Marvel Nemesis: Rise of the Imperfects

"A Game Based on a Comic Based on a Game - This Can't Be Good"

The Marvel franchise has been around in video games since the near beginning, as soon as they could pixalate people in tights that is. When I got my PS2 last year, I knew I had to have Marvel Nemesis, and besides it was only $19.99 after only being out for a short while and even though I thought "that can't be a good sign", I still purchased it. The graphics are above average and the game play has the shining moments, but there are some major problems with this game. The most glaring problem with this game before I even start is that they produced a comic to promote the game, not produced a game to promote the comics. That's not good, because the Marvel Nemesis comics are completely worthless, which means so are the new characters.

Graphics: 7/10
Game play 6/10
Presentation 4/10
Story 5/10
Replay 5/10

Character and Level Design
The characters are all very well done and have the signature moves you have come to expect from the likes of Iron Man, The Thing, Spider-man, and Wolverine. One of the major problems with the graphics in my mind is the "too dark" environments. They have succeeded in creating an original environment for the players to fight in, but they haven't added any diversity to each of the levels. Each level might as well be named "Dark Alley 1", "Dark Subway 2", "Dark Bridge 3", and "Dark Sewer 4". The characters also kind of suffer from this due to the villains of the game - The Nemesis. The Nemesis characters were created for the soul purpose of exploiting a franchise without having to have all the TM and R involved in making a character roster. There are heroes and villains alike that are easily recognizable such as Magneto, Venom, Storm, and Human Torch. Then there are the Nemesis characters, which frankly, I can't remember the names of, and I never played, because just like in the comics, who is rooting for Rocket pack Man or Light Man or Random Energy Beam Girl? We want established characters duking it out in situations we've only dreamed about. Which with this game you get half the time. One has to compare this game to Marvel vs. Capcom of course, and the comparison leaves a bad taste in your mouth. The most interesting and enjoyable aspect to the one player game is that each character has a story line and original levels they have to beat, utilizing their special powers and talents. Beating all of the levels was fun and you learned how to play as each character without having to spend time in a lame training mode. But if you weren't good with a character tough luck because this is the major way to unlock hidden heroes. Oh and as a final point, each character does have an alternate costume...an evil "nemesis” costume that is Green and Black. Can you say "Lame"? No, you have to see it, not say it.

Fighting Engine
One of the biggest problems with this game as a fighting game are the characters are anything but equally matched. Just learn Magneto's moves and you will see what I mean. Certain characters will destroy other characters. Iron Man can seemingly blast characters to the end of the earth and Magneto can throw Semi-Trucks at you until you explode. Yes the Oil Barrels have returned once again to create havoc. The fighting engine is kind of crazy as well. Moves don't always work and doing what you want can take pure luck rather than skill. The levels are destructible which makes perfect sense for a Super Hero fighting game, but the levels are all so similar. The only diversion from this is a few of the levels actually have "Fall Points" so you can throw Storm, Human Torch and Magneto to their doom, even though they can completely fly in the game. Odd, isn't it? There is a special meter, which is reduced while using special powers such as Wolverine's claws and Spiderman's web fluid. These can be recharged by hiding behind a crate and sitting still. The two player battles are rarely based on skill and are more based on who is fighting who. To its advantage though the game is lightning fast. If you know how to play you can completely annihilate another player in mere seconds, which is satisfying, but the barrel explosions and environment destruction is often more random than planned.

The music and sound
Ouch, that hurts my ears. The voice acting is pretty bad. I mean usually characters like Wolverine "Bub" and Magneto "Villainous Presence" are pretty easy to find voice acting talent for. X-men Legends and Marvel vs. Capcom are shining examples, but I can't believe how little they have recorded for this game. The sound effects are pretty average and the music is totally void of the fighting game energy that Capcom and Namco have mastered. Completely average, except for the voice acting which is a mixed bag. Wolverine sound horrible and the Human Torch is a joke. Some characters sound so little like their comic book/cartoon counterparts that it's embarrassing to play as them. Others sound okay, but you won't find yourself smiling at the lines like you did in other Marvel games.

Overall
The game will definitely be fun as a rental but once you unlock all of the characters (which the last half completely suck due to the Nemesis villains), you are left with a game no one will want to play compared to Soul Calibur or Tekken. At your peak you will feel like the Super Hero you are playing shooting webs and kicking mid-air, flying and shooting energy beams, or slashing enemies, but the inherent flaws will overcome you in time and you will find yourself wanting the Character Roster of Marvel vs. Capcom 2 or the depth of X-men Legends 2. It feels like a rushed job.
Yes there are unlockable comic covers and a few levels, but not much that's worth it.

True Story: I purchased this game and played it for about 2 weeks. It sat on my shelf for 4 more weeks. I traded it for something better at that point. I don't regret it even upon writing this review.

Recommendation: Rental. I am a die hard comic-book fan and I decided I'd rather try to find Marvel vs. Capcom 2 for PS2 (I already own the Dreamcast Version) before I would continue to play this one... Definitely worth a try for fans, but not very valuable among the loyal comic book lover.

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 04/06/07