Just when you thought that Peter Parker was away until his next outing in Spider-Man 3, Activision decides to bring the Spider-Man 2 game to yet another console. This time around, Spidey swings his way onto Nintendo's new DS handheld.
The game follows the events of the blockbuster film, from saving innocent by-standers, to battling it out with Doc Ock, also known as Dr. Octopus.
Controlling Spidey is done in an innovative way using the bottom touch screen. By simply tapping one of eight squares followed by the right shoulder button, Spidey can perform a variety of moves ranging from a leg sweep to a web blast. These moves are unlocked as you progress through the game. The face buttons are used for combat and web-slinging.
Swinging from building to building is great fun. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the combat. The combat system isn't implemented as well as it should have. Most of the time when you are face to face with a bad guy, your punches won't land. Seeing as your punches aren't landing, you will move in closer, at which point the baddies will proceed to cheap shot you repeatedly.
The game's difficulty isn't as balanced either. You will constantly get frustrated after you die for the 50th time thanks to some mysteriously placed hazards such as fire or broken electrical lines.
One more thing that will have you pulling your hair out is the lack of any sort of map or guide. This becomes apparent when you can't find the last of the 10 hostages and your time limit is about to expire.
Speaking of hostages, why are there so many of them? Why the hell do I have to constantly save hostages in close to all the levels? It's like playing the same level, except this time you're in a museum instead of a burning building. Come on Activision, let's mix things up a bit? please!
The repetitive hostage levels are thankfully broken up by some refreshingly different levels which take advantage of the bottom touch screen. One such example being the 'generator diffusing' level in which you guide switches through hazards by dragging them with the stylus.
Visually, the game doesn't shine, but it doesn't disappoint either. It's a shame it isn't in full 3D. Instead you are treated to a pseudo-3D? think of it as 2.5D. Environments are nicely detailed and Spidey's animations are fluid. Unfortunately, visual flare such as scorching flames interfere with the gameplay. What a coincidence that the exact spot that I need to land on is on fire! All isn't lost though, FMV scenes during level transitions are greatly done and help tell the story.
Sound is pretty weak in Spider-Man 2. Music becomes old fast and voice-overs, mostly the damn hostages, become annoying almost instantly. In fact, you'll wish you could just leave the hostages and go onto the next level. Maybe that'll teach them to be some damn annoying. "Help Spider-Man? Help Spider-Man!" ?. "Yeah yeah, I heard you the first time, sheesh!"
Overall, Spider-Man 2 for the Nintendo DS is a decent game that will frustrate you more than please you. It's a real shame this isn't as good as the console version. Being a launch title for a new handheld though, I applaud the effort. Things can only get better from here.
Report Card:
Gameplay: 6
Graphics: 6
Audio: 5
Replay Value: 6 Overall: 6 out of 10
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