As if unleashing your superhuman abilities on the nearest foe wasn't awesome enough, Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 has upped the explosive ante with the introduction of Fusion powers. Combining the abilities of two characters into one impressive superpower, Fusions are unique, coordinated attacks that result in some of the game's most eye-catching moments. With dozens of Fusion combos at our disposal, we turned to the game's creators at Vicarious Visions to walk us through their favorites:
FUSION: Fiery Tornado
CHARACTERS: Human Torch and Storm
"The thing we love about this “fiery tornado” fusion is that it started as an amazing looking concept piece before we had an overall “fusion design.” We used this art work internally to sell the idea of fusion and get our designer’s imaginations on what fusion could be. Then, miraculously, it came to life, and lived up to expectations. That’s rare. Since players can steer the tornado, this is one of the most tactically versatile fusions the player can discover, in addition to being visually stunning."
FUSION: Beam Splitter
CHARACTERS: Iron Man and Wolverine
"This was actually the first fusion type we implemented into the game. When we finally added in all the FX and the physics for the enemies getting blown away and going into ragdoll, we knew this fusion would represent the concept of two heroes using their powers in innovative ways. Although this pairing wasn’t the first one we put into the game, Iron Man and Wolverine’s fusion was one of those that just came naturally. Iron Man would fire his beams and Wolverine would use his claws to separate them to cause damage to a wider area."
FUSION: Hamster Ball
CHARACTERS: Juggernaut and Songbird
"This fusion was one of those that sounded almost too silly when we first thought of it. However, once we actually put it in the game and tried it out, we instantly loved the way it looked and played. Juggernaut definitely feels even more unstoppable when encased in a spiked sphere of sonic energy."
FUSION: Fastball Special
CHARACTERS: Spider-Man and Wolverine
"There’s no way we could leave out one of Marvel’s most famous team-up moves. Typically the “Fastball Special” involves a big bruiser guy throwing a smaller agile hero, but we thought it would be cool to utilize other character’s unique powers and come up with our own variations of the move. In this case, we have Spider-Man webbing up Wolverine, spinning him around, and then shooting him out at a single chosen target. This is one of our “targeted” fusions, great for inflicting focused damage on a single target."
FUSION: Double Ground Pound
CHARACTERS: Thor and Thing
"Each of these characters can cause massive destruction on their own, so we went for the direct approach: just cut ‘em loose and show what they can do. Thing and Thor both bring their titanic strength to bear in this Fusion, pounding the ground as hard as they can to damage anyone unlucky enough to be standing in range. It’s one of the most visceral and powerful fusions we have: the earth shakes, stuff breaks, and Thor caps it off with a lightning strike."
Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 Image Gallery
Posted: 15 Sep 2009
