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This thread has been linked to the game 'Ultimate Spider-man: Total Mayhem'.
Does Whatever A Spider Can?
Handheld Spider-man games have so far been a bit, well, flat. The beauty of swinging through the city is lost in just two dimensions. So it comes as a relief that Gameloft’s take on the webbed wonder embraces 3D with a passion.
While it isn’t as free roaming as the console releases, Ultimate Spider-man: Total Mayhem does at least feel like a proper attempt to bring a bit of web-swinging to the iPhone and that alone should be reason to take a look.
Webbed Wonder
But Spider-man has a lot more up his tight red sleeves than just this. Firstly, the graphics are rich and detailed while retaining the feel of the comics. Draw distance is pretty good and characters are well animated. Spidey himself feels just as he should as he swings, fights and generally sorts out anyone who gets in the way. There are some good fire effects too and everything is twice as clear if you have an iPhone 4 as it makes use of the retina display.
Swinging time
Controls focus on the usual virtual analogue pad on the left and three action buttons; web, fight and jump on the right. Bigger enemies can be avoided, rather than letting them landing a punch, by pressing the avoid icon which appears in the bottom of the screen at certain times. This doesn’t always work and sometimes I found that it only appears for a few milliseconds, nowhere near enough time to press it. Even when you do manage to press avoid it doesn’t necessarily mean you miss the punch, but on boss levels its pretty much required to use it if you want to beat them.
In addition to these standard controls, you get a bar at the top of the screen that fills up every time you hit an enemy and goes down every time you use an avoiding tactic. Once full it lets you release a whirlwind punch which knocks most smaller criminals out and damages bosses. Using it on the small guys is a quick way to finish them off, but it’s pretty useless against anyone bigger, especially as the avoiding tactic is so much better.
My Spidey Sense is tingling
Voice acting is surprisingly good for an iPhone game, they’ve got Spidey’s wit down to a tee and the villains all sound just as you’d imagine them too. Sound effects and music are all flamboyant enough to add to the feeling that you’re in some big action movie (in fact the music sounds like a good copy of the Spider-man movies, certainly a compliment in my book).
You could argue that Ultimate Spider-man boils down to basic hack and slash gameplay, but then you could also argue that God Of War does too. This game may be just run-attack-swing but it does it with style. Including several forms of web attack and some neat combos only adds to the feel that you’re playing something bigger than just another 3D platform hack-em-up. True, the levels could really have been a bit more inventive and at times the level design makes it feel like they ran out of ideas, but then something comes along like jumping across moving cogs and it all feels good again.
World Wide Web
There’s reason to come back again too. Complete the game and you’re rewarded with playing as Black Suit Spider-man. Finish a level and you unlock it as a stand-alone challenge as well as unlocking the end of level boss to replay in the boss fight mode.
If you’re in to collecting then the game has some great comic art to get hold of. It often means taking risks in the game or going off the beaten path to find them too, so don’t expect to get them all on the first play.
Ultimate?
Ultimate Spider-man: Total Mayhem is an example of a great iPhone game from a great licence. It could have been a lazy use of the franchise but instead we get something which feels true to the source and well worth downloading.
8/10
Handheld Spider-man games have so far been a bit, well, flat. The beauty of swinging through the city is lost in just two dimensions. So it comes as a relief that Gameloft’s take on the webbed wonder embraces 3D with a passion.
While it isn’t as free roaming as the console releases, Ultimate Spider-man: Total Mayhem does at least feel like a proper attempt to bring a bit of web-swinging to the iPhone and that alone should be reason to take a look.
Webbed Wonder
But Spider-man has a lot more up his tight red sleeves than just this. Firstly, the graphics are rich and detailed while retaining the feel of the comics. Draw distance is pretty good and characters are well animated. Spidey himself feels just as he should as he swings, fights and generally sorts out anyone who gets in the way. There are some good fire effects too and everything is twice as clear if you have an iPhone 4 as it makes use of the retina display.
