"An Incredible Experience"

Bruce Banner's legacy lives on once again in The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction. With so many superhero games out there, can the angry green giant create enough destruction to make his newest adventure a hit? Let's see.

Graphics 8/10

The graphics aren't particularly amazing at first. You have your big cities and wastelands, but overall they aren't particularly interesting. But that's before you start smashing stuff. Once Hulk starts moving a military base can wind up a parking lot thanks to the huge amount of destructible environments scattered about. The amount of animations for Hulk is large, and frame rate remains constant. The only negatives are when too much destruction happens. The screen becomes clouded with debris making gameplay difficult. That combined with a few clumsy camera angles in the city, make gameplay slow at times. Fortunately, these minor problems don't destroy the game's diverse and fresh graphics, just hinders them a bit.

Audio 6/10

Nothing special here. Bruce and friends' voices are pretty well done, and the Hulk's trademark roars are good. Music is very basic, presenting your superhero symphony and heroic harmonies. Smashes are good, but overall the audio doesn't do much to push the game forward.

Gameplay 8/10

The title says enough; Ultimate Destruction, and you're gonna be doing a whole lot of that. The Hulk has gotten the free-roam treatment and it works. The Hulk's primary transportation method, jumping, is fluid and makes traveling around the wide levels fun. Along with climbing, dashing, and running up buildings, Hulk is tricked out with a nice array of techniques. Hulk's techniques can be chained together to eliminate the many hoards of enemies that will appear. Outside of the huge amount of techniques, Hulk can use the environment to his advantage. Using the many objects around him, he can bludgeon, throw, and smash things to attack. Pretty much anything can be used as a weapon, including the enemies. New moves can be bought using Smash Points, which you receive after causing enough destruction. When you start linking all these techniques together, Hulk proves to be a powerful character. Missions were diverse, but at points, became tedious. Sometimes you would have to perform identical feats, just in different areas. Also, the destruction can be brought to an annoying halt if you cause too much of it. Some insanely powerful enemies will hunt you down after one too many times of throwing a civilian. But, overall, the game creates one of the best sandbox experiences you'll find.

Replay Value 8/10

Unlockables can be unlocked by finding comic books in the levels and missions. With so many missions and challenges, Hulk's newest romp promises plenty of replay value, mostly thanks to the guilty pleasure of causing mass destruction inside the Hulk universe. Even if you just want to smash stuff, this game will satisfy that craving.

Final Verdict 8/10

Hulk's newest adventure sets a new high for superhero games. It creates one of the most (dare I say it) incredible experiences, thanks to the fluid controls, huge environments, and unique gameplay. It's incredibly satisfying to just rip apart a car and use the halves as boxing gloves. Hulk fans will flip at how good this game is, and even if you're not a Hulk fan, just going around smashing stuff will please any gamer. The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction is one of this year's most pleasant surprises so far. Unless you detest smashing things, this game will make any gamer's day.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 08/30/05