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X-Men: Legends Review
Jon Wilcox
22/10/2004
X-Men: Legends is certainly an improvement upon Wolverine's Revenge and Next Dimension; however we know it can get better...
With a huge following thanks to comic books, the films and the cartoon series, youâd hope that the X-Men franchise would have, at the very least, a good video game that exploits the mythology and adventures of Professor Xâs team of mutants; sadly, fans have had to make do with âclassicsâ such as Wolverineâs Revenge, and X-Men: Next Dimension, which failed to meet even the lowest of expectations.
The mutants return and once again try to storm (excuse the pun) the video games market in X-Men Legends, a game that has been described by the developers as an âaction-RPGâ that will enable players to pick and choose which X-Men to take on the various missions. As the game progresses, you can then upgrade your teamâs abilities (hence the RPG part of the description).
The storyline of the game describes how Magneto, leader of the Brotherhood of Mutants (the bad guys, just in case you didnât know) develops a plan to allow the mutants to gain the upper hand over humanity. The story has been developed by former writers of the X-Men comic books, so expect there to be the usual twists and turns as the game progresses.
Players are able to switch between the four X-Men team chosen at the start of the mission, although up to four players can fight their way through the game co-operatively - players can even join and leave as and when they wish.
Oh, and Patrick Stewart is back once again providing the vocal talent for Professor Xavier, reprising the role that he has played in both of the feature films directed by Brian Singer.
Since the game has been described as an action-RPG, itâs probably best if we clarify the phrase. Indeed, it could be argued that recent RPG releases Sudeki and Fable could be defined as action-RPG titles, since the combat systems in both games are not traditionally RPG-like. Both flow really well and do not rely on the âold-fashionedâ turn-based combat systems that other RPG titles do. X-Men doesnât fall under the same umbrella as those titles though, instead, the game is more like a traditional scrolling hack ânâ slash title, although the view is near vertical. As weâve already stated earlier in the review, the RPG segment comes from the ability for players to upgrade the characters.
Throughout the game, as you pulverise your opponents into a pulp, youâll pick up Experience Points, as you would in any RPG, which will enable you develop your characterâs attributes, and also allow them to develop their mutant powers further. This will mean that, for instance, Iceman will be able to Ice Surf through the air for a longer period of time, or even freeze enemies when they try to attack him. The game allows for plenty of scope, especially because you will unlock more X-Men as the game progresses, allowing you to develop the X-Men team into the legends that they are. Throughout the levels, you are able to save your progress, purchase various add-ons from Forge, and change your team members â“ even revive them if they have died in battle, providing that you have the right amount of points to do so.
The first level acts very much like a tutorial to the game, with players initially taking the role of Wolverine. Throughout the course of the first level, as with any good tutorial, players begin get to grips with the general controls and also start to get into the mindset required to play the game. Wolverine will also upgrade to a higher level at some point during the course of the level, so players will also get an introduction to the RPG element of the game.
Players will also encounter Cyclops during the tutorial, and that is when a second player has the chance to join the game, or the sole player can switch between the two characters. After battling with Mystique (and experiencing her shape-shifting powers at first hand), you complete the mission and return to Xavierâs School for the Gifted â“ the HQ of the X-Men. Xavier then proceeds to give you a tour of the subterranean complex, and allows you to explore the various rooms by yourself, where youâll encounter a few X-Men veterans including Beast.
After youâve wandered around the maze of corridors, and explored the rooms (including the Danger Room), you can then initiate the first proper mission of the game â“ weâll leave it there so we donât spoil the gameâ¦
One of the nicest touches in the game is when more than two players are playing the game, because that itâs when inter-character combos are made possible. For instance, if one player is fighting as Wolverine, and the other is fighting as Cyclops, Wolverine can throw an enemy up into the air with his claws, and Cyclops can shoot them out of the sky with his âOptic Blastsâ. The idea of co-op combos in such a game is something that we at TVG Towers have been waiting for sinceâ¦forever, and that the fact that they have been realised in X-Men Legends means that we can finally obliterate enemies in a variety of cool fashion.
A lot of the objects in the environments (and we include the walls in this), are destructible; gaps that are too wide to cross, can be navigated with the help of Icemanâs powers â“ so you have to think about how the X-Menâs powers can be used to good effect.
One of the main gripes that we have with the game is that some of the levels are HUGE, and will take some time to get though. It has to be said that there are far too many âclonedâ enemies, which means that sometimes you feel as if the level never ends. In places, there is a definite âold-schoolâ feel to the game, which can get a little bit irritating â“ after all, we are now in the 21st Century and progress has been made in certain areas of game design.
Graphically the developers have utilised a style that sits quite comfortably between a comic book, and a cartoon, and overall, it works quite well. The characters are cell-shaded whilst the environments arenât which means that they stand out really well. Itâs as if the characters have been lifted out of the pages of the comics, while the environments have been created from the frames of the cartoon.
The sound and music developed for the game is done well, with music introduced as battles begin, and suitable fighting SFX thrown in. The fact that they have managed to get Patrick Stewart involved also adds a certain degree of officialdom to the whole game.
The levels in the game are quite big, which may make the game longer; however, the size of the game doesnât necessarily make it better â“ a point that needs to be made. After a while being stuck on the same level become repetitive, and when all of the X-Men die after fighting through waves of enemies, with no save point close by, itâs all too easy just to switch off the console, and move on to something else.
