Spider-Man 3

"A new experience on the PS2..."

History

Growing up, Spider-man has been one of my favorite games to play. Since the Genesis trying to beat Electro to Venom, or swinging in the beautiful world of Spider-man 2, one thing has stayed the same, Spider-man is a great concept for a video game.

As for the game, it has received allot of harsh criticism, but it cannot be helped due to the high expectations held for it, which no one can blame. Spider-man 3 was by itself a great movie, and as a game, it's above average.

Story: 9/10

You are Peter Parker, also known as Spider-man. You are out trying to make up with Harry Osborne who is your friend. The problem is that his father killed himself trying to kill you, and he thinks you're the murderer! After you defeat him in a battle throughout the city, Spidey obtains a weird alien suit that is slowly beginning to control Spider-man. On Spidey's journey throughout the game, he has to fight off Lizard, Kraven, and Morbius just to name a few.

Graphics: 9/10

While the PS2 is almost done with, the publishers had no trouble maximizing the potential for graphics yet again. It's a brand look for Spidey since his last 2 movie games, and it's either like or hate. If you like the movie costume, this doesn't stray too far away from the concept.
The overall people look detailed enough, but still no face movements on the models used in game, which is a bit of disappointment. You may at times have some glitches which were a bit more frequent in this game with Spider-man getting stuck in the floor or a victim, but it doesn't hamper the game play noticeably.

Music: 6/10

While the music had no flaws with it, I just don't think that it belonged in this game. It sounded more epic than what is usually meant for Spider-man, and it didn't have that feeling. While you were swinging in the city, you would think of going to war instead of battling some street punks or a boss.

Game-play: 8/10

The game-play is either love or hate here. The battle system took a bit more of a plunge from Spider-man 2, but there is some compensation in buying moves, that you were already blessed with in Spider-man 2. The web slinging is not as "free and open" as Spider-man 2, and it actually feels slower than Ultimate Spider-man, just for the fact when you have the compass on the screen telling you how far away you are, it takes literally 3-4 minutes to swing from one side of the town to the other, making it really boring, and easy to run into buildings because some buildings are lower, and its really easy to hit the ground.

I will say I like the black suit, and the effects it carries. Spider-man gains the ability to don the black suit later on in the game, and it increases his health, strength, and jumping skills. While this is cool, it has an adverse effect on Spidey, making him pass out if he wears the suit too long. You then have to perform a button combo to remove it.

Another thing I liked about the game is that it copied God of Wars on screen button mashing system. Whether it be to take down the Lizard in a rodeo brawl, or to tie up Morbius, it was pretty fun.

This game actually tried to be original as well, including Morbius for the first time in any Spider-man game I know, and the Lizard, who hasn't been seen since the Genesis days.

Replay value: 3/10

I would say only rent the game, because it only takes 5-6 hours for the average gamer to complete. After completing the game, you can collect hidden meteor rocks, and tokens which when all collected allows you to gain control of the black suit again! But for what? To do missions that get boring because you already did them 3 times each during the actual game!

Recap

Spider-man 3 is a great game overall if your not too tied up on Spider-man 2, but still it should only be treated as a weekend rental until it goes down to $19.99, a price tag its worthy of.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 05/15/07