am Spider-Man. I have powers unlike those of normal people, and swinging through the air is a form of freedom that everyone should be able to experience. But with great power comes great responsibility, and doing what I must isn’t always fun.
This is how you too will feel when playing Ultimate Spider-Man. Like the game based on the webhead’s last film, Ultimate Spidey excels at making you feel like a superhero by capturing the essence of Spider-Man’s powers. Swinging through the city to get where you need to go is a joy in and of itself, but much like Spidey’s life, being a hero is both thrilling and frustrating. The presentation of the story is simply amazing – the cel-shaded visuals and "living comic" cutscenes make Ultimate Spider-Man a comic book reader’s dream. The story (written by superstar scribe Brian Michael Bendis) focuses on the relationship between Spider-Man and Venom (who is playable in about half the missions), and even features some fun cameos by other Marvel stars. Fans of the comic series will absolutely love the way it has come to life in the game.
Spidey’s acrobatic moves are also captured perfectly, and experimenting with his powers is the most enjoyable aspect of the adventure. The game offers a huge chunk of New York to explore – you can even cross the bridge from Manhattan and head into Queens. However, the duties of a hero are many, and are unfortunately the least enjoyable aspect of the game. I cruised through the Spider-Man 2 game in about seven hours because I didn’t enjoy the random street crime missions, and Treyarch has addressed this issue in a profoundly stupid way in Ultimate Spider-Man: It has made them mandatory. In order to unlock new story missions, you must complete a certain number of city goals first, including races, finding unlockables, and beating up thugs. Don’t force me to eat my veggies before I have my cake, people – it’s contrary to the whole idea of an open-world game like this one.
Even with mandatory side missions, I still finished Ultimate Spider-Man in about six hours, and absolutely hated some of the my time with it – the chase missions, of which there are many, just plain suck. But no one ever said that being a hero was always fun. Ultimate Spider-Man does make you feel like a hero, and living in a comic book world is a thrill, despite the frustrations. Offering both Spider-Man and Venom as playable characters is a bonus, especially considering how different they feel, and the comic book version of New York is amazing. I would recommend Ultimate Spider-Man to any comic book reader with one gentle reminder: even great comic characters like Spidey have dark moments. Anyone else remember the Scarlet Spider?