Marvel: Ultimate Alliance [PS3]

Using this system to its fullest is what Marvel: Ultimate Alliance does best. Even when dropping in with Thor, Captain America, Spider-Man, and Wolverine at the start, it quickly becomes obvious how much fun beating up bad guys can be. This is especially true if you're gaming with another player (or three) on a single console or online, and having the option to experience multiplayer cooperatively or competitively (you compete for points, not races to kill each other) is a great addition.

Another one of Marvel's strongest features is just how much there is to do. Besides the main story that's spread out across five acts, there are also a number of optional sidequests and story points that require you to make decisions that affect what happens in the ending. Players can run cool Danger Room-like simulations for added goodies or experience as well, or look up cinemas, helpful tips, character art, and plenty more in the "Review" database. Hidden characters, trivia games, and other little goodies have also been added, and users can even create their own team (complete with logos and names) that become stronger and more powerful the more they work together (which, actually, is a pretty important feature to master if you want to beat tougher bosses later on).

Before we wrap up, there is one more unfortunate thing to be addressed and that's the quality of the sound and visuals. Though they aren't bad by any means, they don't scream "Triple A" product either. Most of the voice acting is slapdash at best (with a few strong performances here and there), while the contextual music does its job but doesn't offer anything too memorable. Regardless which of the resolutions you run them in, the graphics aren't up to next-generation standards in all areas either -- with stiff, poorly-detailed (yet bizarrely shiny) character models and animations looking out of place next to the pretty and highly-detailed environments. There's bizarre pop-in too.

Oh, and just for argument's sake, we popped in the 360 version of Ultimate Alliance to compare and we have to say... the PS3 edition just isn't as polished. Comparatively, there's a lot more framerate stutter with our game compared to theirs (expect hiccups when turning the camera in highly-populated areas) and the colors are deeper and seem to be in better contrast with the 360. At least Sony owners can take solace in knowing that in 1080p, their game's textures certainly look better, and that regardless of resolution, Ultimate Alliance has better bloom lighting and more particles on PS3.

Closing Comments
As far as pick up and play RPGs go, Marvel: Ultimate Alliance is a keeper. It's not devoid of technical or design flaws, but its combat system, customization options, interesting storyline, and multiplayer features make it a good choice for comic fans or role-playing newbies. Plus, in a sea of launch titles primarily made up of sports games, racers, and shooters, it's a nice change of pace. In other words, it may not reinvent the wheel, but it still rolls.

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