like the random encounters from previous Open World Spider-Man games. Basic through and through, with it requiring nothing more than few button pushes to finish. Still, they're quite cinematic and actually do get a tad challenging nearing the end. But, that happens way too late in the game. 

  The most interesting mini-game comes from the camera, that acts like The Riddler's quests via a reporter. Voiced by the always lovely Claudia Black, by the way. 

  As far as abilities go, Spider-Man has two sets of tiers. One is power based and the other is tech based. Both are unlocked in different way, and you really don't need either one save for one or two things. Really, I'd have waited on picking something if that damned, blinking warning didn't keep flashing that there's an update available. 

  There's also quite a few collectibles to be found. Every indoor level is filled with pieces of tech, magazines and audio files. Whilst outside, you have 500 comics to collect, scattered all over Manhattan. And, the more comics you obtain, the more comics you unlock. That's right, there are full comics in the game, accessible through the Extra's menu on the main page. 

  Spidey has a few alternate costumes at his disposal as well, needing these to be unlocked by using the camera. Problem. These can only be unlocked, at the time of writing, by removing yourself from the internet and setting your clock to 2013. Yeah, they're released periodically. One a month, or something. 

  In the end, Amazing Spider-Man is the best Spidey game to date, with Spider-Man 2 coming in second with a nose-length behind. It's a fun game through and through, with a lot to do and a lot of care put to it. It might not be the best game, but it's definitely a great game.