Spider-Man 2: Electro Boogaloo! Review

Spider-Man 2: Electro Boogaloo!

Evil doers beware! The Amazing Spider-man has made his triumphant return to

the Playstation. For fans of the original Activision title, this release should

be a real treat. Bigger areas to roam, more baddies to fight, and more camera

glitches to scream at! This time, Spidey has to face foes such as the Sandman,

Beetle, Hammerhead, and headliner Electro. Expect to be up to your underoos

in danger with Spider-man 2: Enter Electro.

The game’s story begins where the last game left off, and after a quick recap,

you’re off to start the new adventure. There’s much more city to cover while

trolling for bad guys, and web swinging skills will be brutally tested by this

installment’s multi-task missions. As the story progresses, Spidey must accomplish

several goals per level, then it’s on to the end level boss. As with the original,

the bosses are some of the most daunting challenges in the game. Each boss requires

mastery of a different strategy and Spider skill in order to defeat him. Tossing

crates might work on the Shocker, but the same approach on the runaway plane

probably won’t get you through the level.

There seems to be about twice as many enemies onscreen as before, making for

some frantic web-swinging while under fire. The attacks are the same (punch,

kick, and webs), with the exception of different types of webbing that can be

found scattered about the levels. For instance, mixing freon into your web shooters

allows you to spray ice. I never found a good reason to use this, but it was

funny cracking the skulls of suspected felons with ice the size of bowling balls.

Also located around the levels are different spidey outfits with different

attributes, like the Spidey-armor, which makes the wall-crawler nearly bulletproof

for a limited time. While some of them seem a bit out of place, they do add

some nice gameplay variety.

As with other Activision/Marvel Comic titles, heroes from the Marvel universe

make cameo appearencess. Spidey and the Black Cat must have had a falling out,

because the X-Men’s Beast replaces her in this game as Spider-man’s head cheerleader.

After giving basic gameplay tips, Beast even offers you the use of the X-Men’s

“Danger Room” to practice your skills in a controlled environment. So as you

practice target shooting, web-slinging, and general spiderness, Professor X

and Rogue are there to offer assistance, advice and snacks. Practicing in the

Danger Room offers some of the more enjoyable moments in the game.

Littered

throughout the stages are reproductions of classic (and not so classic) comic

book covers detailing some of the character’s history. Finding these and other

goodies make for interesting side missions, though the main objectives are so

engrossing, it’s easy to forget to look for the extras. But once the game is

completed it does have some replay value, as throughout the game you discover

special costumes and other goodies which will let you create a custom Spider-man

with different weapons and abilities.

The voice acting is passable, if a bit melodramatic and over the top. This

is a super-hero game after all, and it’s supposed to be larger than life. The

assorted thugs only have one or two catchphrases, but they make up for lack

of variation by repeating these phrases with annoying enthusiasm. Spider-man’s

dialog isn’t nearly as witty as he seems to think, but to stay true to the comic

it should be.

Spider-Man 2 looks exactly like the first one, which isn’t a horrible

thing so much as a bummer. One expects to see improvements in a sequel. The

same sluggish camera from the first game follows our hero in this adventure,

once again making crime-fighting damn near impossible. In the middle of a brawl

against multiple opponents, the camera tends to focus away from the action,

making the game a lot tougher than it should be.

Between stages, there are cut-scenes that move the story along. You can skip

them, but they load every time you restart the level or continue, so you end

up waiting anyway.

Spider-Man 2: Enter Electro may not be a true sequel, playing more like

an expansion of the first, but it is nonetheless a good game. Even with the

goofy camera, unnecessary cut scenes and mediocre voices, this is probably the

best superhero game for the PSX. It should pacify the fanboy in us all until

Spidey makes his big screen debut next year.