Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2

MUA2 is a game that is so similar to MUA1 that you might do a double take now and then and have to subsequently remind yourself you're playing a different game. There are no new features, aside from the incredibly bland and non-fun "Fusion" attacks which, while sometimes useful, don't serve as a good enough distraction from the fact that you're playing nearly the same game over again. The worst part of this game unfortunately, is the graphics. I literally, and when I say that I mean it, thought that my 360 had somehow decided to display the game in standard definition instead of the 1080p it was supposed to. The characters and environments are blocky, with straight jaggy edges all over the place. There's not one smooth texture in the whole game. I mean, they did that for a reason, so they could run the game with tons of stuff going on at once without slow-down and well, they've at least accomplished that. I can't help but think they might have went a little too far, because I think the 360 could have handled a little bit higher graphical fidelity. The gameplay is identical to the original and most of the characters are also. You have a few new ones like Daredevil, Nightcrawler and some others, but the biggest downgrade is the costumes of the heroes from the first game. They look awful and ridiculous. Iceman in particular looks so horrendously lame that it's hard to fathom that somebody checked the illustrator's work and decided it was good enough to put in the final version of the game. I mean, it's stupid looking even for a comic book character, so that's saying something. I guess MUA2 is fun, it has shiny colors and everything and you can play as some of your favorite superheros but it is just bland and as far as I'm concerned lacking any personality. I hate to do this but I'm giving it a 6.5. Save your money folks, unless MUA1 was your favorite game of all time and you want to play it again, otherwise, don't do it. I would have given the first MUA a 8.25 so don't just think I'm a comic book game hater.

-The Only Honest Film and TV (and videogame) Critic