A decent movie-tie in game for once.
First off the graphics are pretty decent, while the in-game cut scenes at times can be a bit off such as lip synching is a bit off a times and the graphics seem a little jagged, the in game graphics are decent and the pre-rendered cinemas are absolutely gorgeous. During the last cinemas at one point it actually seemed like the filmed a scene with Hugh Jackman for the game, it's that good.
The music and sounds do the game justice as well, from hearing a simple thing like your claw tearing into metal or concrete to the flesh of a human being being ripped apart. Gameplay is pretty much straightforward, hack-and-slash with a bit of puzzles mixed in here and there, but being able to use Wolverine's special abilities and ripping people to shreds makes you forget that it can be repetitive at times. Activision and Raven did a good job bringing a more mature X-Men game to the market, letting players rip people apart, tearing apart arms, legs, heads.
In terms of characters they did bring in the main characters from the movie for the voices, Hugh Jackman, Liev Schreiber and even will.i.am however there are times where the acting does seem a bit uninspired, almost like they are reading from a script bored out of their minds but they also borrow lines from the movie as well. There are also times where characters can get on your nerves from their dialogue alone such as Gambit's lines and even annoying voice acting. Also there really didn't do Agent Zero's character much justice either, turning him from a bad ass assassin from the movie to an annoying Elvis impersonator for the game. There also some new characters tied in such as Raven Darkholme (aka Mystique), huge berzerker-type creatures called Wendigos and even an appearance from the Sentinels.
The levels at times in the game can seem repetitive as well, most notably the jungle levels which can get very repetitive and if you despise puzzles in games you will hate these stages more seeing how the majority of them take place there. However there are stages that take place in a large, robotic factory, an underground science bunker, a massive dam, a nuclear power plant and even a high rise casino.
As for bugs and glitches, sadly this game is full of them and even worse that no patch was ever made available for this game. There have been times where cinemas would seem to skip, a few game freezes, enemies getting stuck in the air and even disappearing enemies. There has also been glitches with some achievements such as the Devil's Brigade achievement where you have to collect 95 dog tags. There have been many stories where people have followed guides to all of them and by the end they are stuck with 94. Thankfully this didn't happen to me but it is the most commonly known glitch about the game.
And speaking of achievements this game is diverse in them, while they do have the obligatory story achievements (such as defeating bosses from a certain stage) there are also some hidden ones tied into these bosses as well.
Mostly the achievements consist of getting a certain amount of kills with a certain ability which can lead to it's repetitive nature if you are an achievement junkie. Getting 2,000 kills, upgrading all of your skills and maxing out your combat reflexes are the main ones where you will probably have to replay the game over to get. But there are some fun achievements as well such as the Lost, World of Warcraft and Portal homages they added.
All in all it's a very good game and that is saying something for a movie game. Gorgeous cinemas, decent in game graphics, sounds and music and the addition of the original voice actors are a nice touch but the repetitive gameplay, repetitive levels (mostly the jungle levels) and glitches can get annoying and for people getting achievements it some do feel like a grind to get them. Still it's a very good game and deserves a sequel.
Pros:
+ Gorgeous cinemas
+ Most of the original actors appear
+ Gore-fest. A mature X-Men game
+ Fun and Attainable achievements
+ Borrows from comic book lore
Cons:
- Can get repetitive
- Voice acting at times can be a bit dull
- Very glitchy at times
- Some uninspired levels (jungle)
- Some characters can get on your nerves