MARVEL ULTIMATE ALLIANCE REVIEW

Although there's no number on the end of its title, Marvel Ultimate Alliance, or MUA (as I'm going to be abbreviating it), is essentially the third game in the X-Men Legends series from Raven Software. In this game, they tried to improve on XML2, they took a few chances, and for the most part, they came out ahead.

In Marvel Ultimate Alliance, the team roster grows to include heroes from throughout the Marvel universe, rather than just the X-Men. The number of locations is also expanded, and players find themselves up against a team of villains who are being lead by Dr. Doom to acquire enough power to do literally anything they want.

Along the way are a large number of optional side quests that affect the game's ending. Many are simple fetch quests where players need to keep their eyes out for something as they progress through a level, but others will actually require some extra effort (yep, sorry).

Whether players choose to complete the optional quests or not, they'll find that the story is consistently good from start to finish, and provides a good level of detail for both those who aren't familiar with the Marvel universe and those with a PhD in Marvel-ology.

Marvel Ultimate Alliance is an action RPG by definition, but the balance between action and RPG is skewed more towards action. The game has players controlling a team of four characters, one of whom is under the player's direct control, and the other three of whom can be set to follow one of a few different AI models (aggressive, defensive, etc.). The player can change which of the four characters they are controlling at any time, and can switch the characters that are active on the team at any save point. Any character that loses all of his/her HP can be brought back to life at no cost after waiting a few minutes (an improvement over XML's system of charging players in-game cash based on the KO'd character's level).

The roster of characters is even larger than it was X-Men Legends II, although it is also less balanced. There are a number of characters who are weaker than the others to the point that they will only appeal to their die-hard fans. This is true across all platforms, although each version has its own exclusive characters.

With the sheer volume of characters to choose from, most players won't miss the weak ones - they just make the roster feel a bit artificially padded. All characters have multiple costumes, each of which affects their stats and skills in different ways, and some of which change them (technically) into a different character, like Iron Man's War Machine costume.

As in XML2, when sets of characters with logical connections are used as a team, bonuses are granted (like the Fantastic Four, which grants a bonus of 20 HP per KO). New to MUA, though, is the ability to create a custom team that levels up as the player completes missions and grants bonuses set by the player that increase as the team levels up. This is a very nice addition to the team mechanic, as it allows players more freedom to play as the characters they like regardless of whether that group will grant them a team bonus.

Character stats are automatically updated when they level up, without the possibility of player intervention. The game seems to do a good job of updating the stats in ways that play to each character's strengths, but some players will miss that control over their characters' development.

The skills are still in place, though, and are better than before. Unlike in XML2, characters who should be able to fly can do so from the beginning (rather than requiring an investment of skill points), and flying does not cost any energy. However, when a character is flying, they do not regain energy, so if they want to keep using their skills, they'll have to land at some point.

Also nice is skill point reallocation; players have the freedom to take back skill points whenever they want in order to put them into other skills. If that's not enough, the game also allows players to spend cash to buy skill levels. The only bad thing about this is that the same button is used to put points into a skill as is used to buy the skill levels, and no player confirmation is required to buy levels, so most players will end up accidentally buying a level or two as they play. It's not a huge problem, but it may require a reload from time to time (and mild sporadic profanity).

As I mentioned, the different versions of MUA each have their own exclusive features. The Xbox 360 version clearly comes out ahead in terms of exclusive characters, some of whom are very desirable. Although these characters were originally available only through paying a few dollars for a download, they were later added to the core game, so if you're buying a later copy, you've got them.

Graphically, Ultimate Alliance puts the pieces together very nicely. The characters and enemies are all well-animated. The environments are also extremely detailed. While the loading screens are static, they feature very nice drawings of individual characters from the game, and they can be viewed at will from a computer at the characters' home base. By default, the camera follows the characters around fairly well, and if things get in the way, they go nicely transparent.


Combat requires a bit more complexity than some other action RPGs, which can often leave players just mashing a single button over and over. MUA has two different attack buttons, and hitting them in certain orders creates combos with effects like tripping or stunning enemies. Some enemies actually require players to execute one of these combos before they can be damaged, and in these cases, the game helpfully shows the button presses necessary to complete the combo. Enemies can also be grabbed and thrown, punched, or slammed into the ground, which can really hurt them in addition to being just plain fun.

I particularly enjoy the fact that different characters slam enemies in different ways: for example, Colossus picks them up and uses them like a human club, Captain America does a sort of judo throw and then drives his shield into their neck, and Mr. Fantastic does a crazy, stretchy handspring with them. Between all of these options, combat stays entertaining and non-repetitive throughout the game.

SCORING

GRAPHICS: 7.5  For the Gamecube, the graphics would be passable. And, an argument can be made that they are nevertheless. But even on systems with amazing graphical features like the 360, MUA doesn't boast anything out of the ordinary or over the top. Then again, though, Ultimate Alliance never really needs exceptional graphics to be an exceptional game.

AUDIO: 7.5  The music isn't overly entertaining, but the voice acting saves the day. The voices of each of the characters actually seems to fit, and that feature by itself is enough to keep the score above 7.

DIFFICULTY: 8.0  Even on the hardest difficulty, the game just isn't that difficult to complete. At times like this, it is hard not to think that perhaps this was just an appeal to Marvel-ologists after all.

MULTIPLAYER/ONLINE PLAY: 9.5  Perhaps one of the most entertaining things about Ultimate Alliance is the fact that your friends can pick up a controller and join the adventure. Very similar to that of the X-Men Legends series that preceeded it, playing through the storyline with friends still doesn't get old.

MISCELLANEOUS: 8.0  "Accidentally" being forced to hump your teammate's shoe is more than a bad case of a foot fetish in some cases, while diffusing through walls and various other solid objects remains more of a relief than a worry. All a matter of opinion, but isn't that what a review is in the first place??



OVERALL  8.1

Marvel Ultimate Alliance is the result of two games' worth of experience on Raven Software's part, and it shows. Many of the game's pieces are well-executed. The PS3 version of the game isn't the best of the bunch, and the decreased emphasis on RPG elements will sadden some fans, but Marvel Ultimate Alliance is such a fun game that even they should think hard before they decide to pass on it.