  Silver Samurai and Wolverine duke it out.
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The Sentinels. Arguably, they are the X-Men's greatest enemy. The lethal, giant mutant hunting robots can formulate defences against all manner of attacks launched at them. Many of the X-Men's most underhanded foes have manufactured and employed the mechanical menaces to destroy Professor Xavier's elite mutant team.
The Sentinels and their manufacturer, Master Mold, are the focus of 'X-Men: The Official Game' on the Xbox. And that's a good thing considering how the original Phoenix saga was butchered beyond recognition in the latest and the worst X-Men film. As you might have figured, yes, I am a bitter X-Men comic book fan who sat through the horror that was 'X-Men United'. Sue me, bub.
In a bizarre twist, the game actually has a better storyline than the film it is piggybacking on. At least it makes logical sense and the characters actions and reactions are plausible to those who have followed their on-going antics in the Marvel comic books.
Presented as a prequel to 'X-Men United', you play as either Wolverine, Nightcrawler or Ice Man and in doing so discover what led up to the events of the movie. Each X-Man has their own string of individual missions that tie-in into a larger plot. Special guest stars Storm and Colossus make brief appearances as computer controlled characters providing you with limited back up during a couple of the stages. Mostly, you are fighting alone and unable to switch out. To make up for that, you can heal yourself at any time as long as you are not under direct attack.
Scuffling with the terrorist group Hydra, Sentinels and other notable X-Men villains such a Multiple Man, Lady Deathstrike and Silver Samurai, 'X-Men' is an enhanced button-masher with some chase and timed missions to give your fingers some rest.
As you beat each level, you can evolve the characters to strengthen their health, their combat damage, their ability to block attacks and their specialized mutant powers such as Ice Man's Hailstorms or Wolverine's Fury (Berserker Rage) attack.
The missions themselves cater to the abilities of the character. Wolverine's are hack and slash slugfests. Nightcrawler's are teleportation centred with combat bits. Ice Man's are the most difficult especially for those who, like myself, just suck at flight simulation games. Since Ice Man slides along his ice ramps and doesn't walk or run, his missions are more akin to something you would find in an air combat game in the sense of how you manoeuvre him and how you target foes. Crash into a barrier or object and poor old Bobby Drake can fall right off his ramp. How freaking embarrassing.
Of the trio of heroes, Nightcrawler is the most fun to hack around with. The developers have perfectly synthized his unique style of combat with his teleportation skills. Although it takes a bit of practice to get the timing down, there is nothing cooler than being able to teleport from enemy to enemy and giving them a surprise punch or two until they are all KO'ed.
While the gameplay suffers from monotonous waves of foes and button mashing, the graphics and sound are first-class. The 'X-Men' actors themselves voice many of the characters and the graphic novel style cut scenes are true works of art in every sense of the word.
It wasn't easy to grade 'X-Men: The Official Game'. As I played through it, there were times when I was just plain bored out of my noggin'. The Wolverine missions are so darn banal. Then, there were times when I really had a ball as Nightcrawler or Ice Man and was disappointed when the fun came to an end. Ultimately, 'X-Men: The Official Game' is a mixed bag that could have been so much more if the developers had just offered gamers more variety.
WHAM! Rating: |
6 out of 10 |
ESRB Rating: |
T (Teen) |
Official Web Site: |
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