Swinging time
Controls focus on the usual virtual analogue pad on the left and three action buttons; web, fight and jump on the right. Bigger enemies can be avoided, rather than letting them landing a punch, by pressing the avoid icon which appears in the bottom of the screen at certain times. This doesn’t always work and sometimes I found that it only appears for a few milliseconds, nowhere near enough time to press it. Even when you do manage to press avoid it doesn’t necessarily mean you miss the punch, but on boss levels its pretty much required to use it if you want to beat them.
In addition to these standard controls, you get a bar at the top of the screen that fills up every time you hit an enemy and goes down every time you use an avoiding tactic. Once full it lets you release a whirlwind punch which knocks most smaller criminals out and damages bosses. Using it on the small guys is a quick way to finish them off, but it’s pretty useless against anyone bigger, especially as the avoiding tactic is so much better.
My Spidey Sense is tingling
Voice acting is surprisingly good for an iPhone game, they’ve got Spidey’s wit down to a tee and the villains all sound just as you’d imagine them too. Sound effects and music are all flamboyant enough to add to the feeling that you’re in some big action movie (in fact the music sounds like a good copy of the Spider-man movies, certainly a compliment in my book).
You could argue that Ultimate Spider-man boils down to basic hack and slash gameplay, but then you could also argue that God Of War does too. This game may be just run-attack-swing but it does it with style. Including several forms of web attack and some neat combos only adds to the feel that you’re playing something bigger than just another 3D platform hack-em-up. True, the levels could really have been a bit more inventive and at times the level design makes it feel like they ran out of ideas, but then something comes along like jumping across moving cogs and it all feels good again.
World Wide Web
There’s reason to come back again too. Complete the game and you’re rewarded with playing as Black Suit Spider-man. Finish a level and you unlock it as a stand-alone challenge as well as unlocking the end of level boss to replay in the boss fight mode.
If you’re in to collecting then the game has some great comic art to get hold of. It often means taking risks in the game or going off the beaten path to find them too, so don’t expect to get them all on the first play.
Ultimate?
Ultimate Spider-man: Total Mayhem is an example of a great iPhone game from a great licence. It could have been a lazy use of the franchise but instead we get something which feels true to the source and well worth downloading.
8/10
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Does Whatever A Spider Can?
Handheld Spider-man games have so far been a bit, well, flat. The beauty of swinging through the city is lost in just two dimensions. So it comes as a relief that Gameloft’s take on the webbed wonder embraces 3D with a passion.
While it isn’t as free roaming as the console releases, Ultimate Spider-man: Total Mayhem does at least feel like a proper attempt to bring a bit of web-swinging to the iPhone and that alone should be reason to take a look.
Webbed Wonder
But Spider-man has a lot more up his tight red sleeves than just this. Firstly, the graphics are rich and detailed while retaining the feel of the comics. Draw distance is pretty good and characters are well animated. Spidey himself feels just as he should as he swings, fights and generally sorts out anyone who gets in the way. There are some good fire effects too and everything is twice as clear if you have an iPhone 4 as it makes use of the retina display.
Swinging time
Controls focus on the usual virtual analogue pad on the left and three action buttons; web, fight and jump on the right. Bigger enemies can be avoided, rather than letting them landing a punch, by pressing the avoid icon which appears in the bottom of the screen at certain times. This doesn’t always work and sometimes I found that it only appears for a few milliseconds, nowhere near enough time to press it. Even when you do manage to press avoid it doesn’t necessarily mean you miss the punch, but on boss levels its pretty much required to use it if you want to beat them.
In addition to these standard controls, you get a bar at the top of the screen that fills up every time you hit an enemy and goes down every time you use an avoiding tactic. Once full it lets you release a whirlwind punch which knocks most smaller criminals out and damages bosses. Using it on the small guys is a quick way to finish them off, but it’s pretty useless against anyone bigger, especially as the avoiding tactic is so much better.
My Spidey Sense is tingling
Voice acting is surprisingly good for an iPhone game, they’ve got Spidey’s wit down to a tee and the villains all sound just as you’d imagine them too. Sound effects and music are all flamboyant enough to add to the feeling that you’re in some big action movie (in fact the music sounds like a good copy of the Spider-man movies, certainly a compliment in my book).
