[Hands-on: Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2]

[Metareview]

http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2009/07/mua2_grey_072309.jpg (http://www.joystiq.com/photos/marvel-ultimate-alliance-2/2161600/full/)
First, let's get the latest playable character reveals out of the way: Jean Grey (http://www.joystiq.com/photos/marvel-ultimate-alliance-2/2161604/) and Gambit (http://www.joystiq.com/photos/marvel-ultimate-alliance-2/2161601/). There. That was easy, if not (http://www.herohq.com/forums/viewthread/9020/) the best-kept secret. What is a surprise, though, is that I was able to clearly distinguish Jean from the other on-screen heroes and mess of beaten-down baddies as I stood a distant twenty feet from a Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 (http://www.joystiq.com/tag/Marvel-Ultimate-Alliance-2/) demo at a recent Activision games showcase. As I approached, I was amazed by the difference three years makes. MUA2, at least on Xbox 360 (and PS3, presumably), is a hot dayam-better looking game than its predecessor. This is not a last-generation production brushed with high-res assets.

Vicarious Visions proves a worthy successor to Raven Software, taking over lead development of the franchise -- and finally ending its streak of assignments to Activision's lesser ports. While it was evident the first time (http://www.joystiq.com/2009/04/03/gdc09-marvel-ultimate-alliance-2-impressions/#continued) we played MUA2, it's worth reiterating that the game's camera angle has been adjusted to provide a closer perspective of the foreground and more distant view of the background. I could identify Jean from across the room because the character models are larger and more detailed. Additionally, updates to Vicarious' Alchemy game engine have added Havok (http://www.joystiq.com/tag/Havok/) physics and more on-screen enemies. While the grandiose (super) heroism has been amplified by newer technology, MUA2's style is still very much that of a Saturday morning cartoon.
Continue reading Hands-on: Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 (http://www.joystiq.com/2009/07/23/hands-on-marvel-ultimate-alliance-2/)
http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif (http://www.joystiq.com)Hands-on: Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 (http://www.joystiq.com/2009/07/23/hands-on-marvel-ultimate-alliance-2/) originally appeared on Joystiq (http://www.joystiq.com) on Thu, 23 Jul 2009 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds (http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/).



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