He's the Best at What He Does
X-Men Origins: Wolverine finally does what no other comic book game has before: lets you be Wolverine.
Published: May 1, 2009
As a reviewer, it's my job to try to lay out the pros and cons of games, hopefully cluing you in to why we think a game is worth picking up or not. Most of the time, this makes my job fairly easy; do the game's faults outnumber its merits? It's probably a bad game. Pros outweigh those cons? Sweet, it's probably good. There are things that detract more from one side or swing the pendulum farther in one direction, but as a general rule of thumb, if the individual components add up right, then the outcome is pretty easy to gauge.
And then there are games like X-Men Origins: Wolverine, a game that, yes, carries the license of the big-screen popcorn flick of the same name, but largely avoids many of the pitfalls most licensed games fall into. There's a good reason for this, though: the licensed was applied after the game had begun in earnest at developer Raven Studios. The byproduct is a game that not only stands up on its own, but that actually piggybacks off parts of the comics, the movie, and some of Raven's own storytelling and despite not following Wolvie's fluctuating back story to a T, still manages to round out the stuff seen in the movies and, most importantly, is a blast to play.
Now why the rather elaborate (and perhaps rather trite) intro paragraph? Because X-Men Origins: Wolverine bucks many of the rules I've come to build for my own reviews process. Yes, it has faults, but I loved the game, and I can't exactly explain why. It might be that Wolverine is honestly one of my favorite comic characters. His origin has shifted more than a few times over the years, but he's been nevertheless badass throughout; he's had the unbreakable adamantium grafted to his skeleton sucked out of his very pores by Magneto, he's lived for hundreds of years, bedded some seriously hot Japanese girls, traveled the world, and managed to stay as gruffly lovable as always.
I wasn't even a particularly angsty kid growing up, but something about Wolvie's attitude made me wish I could be him. He could mouth off and back it up with the ability to take a massive beating, then walk away a few hours later with only tattered clothing to show for it. Plus, as much of an anti-hero as he was, he still had a good heart in the end. I wanted to be that guy, wanted to be the valiant badass that didn't always (okay, rarely) followed directions to the letter, and while the X-Men movies gave me that with Hugh Jackman, I was never really allowed to play as the Canuck in any way that made me feel that badass.
X-Men Origins: Wolverine lets you be the badass.
At its heart, the game isn't much more than a slightly modified take on God of War, Devil May Cry and even a little Ninja Gaiden, with a very important distinction: the lunge move. By holding a shoulder button to lock onto an enemy and then tapping the other, Wolvie can leap massive distances to sink his claws into enemies, and then tear into them with a hand of light and strong attacks, grab 'em to beat on 'em a little more, end 'em with a properly timed series of hard attack button presses to kick off a finisher or toss 'em into an environmental hazard.
What keeps the game interesting are a series of experience-based upgrades that strengthen moves, add new ones that use up Logan's Rage Meter juice and a handful of other things to work at. These include little Reflex Meters that slowly level up to make his attacks against certain types of enemies more effective, plus equipped Mutagens that increase experience earned from fights, boost defense, rage, and so on. Throw in hidden costumes, a ton of Trophies that are fun to earn (if a little grind-heavy), and you've got plenty of stuff to chew on while tearing enemies in half.
That is the main draw here, though. This is not your typical licensed game; it's bloody, violent, and happily wears its M rating with pride. That's a good thing, though, because Wolverine is by his very nature a feral, visceral fighter. He stabs guys with bones that punch through his skin every time he wants to fight, for chrissakes. And his mutant healing factor, for once, actually makes regenerative health in a main character logical -- or at least logical in a comic sense.
It also provides for Raven to do some fun stuff with their take on the Unreal Engine 3. Specifically, it allows Wolverine to take so much damage that his skeleton actually starts to show through; bullets, explosions and stabs whittling away at his clothing, skin and flesh and then repairing itself before your very eyes, leaving the clothing messed up (until, magically, it's all restored when he levels up). This isn't a pretty game, exactly, but the lighting has its moments; UE3's knack for streaming in textures can make for some weirdly flat characters at the start of levels, slowly filtering in to add the layers of "faked" details, but the thick shafts of light and milky blankets of fog do their job nicely -- particularly in the game's indoor areas.
