| The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction review |
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When you get down to brass tacks, being able to transform into the Hulk must be a real pain in the rear end. Things like getting cut up by a careless driver, stubbing your toe on the end of the bed whilst bumbling around in the dark, or your PSP battery cutting out just as you’re about to set a new lap time on Wipeout Pure, are all things which could result in an eruption of the green-skinned monster and leaving you in need of another fresh pair of clothes.
Just some of the reasons why it’s been safer for fans of Marvel’s very own green giant to sit and wonder, rather than spend a lot of time eating dirt from nuclear power plants or trying to operate the microwave with the door open in a bid to obtain superhuman powers (safety warning: please do not try any of these things).
When developer Radical Entertainment attempted to bring the Hulk experience to gamers in 2003 (coinciding with Ang Lee’s cinematic interpretation), they simultaneously hit and missed the target. There was certainly fun to be had smashing things up as the Hulk, but players were also expected to become involved in stealth missions as Bruce Banner; something which infuriated many when all they wanted to do was bust things into itty bitty pieces.
Well, Radical have taken these howls of anger and frustration on board and the result is The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction - a game that’s more than capable of raising anyone’s forgiveness for any transgressions the previous game may have forced upon them. This is the game that Hulk fans and smash-'em-up fiends have been crying out for.
The game uses the Grand Theft Auto-style, free-roaming environment and mission system that seems to have become the staple requirement of superhero games. Treyarch’s Spider-Man 2 used it to great success in their interpretation of the web slinger’s abilities and it’s a certainly a gaming genre which suits the superhero romps to an absolute tee. This time, freed from the confines of having to be Bruce Banner, Hulk players are free to go where they wish within the level and cause absolute mayhem and wanton destruction to their hearts’ content.
The Hulk is like a thunderous freight train, able to plough through anything that stands in his way: cars, people, fences, lampposts - anything that isn’t quick enough to escape is sent careering into the air with explosive force. The only things that he can’t plough through are solid buildings; but since when has that ever stopped a superhero? If a building is in your way don’t run around it, run over it. The Hulk’s powerful momentum is enough to carry him straight up the sides of buildings, shattering glass and masonry as he goes.
Once atop the structure there’s no need to stop. By executing a powerful jump the player is able to catapult the green behemoth into the air, arms flailing as he goes, until he hits street level with a thunderous, concrete-shattering clap, lands atop a building or even connects with the side of another building, digging himself in before continuing to run up the vertical surface all over again. It’s enough to send a dirty great big grin of vicarious pleasure across your face controlling the Hulk as he vaults whole buildings, canyons and even bridges as he bounds through the air.
But the Hulk is a lot more than an outstanding runner. He’s an angry, angry man (or should that be man-type thing) and accordingly he’s been given some beefy moves in which to exercise his seriously pent-up aggression. When not ploughing through objects, Hulk can scoop them up and throw them. Cars, buses, tankers and even people can all be hurled around. Pesky police bullets stinging your green hide? Rip out a lamppost and use it as a club to batter them into submission, before taking what remains of the post and launching it through a nearby car. Or failing that, just hammer your target with your fists, boot them into the air or just scoop them up, boost jump to an impossible height and throw them into the distance. A large amount of the moves and attacks at the player’s disposal can also be charged by holding down the relevant button, resulting in larger jumps or more powerful assaults.
While endowed with superhuman strength, the Hulk is far from invincible. Thankfully, downed enemies drop orbs that result in the recovery of energy. Collect enough of these and his gamma-induced powers reach 'Critical Mass' meaning even more destructive powers can be unleashed. Similarly when on death’s door, the Hulk receives an 'Adrenaline Rush': a boost of energy that can help get the player out of trouble.
Completing missions or side quests (along with causing vast amounts of random carnage and destruction) will reward the player with 'Smash Points'. These can then be used to unlock even more moves and attacks like head butts, deafening claps of the Hulk's mighty hands or new Critical Mass attacks. The upgrades don’t stop there, however. Some allow the Hulk to bend and smash vehicles to act as a shield-cum-boomerang, use round objects as massive bowling balls, surf around on destroyed vehicles or even use them as iron gloves to increase attack power. Others simply increase the Health/Critical Mass bar.
Like most other games of this ilk, missions are all variations on the usual "destroy this, defend that or make it back to base with item X" theme, although the optional side quests are inventive variations of speed runs, golf, bowling and American football. Enemies come in a number of guises depending on the mission at hand or the GTA-style Alert level. Basic opposition comes from the local constabulary and their pea-shooter pistols (which seem to do little more than tickle), the Military with their attack copters, tanks and rocket launchers, and even the Hulk-Busters: mechanised units specifically designed to try and match the Hulk for strength and speed. With both opposition and civilians onscreen, things are certainly hectic. Thankfully the game features a handy lock-on system which allows tracking of and switching between enemies on the ground and in the air, an essential addition once all hell breaks loose. The game does occasionally suffer from slowdown when the action and explosions reach an insane degree, but this is understandable taking into account everything going on and allows the player to really drink in their symphony of destruction.
One-on-one rumbles with boss characters are also present at the end of each chapter, breaking up the free-roaming missions. These usually involve another gamma-enraged individual (such as The Abomination), resulting in some real powerhouse slugging matches where you can almost feel each blow being traded between the combatants (just one example of the excellent use of sound in the game, with everything from the thunderous footsteps of the Hulk as he pounds along the streets and buildings, through to the ear-splitting sounds of explosions and shattering glass). The only problem with these end-of-section fights is that the player’s array of moves can feel a bit underwhelming, almost as if the designers wanted to bring you back down to earth when squaring off against someone who is also superpowered. Thankfully these are simple cases of not just pummelling the boss character, but utilising the environment to gain the advantage. If anything it also allows you to appreciate the power you wield when you step back into the free-roaming parts.
The destruction is exhilarating stuff, capturing the essence of what the character has always been about. An excellent job has been done of conveying the power of the Hulk through his movements and powers, everything from his angry roaring growl to the way he swerves from side to side when running full pelt. As the later desert levels demonstrate, it’s clear that heavy inspiration has been drawn from the imagery of the aforementioned film (with the player even being able to engage in combat against helicopters in a narrow desert valley) but unlike the film the game’s plot is designed to let you get on with the action. The game’s storyline is hardly unique to the Hulk universe and revolves around Banner still trying to free himself from his radiation-induced nightmare. It may take some liberties with the storyline of the comics (which only die-hard fans would take umbrage to) but it’s certainly well told through in-game cinematics and rendered cutscenes. Those with a passing familiarity with the comics will also be able to instantly identify characters like Doc. Samson and General Ross.
Couple all this with the absolute icing on the cake; the game runs at a crisp, clear 720p for those with the kit to view it, and features a whole load of unlockables such as concept art, character profiles and comic covers taken from memorable issues in the Hulk’s history.
There are quibbles that may irk some (such as the types of mission being too repetitive, in essence there are only two main level types consisting of desert Badlands and Cityscape, and instances of pop-up) but these are very minor compared to the fun provided. Radical Entertainment have produced a game which is every Hulk fan's wet dream and even those with little more than a passing interest in this game will be unable to deny that it is fun to play. |
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System: Microsoft Xbox
Genre: Action
Developer: Radical Entertainment
Publisher: Vivendi Universal
Players: 1
Version: United States
Reviewed: Sep 2005
Writer: Jamie Davies
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Pros:
- Lots of fun
- Plenty to see, do and smash
- Just what a comic book character game should be
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Cons:
- Some slowdown when things get very busy
- Pop-up may irritate some...
- ... along with the majority of time being spent in only two environments
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The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction Video: 6.4MB
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