"Enter the Next Dimension"

Story: 8/10
A decent story X-Men-wise, featuring the greats such as Wolverine, Phoenix, Juggernaut, Magneto, and Toad. The ''Story'' mode brings a new, more mission based element to Next Dimension, which is rare in a fighting game. The arcade mode is no cakewalk either, as you have to defeat your final ''destined'' opponent 5 times to win arcade mode.

Gameplay: 10/10
The fighting in this game is awesome. The fighting styles of all of the X-Men characters are authentically reproduced, from Gambit's card throwing to Juggernaut's insane punches to Blob's fat floppin'. Levels provide insane abilities for combos and massive hurt, like hurling an opponent through a window or into a billboard. Most character moves are also pretty easy to pull off, using quarter circles and the buttons, not huge long combos like in Mortal Kombat or Bloody Roar. Specials are also easy to perform, using a combination of two buttons and a direction, all pushed at once. X-Men: Next Dimension is a fighting game that almost anyone can pick up and play right off the bat. Secret Characters and stages abound, and the characters all have moves that suit them (you won't see Juggernaut pullin' backflips).The only minor fault is the small difficulty in blocking. For some reason, it's just alittle tough.

Graphics: 10/10
Seeing all of the characters in new, leather costumes is alright, but the graphics really start to shine when you pit Wolverine against Magneto in their original costumes at Asteroid M. Most of the characters original costumes (either from the comic or the show) have been reproduced in Next Dimension. The levels are visually stunning, be you whacking your opponent in Apocalypse's Tomb or throwing them through a window at the X-Mansion. The moves of the characters also retain visual flashbacks to the cartoon and comics, like Psylocke's daggers and Nightcrawler's BAMF.

Sound: 9/10
Sound isn't usually too important in a fighting game, but character voices and taunts don't disappoint. Downside: sometimes ''Whak''-type noises aren't in synch with the motion on-screen.

Replay Value: 10/10
The game does take awhile to finish, but, being a fighting game, if you've got a friend, you have infinite replay value. Arcade mode provides some difficulty early on, and later you can play Story mode or Survival for an even greater challenge. Beating your high score can prove difficult, especially on higher levels of difficulty, and Story mode requires you to have some proficiency with just about every character in the game.

Rent or Buy: Buy, definitely. Being an older game, it's pretty cheap (14.99 usually) and it's a great fighting game.

Overall Score: 9.4/10

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 04/08/04