With
great developers, come great sequels. This was undoubtedly proven by
Activision with their latest addition to the Spider-Man videogame saga,
Spider-Man 2 (working title) [and perhaps officially changed to
Spider-Man 2: Enter Electro from recent postings on Activision's website
--ed.]. Spider-Man 2 is based on the upcoming film of the same name;
much like the original Spider-Man: The Movie game was based on the
Spider-Man flick that was released last year. So far, the game is only
approximately 30% complete, and already it has done nothing but wowed
us.Spider-Man 2 is the closest any game has been to successfully
bringing our friendly neighborhood Spider-Man to life. Although the game
consists of a linear storyline which follows closely to that of the
film, the game delivers the freedom to stray from it and take the
opportunity to explore the big city of Manhattan. The ground is no
longer covered in fog, and there is no invisible force field that
prevents Spidey from landing in the streets. He is now free to roam the
busy streets of Manhattan, amongst the cars, innocent civilians, and
future evil doers.
As
Spidey, the player gets the opportunity to go medieval on those future
evil doers. This is aided by the transplanting of Neversofts ingenious
free-roam objective system from Tony Hawk Pro Skater 4. This adds depth
to the gameplay; whereas previous superhero games always forced the
player from point A to point B, Spider-Man 2 allows the player to choose
side-objectives to help everyday denizens of New York. When triggered,
those with exclamation points above their heads will ask Spidey to help
them out. These tasks range from helping a child catch his runaway
balloon, to stopping a gang from robbing a security van. Completing
these tasks successfully will not only earn much kudos, but also add
hero points which can then be used in the "Spider-shop" to buy items
varying from new combat moves to trivial items such as new costumes.
There is also talk of "unlockables," as well as hidden items located all
over Manhattan, which adds more replay value to the already fantastic
game.
Since Spider-Man 2 contains such an enormous interactive world,
Activision has taken the pain-staking effort to recreate and remodel the
entire island of Manhattan. Considering the fact that the buildings and
locations are constructed to a realistic scale, this gives players the
experience of climbing up the Empire State Building or taking a stroll
in Central Park. Not all of these locations will be accessible from the
beginning, of course, but they will be available as the story
progresses. Nonetheless, the sheer scope of the areas that can be
traveled length-wise as well as height-wise is simply astounding.
Speaking of buildings, a noteworthy issue is the web-swinging. An
enormous graphical flaw was pointed out in the last game concerning how
Spider-Man would swing through the streets with his web clinging to
invisible surfaces. This error has been corrected with Spider-Man 2s
advanced physics system. It is now a requirement for the web to connect
to a physical surface in order to continue swinging. There is now a
reticule that appears onscreen that will guide the player to the next
available building Spider-Man can sling to. The path Spidey travels
while web-slinging will depend on the momentum and the physics of his
pendulum-like motion. There is also the ability to hang motionless
between two buildings so that the player can catch a look at his
location. Due to the sophisticated physics system, and the capability to
perform midair flips, web-swinging becomes not only a method of
traveling, but it becomes akin to a graceful art form.
The new web-swinging system wouldnt matter as much if the camera
that follows Spider-Man was not cooperative. One of the greatest enemies
in the first Spider-Man: The Movie game was not only the Green Goblin,
but the erratic camera system. In fact, I was one of those players who
could not play the game for more than five minutes lest I get a pounding
headache due to the constant camera angle change. I am glad to say that
the camera system in Spider-Man 2 has been vastly improved. The pace at
which the camera follows is a bit slower so that a sudden direction
change in the players movement doesnt send the camera into a chaotic
spin.
While the web-slinging physics has been reworked to near perfection,
there are some abilities that have been exaggerated to show off
Spider-Mans talent. The human spider can now dive off the tallest
building and safely web-swing himself at the last minute to prevent from
going "splat." He can leap a story high into the air to quickly get
himself out of danger. He can grab a criminal with his web-line in the
air, and execute a series of mid-air attacks that defy the laws of
gravity. He can perch himself on top of street lamps, or cling onto
roofs of moving vehicles. In many ways, its logical to say that
Spider-Man does whatever a spider can.
What kind of superhero would Spider-Man be if he didnt use his
extraordinary powers to fight crime? And what an arsenal of
extraordinary powers he has. The combat system this time has given
Spidey the assurance of whipping an enemys butt six ways to Sunday. I
mean, cmon, in addition to the previously mentioned mid-air smackdown,
he can even do a 15-feet dive into a pile-driver with his enemy in hand!
He can also grab multiple enemies with his webbing, and swing them
around over his head until he chooses to send them flying into walls.
Spidey can disarm his assailants easily, as well as counter and block
attacks. If all thats not enough, he can trigger his Spider-sense which
slows down the environment so that he can better react to the situation
at hand.
Due to the secrecy of the film, the storyline and the main villains
in Spider-Man 2 remain confidential. Activision is trying to incorporate
other well-known villains but it is Marvels final say. There was a
problem with repetitive missions in this demo but this was an early
version to demonstrate the gameplay. However it should be mentioned that
hopefully the banality of repetitive missions does not plague the final
version. Spider-Man 2 will remain a single player experience, and is
slated to be released next year simultaneously with the film in
theatres. With the game looking remarkable as it is at only 30%
complete, Spider-Man 2 will most definitely be one of the top-notch
games to look out for next year.