And then there are games like X-Men Origins: Wolverine, a game that, yes, carries the license of the big-screen popcorn flick of the same name, but largely avoids many of the pitfalls most licensed games fall into. There's a good reason for this, though: the licensed was applied after the game had begun in earnest at developer Raven Studios. The byproduct is a game that not only stands up on its own, but that actually piggybacks off parts of the comics, the movie, and some of Raven's own storytelling and despite not following Wolvie's fluctuating back story to a T, still manages to round out the stuff seen in the movies and, most importantly, is a blast to play.
Now why the rather elaborate (and perhaps rather trite) intro paragraph? Because X-Men Origins: Wolverine bucks many of the rules I've come to build for my own reviews process. Yes, it has faults, but I loved the game, and I can't exactly explain why. It might be that Wolverine is honestly one of my favorite comic characters. His origin has shifted more than a few times over the years, but he's been nevertheless badass throughout; he's had the unbreakable adamantium grafted to his skeleton sucked out of his very pores by Magneto, he's lived for hundreds of years, bedded some seriously hot Japanese girls, traveled the world, and managed to stay as gruffly lovable as always.
I wasn't even a particularly angsty kid growing up, but something about Wolvie's attitude made me wish I could be him. He could mouth off and back it up with the ability to take a massive beating, then walk away a few hours later with only tattered clothing to show for it. Plus, as much of an anti-hero as he was, he still had a good heart in the end. I wanted to be that guy, wanted to be the valiant badass that didn't always (okay, rarely) followed directions to the letter, and while the X-Men movies gave me that with Hugh Jackman, I was never really allowed to play as the Canuck in any way that made me feel that badass.
X-Men Origins: Wolverine lets you be the badass.
At its heart, the game isn't much more than a slightly modified take on God of War, Devil May Cry and even a little Ninja Gaiden, with a very important distinction: the lunge move. By holding a shoulder button to lock onto an enemy and then tapping the other, Wolvie can leap massive distances to sink his claws into enemies, and then tear into them with a hand of light and strong attacks, grab 'em to beat on 'em a little more, end 'em with a properly timed series of hard attack button presses to kick off a finisher or toss 'em into an environmental hazard.
What keeps the game interesting are a series of experience-based upgrades that strengthen moves, add new ones that use up Logan's Rage Meter juice and a handful of other things to work at. These include little Reflex Meters that slowly level up to make his attacks against certain types of enemies more effective, plus equipped Mutagens that increase experience earned from fights, boost defense, rage, and so on. Throw in hidden costumes, a ton of Trophies that are fun to earn (if a little grind-heavy), and you've got plenty of stuff to chew on while tearing enemies in half.
That is the main draw here, though. This is not your typical licensed game; it's bloody, violent, and happily wears its M rating with pride. That's a good thing, though, because Wolverine is by his very nature a feral, visceral fighter. He stabs guys with bones that punch through his skin every time he wants to fight, for chrissakes. And his mutant healing factor, for once, actually makes regenerative health in a main character logical -- or at least logical in a comic sense.
It also provides for Raven to do some fun stuff with their take on the Unreal Engine 3. Specifically, it allows Wolverine to take so much damage that his skeleton actually starts to show through; bullets, explosions and stabs whittling away at his clothing, skin and flesh and then repairing itself before your very eyes, leaving the clothing messed up (until, magically, it's all restored when he levels up). This isn't a pretty game, exactly, but the lighting has its moments; UE3's knack for streaming in textures can make for some weirdly flat characters at the start of levels, slowly filtering in to add the layers of "faked" details, but the thick shafts of light and milky blankets of fog do their job nicely -- particularly in the game's indoor areas.
