free flow combat beat em up style game but not as polished as others in its genre.
Recomended Ages : child to young adult
Recomended skill level : novice to casual players
The good :
- chain attacks and special abilities capture the essence of green lanterns immense powers.
- button sensitive mini boss fights are satisfying
The bad :
- sometimes degenerates into button mashing frustration
- flight sequences are nauseating and un-enjoyable
- big boss fights become frustrating and unco-ordinated
Recommended purchase price : No more than $30
Why? :
Green lantern is not a terrible game , it is not a great game , its right in the middle so i'd have to say its a good / decent game. overall i would give it a 6.5 to 7 out of 10.
The most enjoyable parts of the game are beating down enemies with your ring powers. when you first start the game you have basic attacks, and as you progress you can upgrade these basic attacks. special abilities are called constructs , some are made available through necessity while others are unlocked by ranking up through combat and collection of xp points.
Some battles can become frustrating at times because you can be significantly outnumbered by enemies with different abilities (sometimes you are given no info on how to defeat certain enemies) and while you are trying to take down enemies at close range , others with ranged attacks could be attacking you messing up your combos and ability to regenerate your ring powers.
Ring power is what gives you the ability to use your constructs. In many battles i found my ring power to run out fast and refilling it was difficult, which lessened the enjoyment of using the constructs. The same is to be said with the boss fights , i found that using all my power against the boss, or the multitudes of minions which get thrown into the boss fights , would leave me with no power to perform some of the attacks needed to defeat the bosses.
Another weapon in the green lanterns arsenal is the ring surge ability. This allows you to use your constructs unlimitedly for a short period of time. While this ability helps dispatch crowds of minions it helps very little against big bosses.
There are some flight sequences in the game where you must blast away at whatever comes at you ( or from behind you ) but i found myself wishing these sequences were over quickly. These parts tend to induce tunnel vision and distinguishing what is coming at you is virtually impossible , these parts may be more enjoyable to owners of 3D compatible tv's , but i don't have one , therefore I cannot attest to any of the 3D content of this game.
The last two boss fights in the game became extremely frustrating. The second last boss fight had major camera control issues . when playing co op the foreground completely obscured the giant robot boss i was supposed to be fighting, while in the final battle of the game it seemed like there were no powers / moves / blocks or evasions that would work , turning the freeflow combat and constructs play into button mashing chaos and frustration . the last sequence of the final battle just seemed too big to fit on one screen when playing co-op , however , as a plus , this time some hints are given to you to help you understand what needs to be done, but still seems to turn into unco-ordinated button mashing chaos.
Had gamespot reviewed this game i think they would have given it a 5 or 6 out of 10. I find that its an ok game , i'll be generous and give it a 7 because it can be more enjoyable to younger gamers than for hardcore adult players. Green Lantern Rise of the Manhunters is a cross between GI Joe rise of Cobra for its looks and style of play, god of war for PS2 for its puzzle solving and combat, and Batman Arkham Asylum for its free flow combat ( though not nearly as polished / perfected as Batman )