Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2

10 Review to this product

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  September 16th, 2009 on 6:06 pm

  Rating

  I’ve been a fan of the X-Men and Marvel comics since 1966. My 12 year old hasn’t gotten into comic books themselves, but he loved MUA so much that we pre-ordered MUA2 the day it was announced. He was especially looking forward to playing Juggernaut, a character I remember from the earliest days of the Uncanny X-men. Within minutes of booting up MUA2, we were very disappointed to find Juggernaut is not available to customers of Amazon! He is only available to gamers who pre-ordered from another well-known game retailer. What a let-down! Actually, “let-down” isn’t quite the right word. “Cheated” is more like it. I don’t blame Amazon, or the other retailer, whose stores we also frequent. However, we paid a premium and waited excitedly for months for what we assumed would be a full working version of the game. Instead, the publisher crippled the character selection and calls it a “bonus” for customers of the other store. And apparently forgot to tell Amazon, whose ad copy midway up this this page says “players can count on seeing … Juggernaut…”

  What a way to make your customers happy!

  And now I have another dilemma. I currently have four other games pre-ordered on Amazon. Do I cancel them until I can verify that we will be getting full working versions of those games? Will another retailer be offering a more-complete version of the upcoming Halo 3: ODST, Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2, Mass Effect 2, or Assassins Creed 2? And how would I find out who it is? (In the case of Halo 3 ODST, it looks like Amazon got the extra content this time). Come to think of it, I only pre-order so I’ll be sure to have a copy in case of a sellout. But if pre-ordering means I risk getting a “lesser” game than the next guy, maybe I should just hold off. Why should I buy early and spend more, only to wind up with less?

  NB: I gave the game itself 5 stars — my complaints have nothing to do with the quality of the game, just the marketing decisions of the publisher.
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  NUEVE
  September 17th, 2009 on 4:00 pm

  Rating

  I must say that eventhough I’m not a comic fan I have always like some videogames related with them. “Ultimate alliance 1″ was so fun for me that I spent hours and hours playing it with my little nephew. Then “Spiderman: Web of shadows” was also an amazing game for me. I had a lot of fun with it too. And now “Ultimate alliance 2″ is here I can tell you that this is no exception. First of all I must refer as a HUGE improvement on this sequel the graphics. They’re so cool and detailed this time…. specially on the scenes and landscapes more than on the characters. The second improvemente here is the action. Now it’s way more fun specially when your team is in the middle of a large group of enemies such as robots of soldiers and you have to kill them all right in there…. you have a lot of fun in this circumstances. And of course, the “fusion” mode with the superheroes you have is awesome as well and practical too specially in those circumstances that I mentioned before. The bosses on the other hand are not that easy to defeat this time… a fact that I consider an improvement too because this makes you think as a team and to use the best possible options with your superheroes. Probably here something I could say as a “negative” side is the fact i’m not very familiar with the villians I’m fighting with (probably with the exception of electro and titanium man) but then again I’m not a comic fan so, probably somone that is more into the Marvel world would explain me more about them.

  The storyline of the game is quiet great too. The fact that the government is pushing superheroes to sign a petition to see wheter they support the law or against it is so cool. This gives us the chance to see the heroes’ real colors. but of course, there are some that I wouldn’t find surprising to be against government (e.g. Wolverine or Luke Cage) but Captain America??? wow!!! I swear that I though he was going to be on the “law side”… but of course, who the hell knows what the government’s real intentions are.

  The bottom line is that the game stands itself without any problem, it is way better than the first one and it’s so easy to play. Get it without hesitation… I bet you’ll have fun.
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  James Donnelly
  September 20th, 2009 on 4:50 pm

  Rating

  M:UA was one of the greatest games EVER for any fanboy or girl. It built on the great game engine that was used for X-MEN LEGENDS 1 and 2 that allowed you to switch between heroes and fight your way through various pulse-pounding levels and give your heroes enhanced abilities, alternate costumes, and super [...]-kicking super moves. Obviously this was a little limited with just the X-Men to use, but it was still cool, because playing as a superhero, no matter how lame the game can still be fun. M:UA brought that to a new extreme because it gave you several great superheroes and not just confining you to the X-Teams. Cap, Thor, Spidey, The Thing, Iron Man, Moon Knight, Luke Cage… you name it, they were there. And that was just a great (if at times, corny) game. You fought everyone from the undersea dwellers of Atlantis to the majestrix of the Sh’iar empire to Galactus, the Devourer of Worlds! At certain save points in the game, you could change your team to fit the circumstances of the battle ahead as well as upgrading characters’ abilities and changing costumes from classic to futuristic to obscure and “What If?” costumes. It was marvelous (pun intended)! The best part, however, was not the fighting and the upgrading and the costume changing, but the very end, where Uatu the Watcher would give you an overview of what certain decisions in the game affected the future of the universe for the better, or in some cases, the worse.

