On the PS2, Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2 isn't as fun as other fighting games, but it's enough to keep you busy.
Well, sheesh, with the new consoles having been out for awhile now, the PS2 is kind of left in the dust. Granted, I still play it, but the games just don't have enough soul no more. I still hang onto the skinny silver thing, though. I actually upload the backs of some of the cases-mostly newer ones, including this one since they don't get up there as much. Well, let's get to it!
Alright, even though this is a smaller, less recognized version, the story remains the same. After a disastrous event occurs, use of superpowers is heavily questioned and a law is passed granting the government permission to basically take control of the supers, using them at their own discretion. Those heroes work for the military now. As you might have guessed, not everybody's too hot about that idea, and Captain America resists and starts the Anti-Registration group, which fights against the law. Real quick, it always seemed weird to me that Captain America was with the Anti-Reg. I mean, he's Captain AMERICA for crying out loud, you would think he supported the government. Anyway, you play the first few levels as allies, but eventually you have to make...THE CHOICE!
That's right. Will you be the good-as-gold American patriot who sticks with the law no matter how whacked it is? Or will you dare to be different and go all-out against it? Personally, I chose Anti-Reg, because my favorite hero is Spidey, and I couldn't see him letting the Gov tell him what to do! Also, there are a couple of supers that are locked to each side, so if, let's say, Iron Man is your favorite and you want to see him FIRE HIZ LAZORS at the dumb law, get ready for some heartbreak.
Let's get into basic gameplay now. You go around different maps basically beating the snot out of whatever stands in your way, and there might be some boss at the end that you have to take down, and then you're moving on to the next. There are a variety of moves to use, so experimenting with all of them can give your game a little extra zest. One notable feature is FUSION! Fusion attacks are easily one of the most recognizable things about this game (heck, the beta title for the game was MUA2: Fusion). Fusion attacks are preformed when you take one hero and mash his abilities with another. So, what happens when you put Wolverine and Iron Man together? Iron Man fires his lazors at Wolvies' claws, and the beams reflect off to all the enemies! There are fewer fusion attacks than in the 360/PS3 versions, but they still look pretty snazzy. Throughout the game you collect coins and these can be used to purchase additional moves as well.
A pretty straightforward fighting game, as you see. Now, we'll talk graphics. This is a Wii port but...the graphics are very fuzzy. Even on the title screen. They are very blocky, a bit like PS1 graphics. Still, if you don't spend all your time bashing the graphics, you can still have fun with the game. Additionally, the cutscenes were imported right from the big guys (360/PS3), but they don't look AS good and lag a bit.
The audio is much the same case; very scratchy. There aren't a whole lot of songs either, and you can hear the abrupt pause when the music loops in-game. It doesn't even fade out and back in. The voice acting is decent, and the characters all have a number of phrases to say that you either tolerate or say "OH MY GOSH THAT'S SO ANNOYING" every time the say it.
There are also a number of other things to do, besides the obvious of going back and replaying the game on the opposite side. You can access a quiz machine to test your knowledge about Marvel. It also gives you moar coins! Then, you can do special missions to unlock additional characters. Plus, there are medals that you get awarded at the end of each level, so you could try and go for those.
I don't love or hate this game. It's pretty chill. I mean, it's not something I'd recomend, because it is a pretty bad game, but it's still fun to pull out and play every once in a while. And there we have Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2 for the Playstation 2.