It’s no secret that many videogame iterations of movies are complete and utter disasters. When X-Men Origins: Wolverine was announced as an upcoming movie, many wondered what the video game tie-in would be like, and if it would be a failure like so many other titles. Raven Software chose to answer that by being the one to take the helm and develop this title. The question is does it become just another movie game, or does it stand out above the rest?
The user takes on the role of the ultimate badass, Wolverine, as he goes on the hunt for his brother, Victor Creed, also known as Sabretooth. The game features a full 5 chapters to venture through which shift from present day to Wolverine’s past throughout the title. Wolverine’s past takes players into the African jungle where they encounter enemies ranging from machete wielders to statues that come to life. During this time, players see what Wolverine remembers, and the ultimate reason that he chose to leave Stryker’s task force.
In the present day, Wolverine continues his journey to track down Creed, but by the end of the game, players learn some unexpected things. Of course, those who have seen the movie will already know mostly everything. Players will encounter many characters from the Marvel Universe, both good and bad, and many environments, ranging from frozen islands to high security bases. The environments are great, including weather effects and interactive objects.
This title is hack and slash at its finest. But don’t expect to make it far if you don’t learn the controls and combos. The game isn’t overly complicated, but just button mashing will not cut it. The game is dark, gruesome, and features some amazing looking finishing moves performed by Wolverine. I was actually surprised by how bloody the title is, but that’s a good thing. Wolverine is a character who takes out enemies with extremely sharp adamantium claws, so there should be some blood.
There are many ways to take out enemies, including throwing them into and impaling them on sharp objects. To see which objects can be used to do this, players can push up on the D-pad and it will activate Wolverine’s feral senses. This allows him to see interactive objects, enemies, and the correct direction to go.
