Marvel Ultimate
Alliance 2
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Game
Reviewed: Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2
Publisher:
Activision
Developer:
Vicarious Visions
Reviewer:
Castor
Pollux
Platform:
PS3 (also on PS2, PSP, Xbox
360 & Nintendo Wii)
Category: Action RPG
ESRB Rating: T
Game
Summary:
Marvel
Ultimate Alliance 2 (M:UA2)
uses two Marvel Comic story book arcs as a basis
for the game. The
first part of the game
is based loosely on the “Secret Wars” storyline.
The second part of the game comes from the
“Civil War” story line. It begins with a military/superhuman operation
on the
fictional nation of Latveria. Nick
Fury,
leader of SHIELD or Supreme Headquarters, International Espionage,
Law-Enforcement Division (you gotta love those comic book acronyms),
finds
evidence that the new Latverian Prime Minister, Lucia von Bardass, is
supplying
weapons and upgrades to some very unsavory supervillians. Nick Fury, against the
wishes of the US
Government, sends in Ms. Marvel, Spider-Man, Wolverine, Captain America
and Iron Man to gather intel. In
the
process, they are confronted by Bardass and the Latverian military. The heroes win the fight,
but the story does
not end there.
One
year later, a new cyborg enhanced
Bardass retaliates and invades America
and targets New
York
for a full-on attack. While
Fury and the
other heroes are able to stop the destruction of New York, it is not
without
its consequences. Most
of New
York’s districts are
destroyed and the US Government begins entertaining the idea of the
Superhuman
Registration Act or SRA. Since
superpowered humans are basically walking weapons of mass destruction,
the
government wants to force all of them, heroes and villains alike, to
register
with the US Government. Registration
means that all superpowered humans will have to reveal where they live,
what
powers they posses and what aliases/secret identities they use. Registration will also
mean that they are in
the employment of the US Government to use as they see fit. Iron Man views this as a
good thing for the
superhero community and eventually becomes a proponent of the SRA. Captain America,
surprisingly, is against
the SRA, viewing it as a violation of civil liberties and compares the
SRA to
the rounding up of and jailing of Japanese-Americans during World War
II.
As
the SRA is being debated by both
sides of Congress and various superheroes testify both pro and con of
the SRA, tragedy
strikes and becomes the catalyst that forces the hand of the Government.
A
superhero group known as The New Warriors has their own reality TV show
and
during one episode, they are trying to apprehend a particularly vicious
baddie
known as Nitro. He
has the power to generate
large explosions to levels that of a nuclear bomb and is able to
survive the
blast. Basically,
he is a reusable
suicide bomber. During
the telecast, the
New Warriors corner him in the small town of Stamford, CT.
Nitro causes a huge explosion near an elementary school
and kills more
than 600 people, including 62 children.
In
light of that event, the US
Government fast-tracks the SRA and it becomes law, with very little
opposition.
Iron
Man leads the group of pro-SRA
superhumans and is tasked with rounding up those that have not
registered. If they
do not register, they are
jailed. Captain America
leads
the anti-SRA underground resistance.
The
superhero community is divided. Friends
become foes. Brothers
become
enemies. Superhero
teams are
splintered.
As
you play the game, you will be faced
with a decision: Whose side will you choose?
What
Parents Need to Know
Violence
There
is some comic-book type violence
in this game: punches, kicks, etc.
Some
of the heavier hitters can lift up cars and hurl them as weapons. Some superhumans are
equipped with guns,
swords, knives and staffs and will use them.
There is no blood. Defeated
enemies disappear. If
your character loses
their entire HP (Hit Points) they do not die, they just get knocked out. They can be revived with a
healing token. Explosions
are loud and plentiful.
Language
There
is some “minor” curse words used
throughout the dialog: damn, hell and the like.
Sexual
Content
The
female characters in the game wear
bathing suit-type styles of outfits, revealing a lot of skin.
Spiritual
Content
The
first M:UA game dabbled a bit in
the spiritual, with levels taking place
in Norse mythology and even in Hell.
M:UA2 stays away from
that this time and
stays firmly rooted in Planet Earth.
You
do take a detour to the Negative Zone, the place where superhumans who
fail to
register are jailed. The
Negative Zone
is not a spiritual plane, but a fictional dimension similar to Earth,
an
Anti-Earth, if you will.
Reviewer’s
Thoughts
I
am a huge fan of comic books,
particularly Marvel Comics and the “Civil War” story line. I loved that the series
took a more
“realistic” view of superhumans. It
was
not about stopping an alien invasion or some mad scientist’s bid to
take over
the world. It felt
like if superhumans
were real, this would be the political fall out.
The
game plays almost exactly like the
first Ultimate Alliance game. It
has
been a few years since the first game came out, but as soon as I popped
in the
disk, it was like riding a bike. On
the
positive side, it does touch on a few political issues like national
security
vs. civil liberties that can be used to help start discussions on the
current
political environment of the world today.
On the negative side, the Stamford, CT
incident is very reminiscent
of 9/11 and may re-open those wounds.
Overall, I think the game is fun to
play. It is fun to try and come up with the best
team of superheroes to get past a certain level. Some
groupings are better than others. There is definite
replayability in that you
can play through the game as part of the Anti-SRA group, then go back
and play
as the Pro-SRA group and see how the story changes slightly.
There is an online multiplayer option that I
did not care for too much. This game is
great for adults. If you plan to
purchase this game for a child, please consider if the mild profanity
and the mild
sexual content is appropriate for your child’s age.