You could argue that Ultimate Spider-man boils down to basic hack and slash gameplay, but then you could also argue that God Of War does too. This game may be just run-attack-swing but it does it with style. Including several forms of web attack and some neat combos only adds to the feel that you’re playing something bigger than just another 3D platform hack-em-up. True, the levels could really have been a bit more inventive and at times the level design makes it feel like they ran out of ideas, but then something comes along like jumping across moving cogs and it all feels good again.
World Wide Web
There’s reason to come back again too. Complete the game and you’re rewarded with playing as Black Suit Spider-man. Finish a level and you unlock it as a stand-alone challenge as well as unlocking the end of level boss to replay in the boss fight mode.
If you’re in to collecting then the game has some great comic art to get hold of. It often means taking risks in the game or going off the beaten path to find them too, so don’t expect to get them all on the first play.
Ultimate?
Ultimate Spider-man: Total Mayhem is an example of a great iPhone game from a great licence. It could have been a lazy use of the franchise but instead we get something which feels true to the source and well worth downloading.
8/10
Handheld Spider-man games have so far been a bit, well, flat. The beauty of swinging through the city is lost in just two dimensions. So it comes as a relief that Gameloft’s take on the webbed wonder embraces 3D with a passion.
While it isn’t as free roaming as the console releases, Ultimate Spider-man: Total Mayhem does at least feel like a proper attempt to bring a bit of web-swinging to the iPhone and that alone should be reason to take a look.
Webbed Wonder
But Spider-man has a lot more up his tight red sleeves than just this. Firstly, the graphics are rich and detailed while retaining the feel of the comics. Draw distance is pretty good and characters are well animated. Spidey himself feels just as he should as he swings, fights and generally sorts out anyone who gets in the way. There are some good fire effects too and everything is twice as clear if you have an iPhone 4 as it makes use of the retina display.
Swinging time
Controls focus on the usual virtual analogue pad on the left and three action buttons; web, fight and jump on the right. Bigger enemies can be avoided, rather than letting them landing a punch, by pressing the avoid icon which appears in the bottom of the screen at certain times. This doesn’t always work and sometimes I found that it only appears for a few milliseconds, nowhere near enough time to press it. Even when you do manage to press avoid it doesn’t necessarily mean you miss the punch, but on boss levels its pretty much required to use it if you want to beat them.
In addition to these standard controls, you get a bar at the top of the screen that fills up every time you hit an enemy and goes down every time you use an avoiding tactic. Once full it lets you release a whirlwind punch which knocks most smaller criminals out and damages bosses. Using it on the small guys is a quick way to finish them off, but it’s pretty useless against anyone bigger, especially as the avoiding tactic is so much better.
My Spidey Sense is tingling
Voice acting is surprisingly good for an iPhone game, they’ve got Spidey’s wit down to a tee and the villains all sound just as you’d imagine them too. Sound effects and music are all flamboyant enough to add to the feeling that you’re in some big action movie (in fact the music sounds like a good copy of the Spider-man movies, certainly a compliment in my book).
You could argue that Ultimate Spider-man boils down to basic hack and slash gameplay, but then you could also argue that God Of War does too. This game may be just run-attack-swing but it does it with style. Including several forms of web attack and some neat combos only adds to the feel that you’re playing something bigger than just another 3D platform hack-em-up. True, the levels could really have been a bit more inventive and at times the level design makes it feel like they ran out of ideas, but then something comes along like jumping across moving cogs and it all feels good again.
World Wide Web
There’s reason to come back again too. Complete the game and you’re rewarded with playing as Black Suit Spider-man. Finish a level and you unlock it as a stand-alone challenge as well as unlocking the end of level boss to replay in the boss fight mode.
If you’re in to collecting then the game has some great comic art to get hold of. It often means taking risks in the game or going off the beaten path to find them too, so don’t expect to get them all on the first play.
Ultimate?
Ultimate Spider-man: Total Mayhem is an example of a great iPhone game from a great licence. It could have been a lazy use of the franchise but instead we get something which feels true to the source and well worth downloading.
8/10