Game: Incredible Hulk
Jun. 19, 2008
Published by:
Sega
Developed by: Edge of Reality
Available only on:
PC, Nintendo DS, Wii, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 2, Xbox 360
INTRO: And so we are faced with the newest movie tie-in game, The Incredible Hulk. I'm not really sure what movie this one is based on, but that's not really important. Hilarity aside, Hulk here is based on the new Ed Norton flick that intends to erase the memory of the last lackluster effort (in my opinion, it succeeds masterfully, but that's another review- one that you probably won't ever get to read). This one is a follow-up to Hulk: Ultimate Destruction, a game released a few years ago that was a truly definitive Hulk experience. You will smash your way through NYC as the Hulk himself and face mighty foes, of course.
GAMEPLAY:
And so we are faced with the newest movie tie-in game, The Incredible Hulk. I'm not really sure what movie this one is based on, but that's not really important. Hilarity aside, Hulk here is based on the new Ed Norton flick that intends to erase the memory of the last lackluster effort (in my opinion, it succeeds masterfully, but that's another review- one that you probably won't ever get to read). This one is a follow-up to Hulk: Ultimate Destruction, a game released a few years ago that was a truly definitive Hulk experience. You will smash your way through NYC as the Hulk himself and face mighty foes, of course.
I dig this game, although it wasn't enough of a worthy sequel to really be able to stand on its own as a next-gen effort. It's really quite fun to play as Hulk, and you'll be smashing the sh*t out of everything. The Green Machine just smashes everything in sight, lumbering around and destroying everything in sight. Cars will flip when you leap onto the ground, enemies will crash into buildings, and you'll be picking up many things in the environment to just destroy other things in the environment. Think of this as GTA lite, Hulk style. Enemies often have weakpoints that don't make a lot of sense, and the Hulk powers take forever with pointless animations sometimes.
This of course would be the ultimate Hulk experience if the game wasn't somewhat broken and unfinished. Throwing things can cause Hulk to lock up, stay away from the water too because it will make you freeze up. Bad, bad stuff there with the water issues. Unfortunately there aren't many interactive weapons. In the new flick, Hulk uses a police car to make gauntlets. In this game, it's not doable- in fact a lot of the little touches are missing from Ultimate Destruction. Also, you need to level up your own running ability, which makes the beginning of the game super slow and a chore to get through. The targeting system in this game is also just terrible. In terms of comparing the game to the movie, it follows the film's storyline relatively well but of course it veers off the path so that there will be other enemies to face.
Gameplay: 6/10
GRAPHICS:
The graphics are a bit of a mixed bag. NYC looks okay, although the buildings leave a bit to be desired. The effects are really nice, and Hulk looks great from afar, as he is quite detailed. The game does suffer from some nasty pop-in issues, and the enemies can look quite bland at times. The cut scenes could use some cleaning up.
Graphics: 7/10
AUDIO:
The sound is also not so hot. The score is well done but it's way too short and loops endlessly, which is unacceptable for a game with a semi-sandbox design. The voice work comes from most of the big names including Ed Norton, but it felt like the cast was sort of sleepwalking their way through things- not always, but sometimes.
Audio: 6/10
FINAL VERDICT:
At the end of the day, The Incredible Hulk turns out to be just another mediocre videogame based on a film. The biggest strike against it is that it had such a great prior game to work with. Unfortunately, this new game takes a few steps backwards from the last engine which is just a shame. If this is your only option, pick this up as a diehard Hulk fan. Otherwise, check out Ultimate Destruction, it's far superior.
Final Score: 6.5/10
