The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction

"Hulk Smash Puny Predecessors!"

When most people think of the Hulk, they think of three things: The horrible TV show, the horrible movie, and the horrible video games. While the Marvel comic on which the Hulk is based is one of the best ever, nobody has yet to do him justice. Can't the huge green super-strong monster get any love?

Enter The Hulk: Ultimate Destruction. The game came out very quietly. Now, people are calling it the greatest super hero game ever. So, does it match the gamma hype?

The Hulk plays much like Spider-Man 2, a game I personally hated. It takes place in a big city and you are free to go wherever you want and do basically anything. These types of games have three big drawbacks: They are hard to get around, cops get on your back, and they get boring fast.

Well, one of Hulk's little-known abilities is the Hulk Jump! His strong legs can propel him way up into the air, covering much distance. He can also run up sides of buildings and can easily go from one end of the map to the other. And if that's not enough, jump points hidden within the city can get you where you want to go instantly.

About those cops, well, you're the Hulk. No puny human will stop you. An alert meter is in place, calling more attention to yourself. But you're the Hulk. Cops, soldiers, tanks, they are nothing. Smash a few and they'll let you be.

And get bored of this game? Never. There are plenty of side missions to keep you occupied. And unlike similar games, the side missions are varied and unique. In Destroy All Humans, basically every mission is kill people, that's it. Well in Hulk, you have everything from playing golf with three-ton golf balls, floating with those car dealership gorillas, and using buses as skateboards. This game is leaps and bounds past others in this department.

And completing those side games gives you smash points, which you can use to buy new moves. Controlling the Hulk is a hard thing to do well, but Radical does a great job. The Hulk can use anything as a weapon and can do things such as make cars into brass knuckles and catch missiles in mid-air. There are also comics to collect, which do things like give the Hulk new shorts based on national flags. Really.

My only complaint about this game is the lackluster graphics. However, they were most likely sacrificed to keep up the speed of the game. Just imagine how good this will look on a next-gen system.

So, best super hero game ever? Nah, Spiderman for the old Playstation is probably still the champ. But second isn't bad.

Positive: Playing this gets your adrenaline pumping.
Negative: Too many hints brake up gameplay.
Final: 10/10

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 10/04/05