  Now, we have MARVEL: ULTIMATE ALLIANCE 2, which, as opposed to the original game, follows at least two very specific storylines: Brian Michael Bendis’ SECRET WAR storyline, which opens up the game, as you and your allies go on what is essentially a Black-Ops mission to fight the new Prime Minister of Latveria who is, according to SHIELD director Nick Fury’s intel, selling high-tech arms to terrorists and super-villains. In defiance of the President’s order, he enlists Cap, Iron Man, Spidey and Wolverine to go and deal with this impending threat.

  The other storyline is from the status-quo changing CIVIL WAR event, where not only the after-effects of the SECRET WAR are felt, but a very bad judgment call by The New Warriors (in promotion of their new reality show) take on some Z-List bad guys, but one of them has A-List destructive powers and almost the entire town of Stamford, Connecticut is obliterated, causing over 600 deaths, many of them the town’s children. The US Government is quick to respond, saying that ALL superhumans and costumed crimefighters have to register their identites and powers with the Federal Government so that they can be trained and enlisted as duly-appointed paid representatives of the law-enforcement community. This would come to be known as the SuperHuman Registration Act (or SHRA). The big brains of the Marvel U (Tony Stark as the ultimate futurist, and Reed Richards as the number-cruncher and out-of-the-box thinker) support the SHRA initiative, stating that it’s the natural evolution of the costumed hero and that it will save them from the “inevitable” wars between the Superhero community and the Government.

  However, Captain America, an already-deputized agent of the US Government, believes that superhumans who fight crime for no reward or pay are the ultimate patriots. And also having seen the corruption that had spread in the government before, he sees how each superhero could potentially be a weapon to be used by the government in whatever way they see fit, regardless of the individual hero’s beliefs or morals. To Cap, this is a simple issue of civil rights and superhumans who already risk their lives every day to fight for what’s right should not have to sacrifice their anonymity or their personal freedoms. So he is the first to rebel against the SHRA, and the superhero community is split right down the middle. Those most willing to follow orders and believe that with training and a steady paycheck, the SHRA is good, side with Iron Man. Those that believe that this is just another way to reign in those with special abilities or those who are different and use them to serve the ends of whatever direction the political wind blows go underground and side with Cap.

  Now, the downsides of the game are that there are not many more heroes (or villains, in some cases) to play as. Also, the powers upgrade is not quite as user-friendly as it could be. Also, the game engine and its functionality is very similar to the previous chapter of this series. Not much has really changed. Obviously, the graphics are brilliant, but there’s not much different, gameplay-wise.

  But if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!

  This is still one hell of an entertaining play. The interaction with the other heroes, the choices that you make to register or rebel, the guest appearances, and the general coolness factor of being able to play out two of the key storylines of the last several years of the Marvel Universe is just awesome. The main add-on to this sequel is the “Fusion” capability. Basically, you can combine your powers with another hero and create unusual and spectacular combat scenarios. It not only recommends, but when all is said and done, it plain DEMANDS a second play so that you can fight from both sides. Because there doesn’t seem to be a right or wrong side when you put the argument under the microscope, but any way you slice it for me, I’m siding with Cap.
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  T. Priester
  October 12th, 2009 on 11:09 am

  Rating

  If you liked the first game, you will definately like this one. They took all the good things about the first Marvel and pretty much upgraded them. The graphics are great. The new moves and fusions between the players are sick. This games has a really good story line and gives you a reason to want to go back and beat it again. Highly recommended for great single and multi player action.
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  M. Deodato
  December 21st, 2009 on 1:49 am

  Rating

  Super hero fans will be stunned with this game! Many super heroes available!
  
  The story line is great and good enough for making you play it again to see the two different paths you may choose!
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  R. Morrow
  January 14th, 2010 on 9:21 am

  Rating

  This game rocks. Much better than the first. Seems to be a little easy for me, but its fine. Lots of unlockable items and characters. Plenty of re-playability and your stats for your characters roll over into a new game “improved upon the original”. Its a little pricey to buy full price for, but I’m a Marvel fanatic, so it was worth every penny for me and my son.
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  Victor Navarro
  January 27th, 2010 on 4:49 am

  Rating

  If you are a Marvel fan, you will love the game. I play with my son and he loves it also. I brought it for only 30 dollars on sale so that helped alot in loving it. The graphics and game play is awesome also. We worth the wait and money.
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  Elizabeth D. Orton
  January 31st, 2010 on 7:48 am

  Rating

  My 13 year old grandson loves this video game and I would recommend it for others.
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  Jonathan Bauer
  February 15th, 2010 on 6:16 pm

  Rating

  I love this game a lot better then the first just wish the DLC was still available to purchase for both the first and second they made the game a lot more fun with the different characters to level
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  Ivan D. Brunson
  March 4th, 2010 on 2:51 am

  Rating

  i actually loved this game. actually, i played it for like 25 minutes TOPS but i am anticipating playing it more. i guess i understand everyone’s frustration (not being able to play with Psylocke, Magneto, and Juggernaut and others) but i highly recommend this game! i’m glad i wasn’t aware of the features that were suppose to have been included because i guess i would be upset as well but because i DIDNT know (until NOW) that definitely wont’ deter my fun! THANKS ACTIVISION!