Spider-Man 2 Review

Spiderman, Spiderman, does whatever a man can - with a few jumps here and there and maybe a bit of web-slinging. This was the case, at least, in older gaming iterations of Spidey's adventures. It would seem that thankfully this is no more, with the movie tie-in Spiderman 2 revealing new levels of freedom and opening up the real super powers that the arachnid super-bloke has at his disposal.

You can stick to any surface as Spidey.

Following on from 2002's disappointing Spiderman The Movie, Treyarch's latest offering takes the basic template offered up by the prequel and... Well... Ditches it. You're still Spidey, you still fight the bad guys, but that's about it. With a new engine in use, the whole of New York City is opened up for your crime-fighting exploits and the freedom to roam as the red-and-blue hammer of justice is offered up to the player. Comparisons to the GTA series have been voiced by a number of quarters - a living, breathing city to explore and fight crime in as you see fit certainly does match the similarity that is hearkened on about. With randomly occurring crimes, hidden items to collect and challenges to complete, the resemblance certainly isn't unfounded.

The entire city is open to exploration

Opening with an informative tutorial, voiced by your guide and unseen companion for the game, the returning Bruce Campbell, the player is soon thrust into the thick of things and told to put their newly-learned abilities to good use, roaming the city and looking out for citizens in distress. This is when the player will notice that they are not confined to the building they are on top of. They are not confined to the street they reside on. Not the block they are on, nor the district they are in. The entire city is open to explore from the get-go and the freedom to run, jump and - most satisfying of all - glide through the air on strings of web. Thankfully the moves are easily implemented through the control scheme, which although using most of the available buttons on the pad still manages to be simple and intuitive for the player, though it does take a bit of getting used to before the more complex manoeuvres can be pulled off. Starting with a nice mix of powers, the player acquires “hero points” by fighting criminals and completing missions, which can then be spent in shops dotted around the city to purchase new abilities. These range from superficial enhancements, such as new twirls and flips for Spidey to pull off during jumps, to all new powers and combos that he can attack enemies with - the ability to web up numerous bad guys at once, pile drivers and air combos being amongst what can be purchased. The list goes into dozens of new abilities, for ever-increasing hero point prices.