“Marvel Ultimate Alliance” was released in 2006 (same year X-Men: The Last Stand came out) on Xbox/Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii and PS2/PS3. It received praise from critics, gamers and fans alike. In addition to positive reception, the game sold many copies worldwide. Marvel Ultimate Alliance spawned two sequels in 2009 and 2019. The first game was remastered on Xbox One and PS4.
Insomniac Games (the Ratchet And Clank series, Spider-Man on PS4/PS5) announced they are currently working on two upcoming games. One is a sequel to Spider-Man and a solo video game focusing on my favorite Marvel character Wolverine. A lot of upcoming films and shows set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe or MCU for short are gonna be released soon. To prep up for the future, I thought about sharing my thoughts on Marvel Ultimate Alliance. See if it still holds up as one of my favorite video games.
Today’s review contains no SPOILERS. I’m giving some of you a chance to play the first game.
Strong & Weak Elements
Strong: Steve Blum, Phil LaMaar, Dee Bradley Baker, Khary Payton, James Arnold Taylor & Nolan North (my favorite voice actor) all did an excellent job for their respective voiceover performances.
Graphics are polished than the previous “X-Men Legends” games.
Gameplay is influenced by the first two X-Men Legends games. Presented as a third-person dungeon crawler, you navigate to your objective, fight a couple baddies and overcome obstacles in your way.
Combat features normal combos, special attacks and if you simultaneously use a special attack with a fellow teammate on a baddie, a powerful combo deals huge damage.
Every single character has an ultimate attack. As you collect all pieces, you use it if you’re being overwhelmed by enemies.
As you progress, your favorite characters gain experience points. You’re rewarded with points either increase their powers or attributes. You’re allowed to manually or automatically select your favorite characters’ abilities. There’s always an option to reset your skills with a hefty fee.
Alternate Costumes grant you perks. Save enough money, because upgrading each one is expensive.
Soundtrack ain’t horrible at all.
A trivia game about the Marvel Universe in multiple choice. If you’re knowledgeable, a correct answer will give you experience points.
Every decision you make in both main and secondary missions results in permanent consequences. Be wary of your actions.
Placing specific team members will grant you a status buff. For example, if you pick all members of Fantastic Four, a boost aids you on your mission. Try experimenting on random characters if you wanna keep moving forward.
There’s so many playable characters. Spider-Man, Wolverine, Captain America, Thor, Deadpool, Iron Man, Blade, Daredevil, Luke Cage, Elektra, Ghost Rider, Doctor Strange, Iceman, Storm, Silver Surfer, Thing, Human Torch, Invisible Woman, Mr. Fantastic, Spider-Woman, Ms. Marvel & Nick Fury.
In the remaster version, Colossus, Cyclops, Hawkeye, Nightcrawler, Hulk, Dr. Doom, Magneto, Venom, Sabretooth & Moon Knight are all playable.
Dr. Doom, Galactus, Loki, Baron Mordo, Winter Soldier, Fing Fang Foom, Mandarin, Bullseye, Crimson Dynamo, Lizard, Blackheart, Ultron, Super Skrull, Rhino, Scorpion, Mysterio, Mephisto, MODOK, Destroyer serve as bosses. Think you can beat em’ all? My favorite boss battle is Galactus.
Marvel’s biggest heroes join forces to prevent Dr. Doom from taking over the world using Odin’s power.
Collectibles such as stat boosts, simulation discs, concept art and XP are scattered across every location.
Loading Screens are gorgeous to look at any character. I never felt impatient.
If you select a character like Spider-Man, he’s given special dialogue interacting with Rhino or Mysterio before Spidey engages in combat.
You can enabled cheat codes. If you prefer to beat the game without using any code, it’s your call.
After you beat the game, you can revisit previous locations.
Multiple Endings are shown depending on your actions. Again, be wary.
Weak: I couldn’t find anything wrong with this game. I’m giving the developers an Extra Point for making a flawless game as possible.
The Final Verdict: A, FOR APEX!
Marvel Ultimate Alliance still hold up yet it remains as one of my favorite video games. I used to play this game all the time alongside the X-Men Legends games. I hope someday in the future, I want a third X-Men Legends game to come into fruition. Relive my childhood. If you haven’t played Marvel Ultimate Alliance, I strongly recommend it. What’s your favorite Marvel related game? Please leave a comment.
Nickthemoviecritic.com 