snickothemule
July 22nd, 2008, 03:58
(360/PS3/PS2/Wii/PC) - The Incredible Hulk - played on 360
When Hulk: Ultimate destruction was released I thought to myself 'why not?' The game was cheap and looked a bit different from the average superhero game. After 5 minutes of game play I wept a tear. A tear of joy as this game catered for all my hopes of what a Hulk game would be about. Smashing anything in your path with an array of wonderful and sometimes hilarious attacks (flicking humans with an index finger anyone?).
My initial reactions were the same with the new game from Edge of Reality. And again after 5 minutes of playing the game I wept a tear. Of frustration. You would believe that with the template of Hulk: Ultimate Destruction to work from it would be pretty hard to cock up. Edge of Reality and Sega however managed to find a way.
Visually the game looks decent, with good attention paid to the big green bastard himself. If only everything else had the same attention. The outlines of the distant city are grey. Grey. And if I run quickly enough they remain grey when I get close. But this I don't really mind. On my Bravia 1080p screen (at 1080i resolution through component cables) it seemed to be a bit muggy looking, as if the textures were dirty.
Upon running full pelt through the first street of yellow cabs (1/3 of all car models in the game, the other being donut trucks and cement mixers) I was shocked t find the worst sound effects of any game I have played (including my beloved Game Boy). Everything which came out of my speakers sounded like there was a towel gagging the sound. And the voice acting? The complete definition of phoning it in would suffice. The main actor (from the movie mind) has the same inflections in his voice when he is angry, sad, bemused or delighted at the sight of a naked woman. But this I could forgive.
At this point I was hoping I hadn't bought a lemon. Perhaps the gameplay could save this mediocre event. It can, but only to a degree.
Ultimate destructions strengths lied in the little things that the Hulk could to. Run up a building with a pedestrian in hand only to set them down at the top, yell at them and watch them scamper and fall off the edge (only to stand back up after a 500 foot drop). I could not replicate this event however.
This time there is no put pedestrian down action, taunt, attacks which are fun. Instead I have to select with the d-pad weather I want to clap my hands together, or pound the ground, or heal my self. In the previous game I could do this without having to change my actions through a d-pad. To me this seems absolutely ridiculous. The super moves, perhaps this could be the games saving grace, previously the Hulk would suck enemies and nearby objects with thunder clap, then the released attack would be in slow motion so we can see the devastation as it happens. Now we see the hulk flex his muscles and an instant wimpering smack which does little area damage, while he stands there with his hands together (as if his hands are glued together) all the enemies get up immediately and begin going to town on the big doofus. This was the last straw!
Overall, The Incredible Hulk is a game that should have been so much more. Heck, I would have been happy if they simply ramped up the resolution and character models and released the same game. But instead we are left with a game that was rushed and not thought through. Bad Sega Bad.
Visuals: 70
Audio: 25
Gameplay: 65
Overall: 68
Could have been much better
When Hulk: Ultimate destruction was released I thought to myself 'why not?' The game was cheap and looked a bit different from the average superhero game. After 5 minutes of game play I wept a tear. A tear of joy as this game catered for all my hopes of what a Hulk game would be about. Smashing anything in your path with an array of wonderful and sometimes hilarious attacks (flicking humans with an index finger anyone?).
My initial reactions were the same with the new game from Edge of Reality. And again after 5 minutes of playing the game I wept a tear. Of frustration. You would believe that with the template of Hulk: Ultimate Destruction to work from it would be pretty hard to cock up. Edge of Reality and Sega however managed to find a way.
Visually the game looks decent, with good attention paid to the big green bastard himself. If only everything else had the same attention. The outlines of the distant city are grey. Grey. And if I run quickly enough they remain grey when I get close. But this I don't really mind. On my Bravia 1080p screen (at 1080i resolution through component cables) it seemed to be a bit muggy looking, as if the textures were dirty.
Upon running full pelt through the first street of yellow cabs (1/3 of all car models in the game, the other being donut trucks and cement mixers) I was shocked t find the worst sound effects of any game I have played (including my beloved Game Boy). Everything which came out of my speakers sounded like there was a towel gagging the sound. And the voice acting? The complete definition of phoning it in would suffice. The main actor (from the movie mind) has the same inflections in his voice when he is angry, sad, bemused or delighted at the sight of a naked woman. But this I could forgive.
At this point I was hoping I hadn't bought a lemon. Perhaps the gameplay could save this mediocre event. It can, but only to a degree.
Ultimate destructions strengths lied in the little things that the Hulk could to. Run up a building with a pedestrian in hand only to set them down at the top, yell at them and watch them scamper and fall off the edge (only to stand back up after a 500 foot drop). I could not replicate this event however.
This time there is no put pedestrian down action, taunt, attacks which are fun. Instead I have to select with the d-pad weather I want to clap my hands together, or pound the ground, or heal my self. In the previous game I could do this without having to change my actions through a d-pad. To me this seems absolutely ridiculous. The super moves, perhaps this could be the games saving grace, previously the Hulk would suck enemies and nearby objects with thunder clap, then the released attack would be in slow motion so we can see the devastation as it happens. Now we see the hulk flex his muscles and an instant wimpering smack which does little area damage, while he stands there with his hands together (as if his hands are glued together) all the enemies get up immediately and begin going to town on the big doofus. This was the last straw!
Overall, The Incredible Hulk is a game that should have been so much more. Heck, I would have been happy if they simply ramped up the resolution and character models and released the same game. But instead we are left with a game that was rushed and not thought through. Bad Sega Bad.
Visuals: 70
Audio: 25
Gameplay: 65
Overall: 68
Could have been much better