The first two Spiderman movie games became hits as they allowed for some open gameplay, allowing players to freely explore New York and went a little bit beyond just the movie storylines. Coinciding with the release of the third movie, Activision has delivered Spiderman 3. With the third outing, do we get big improvements to make it the best?
It doesn't take long to be a bit disappointed with Spiderman 3. The game clearly does not have the look of a next-gen game. The Spiderman model looks nice but that's one of the few things that come off as good looking. Other graphics range from alright looking to early Xbox graphics. It's been a while since playing Spiderman 2 but I know that I was happy with the size of the city and how crowded they made it and could've left it the same in this one. I'll always say that graphics won't truly make a game, but this looks like it almost could be done on Xbox.
Some good new additions to the game include his spidey-sense and spidey-reflexes. Clicking in the right thumbstick temporary activates his senses and shows the world in black and white. Enemies can be seen through buildings in red. In certain missions, your senses are crucial for helping you follow clues left behind to find the bad guy(s). Turning on your spidey-reflexes will slow the world around you and give you the chance to dodge attacks and bullets. If you can dodge an attack while in spidey-reflex mode, you will be told to hit 'Y' at the appropriate time. In the end, it is button-mashing during battles that will get your through the game. However, with Spiderman's agility, that's really what his character is about.
Something that starts out a bit annoying but ultimately adds to the gameplay is bringing in quick reaction cut scenes. This is far from new for a game but being that it isn't a common thing these days, it becomes a nice change of pace from the button mashing. The problem is that the first time it happens, it is unexpected. A cut scene came up so I let go of the controller with my left hand while watching it. All of a sudden, a giant 'A' pops up on screen and catches me off guard. The cut scenes that require you to just press one or two buttons don't add to the gameplay and seem a bit annoying. Later in the game, you'll have longer sequences to follow and these add a bit of intensity. These parts are also nice in that you don't have to worry about the camera messing you up. Throughout the game, the camera tends to get in your way and will especially annoy you in tight areas.
The game's story features plots from the movie as well as original storylines. Unfortunately, some of the missions for even the same story don't always flow nicely. This is especially true for the movie story missions as the cut scenes are brief and seem like they are missing parts.
Spiderman 3 feels like the start to the next good game in the Spiderman movie series. It ends up not going far enough past Spiderman 2 or past the previous-gen consoles to make it a great Spiderman for the next-gen. The game isn't all that bad and is enjoyable, but I wouldn't recommend it at the $60 retail price. Just pricing it at $50 would be more acceptable.
