Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2 First Look Preview

Superhero franchises are big business these days. The success of the X-Men and Spider-man films, and more recently Iron Man and the Dark Knight, has helped to reignite the public’s passion for costumed crusaders. As a result of this boom, we’ve also seen something of a minor surge in comic-inspired video games.

Considering the sheer enormity of its license, the original Marvel Ultimate Alliance did a pretty admirable job in catering to its target fanbase, offering the chance to control a quartet of superheroes from a roster of 22 famous faces. This sequel has boosted the number of playable character to 24, and apparently this time all of them will be selectable from the very start. Spider-man, the Fantastic Four, Wolverine, Iron Man and Nick Fury are among the selectable choices, and this time Vicarious Visions has also thrown in Iron Fist – a popular character who was missing from the first game. To be honest, I’d never heard of him – but apparently he’s a martial artist with super-abilities powered by chi.

The game itself is sticking to the same format as before, mixing RPG-like upgrade elements into its core beat-em-up gameplay. You can switch between your four heroes at any point you wish, or you can have up to three mates join you to help cause some righteous carnage – the original game was at its strongest when played this way. Last time around there wasn’t that much emphasis on co-operation, to the extent that each hero could pretty much look after themselves; in MUA 2 things should work a little differently, thanks to the inclusion of something called the Fusion system.

Think about your favourite Marvel hero pulling off one of their trademark super moves. Pretty cool, right? Now think back to any moment you’ve seen or read where two characters use their powers in tandem with each other, and dwell on how awesome those scenes can be. Those combinations were presumably the inspiration for the Fusion system, which sees two fighters combining their strengths to produce a single charged-up attack. For example, Thor might create a whirlwind to sweep away a group of enemies, then The Human Torch will turn it into a flaming pillar of fire. Or perhaps Songbird might create a sonic crystal that will refract a pulse blast from Iron Man, scattering powerful bolts in several directions at once.

Another example, and easily my favourite so far, sees Spider-man teaming up with Wolverine. Here Spidey uses a web-sling to spin the X-man around until he builds up speed, eventually hurling him at the enemy like a giant pissed-off cannonball. There are over 250 Fusion combination moves available, and since they all have slightly different qualities and uses, this range adds an extra layer of tactics when it comes to picking your team of four. Vicarious Visions also says that it has tried to decorate these attacks with as much character specific detail as possible: if Wolverine uses his claws to deflect Iron Man’s lasers, the heat will cause his entire adamantium skeleton to glow.

Serious Marvel fans will also be excited by the news that the plot of MUA 2 is heavily based around the Civil War plot arc – one of the most important crossover events to affect the comics in recent years. In essence, the Civil War story is focused around the introduction of the Superhuman Registration Act – a law that forces all masked heroes to register their true identities with the US Government. As you can imagine, this mandate caused a massive division of opinion among the heroes and villains of the Marvel Universe, eventually leading to all-out conflict between those for and against the ruling. MUA 2 will begin with Nick Fury’s invasion of Latveria, home of the nefarious Doctor Doom, before moving on to the trouble caused by the introduction of the Act. Players will able to decide which side of the fence their characters fall on, playing through different parts of the story as a result. And since the Civil War arc culminated in the death of a key character, it’s likely that the plot of this game should have some pretty exciting moments.

Thanks to the new Alchemy engine, MUA 2 will also look a lot better than its older brother. Footage from the early levels in Latveria show well over thirty characters scrapping on-screen at once, and the Havoc-fuelled destruction effects look pretty nice too – especially during Fusion powers or when someone throws a vehicle at an enemy. In general the action looks slick, and there are some nice touches to the audio too: “Medium or well done?” enquires The Torch, shortly before roasting another hapless henchman.

Since we really rather enjoyed the first Ultimate Alliance, we’re more than receptive to the idea of a decent sequel. It’s early days yet, but Vicarious Visions seems to be focusing on honing and refining the strong points of the first game. The use of the Civil War plot seems like an interesting choice, while the Fusion system has the potential to provide the one thing that was sorely lacking from the last outing – a sense of teamwork. If the developer plays its cards right, this should be a fine follow-up and a worthy heir to the Marvel license.

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 will be released on Nintendo DS, PS3, PSP, Xbox 360 and Wii in the autumn.