The Infinity War of the PS2 generation, Marvel Ultimate Alliance is one of the few action RPGs that can hold my attention. Seeing as it was my first introduction to the genre and the greater Marvel Universe, it also holds a special place in my heart.
The opportunity to see so many superheroes and villains come together to fight is pure wish-fulfillment. To go along with that the story is super simple. All you need to know is that Doctor Doom is amassing a group of supervillains to take over the universe, and you must stop him with the help of various brawlers and brainiacs. It’s very much a child-friendly exposition adventure meant to showcase the many faces of Marvel, but it’s easily followable by anyone unfamiliar with the world. For existing fans, seeing the unique dialogues, locations, cinematics, side objectives, and classic outfits are rewards in and of themselves.
Good as the game is, it’s no trailblazer. You got your radial attacks, buffs, melees, and so forth. Where Ultimate Alliance really shines is seeing that synergy play out with a coordinated team or performing combined ultimates and combo abilities with nods to the comics like the fastball special. Not to say it doesn’t stand on its own merits, but it’s definitely a game enhanced by knowledge and interest in the franchise to begin with. The difficulty is par for the course with the exception of one or two bosses, but I do wish there weren't so many insta-death dangers. Thankfully, there's some cheat codes to make the game less grindy, which is nice if you don’t want to wait for abilities, characters, and outfits.
The opportunity to see so many superheroes and villains come together to fight is pure wish-fulfillment. To go along with that the story is super simple. All you need to know is that Doctor Doom is amassing a group of supervillains to take over the universe, and you must stop him with the help of various brawlers and brainiacs. It’s very much a child-friendly exposition adventure meant to showcase the many faces of Marvel, but it’s easily followable by anyone unfamiliar with the world. For existing fans, seeing the unique dialogues, locations, cinematics, side objectives, and classic outfits are rewards in and of themselves.
Good as the game is, it’s no trailblazer. You got your radial attacks, buffs, melees, and so forth. Where Ultimate Alliance really shines is seeing that synergy play out with a coordinated team or performing combined ultimates and combo abilities with nods to the comics like the fastball special. Not to say it doesn’t stand on its own merits, but it’s definitely a game enhanced by knowledge and interest in the franchise to begin with. The difficulty is par for the course with the exception of one or two bosses, but I do wish there weren't so many insta-death dangers. Thankfully, there's some cheat codes to make the game less grindy, which is nice if you don’t want to wait for abilities, characters, and outfits.