Activision's Spider-Man titles have swung high and low over the past couple of console cycles, but the upcoming Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions just might be the ultimate Spider-Man game. Gone are the overly large open-world maps and timed balloon rescue missions, yet levels are definitely big enough to play around in and have a blast with. The four distinct art styles look spectacular and although each Spidey here has the same move set, the different time periods will have players taking a more stealthy approach in one era or going at enemies full-tilt in the next. Canadian developer Beenox has finally gotten to stretch their wings and go all out in terms of visuals with the results coming together into a dynamic, amazingly fluid game that Spidey fans new or old will want to jump right into.
I got to see three of the four Spideys and time periods and wow, has Beenox has really nailed each era perfectly. The shadowy, sepia toned look of the Spider-Man Noir level added a cool tension to the stealthiness necessary to complete the demo stage. Here, the game played like a web-swinging version of Metal Gear Solid as Spidey went all Snake-like on an assortment of patrolling guards. The goal was to rescue a number of hostages and zip them away to a drop off point in a dark corner of the level. Sticking to the shadows and picking away at guards one at a time was the obvious way to go, but the overzealous journo next to me playing the game was taking the harder route, getting spotted and shot up a wee bit too many times.
Eventually, he prevailed, I got my hands on the controller (grinning like a loon all the time, I might add) and we shifted eras (and visual styles) to the future, where a stunning looking Spider-Man 2099 awaited my turn at the game. The portion I played here was indeed amazing and featured a brilliant free fall chase/combat section that led to a boss battle against a bomb tossing, trash talking Hobgoblin. Like most game bosses, the Goblin played it cheap, preferring to flit out of beat down range high above and around a large circular platform throwing explosives. Poor Spidey had to beat down a few waves of baddies, dodge bombs and figure out what the heck to do in order to get that flying menace out of the air. The key here was to whip the Goblin's bombs back at him until he was blasted from the sky while taking down other enemies as quickly as possible.
Once Hobbie was sent hobbling off, we were off to the next portion of the build. This final demo level was set in the Ultimate Spider-Man era with our hero in that living blue-black suit complete with some impressive Venom-like abilities. Bathed in shades of red and packed to the gills with gun-toting or flame throwing enemies of different shapes and sizes, this part was hard as hell if one decided to stay in one spot for too long. The best way to deal with enemies here was to pick up and throw explosive barrels into groups before mopping up the rest with well-placed combo attacks. The final portion of this stage was a great boss fight against Carnage that included a few fantastic first-person moments where Spidey grappled with and eventually got to land a few punches to Carnage's mutated mug. This new viewpoint for a Spider-Man game
will be a part of a few other boss battles and from my hands-on and other gameplay videos I've seen, these sequence are really thrilling to see as well as play.
Beenox has managed to make each era look completely unique while keeping the same control layout throughout the game. This makes Spidey easy to navigate and keeps the gameplay flowing. Of course, that doesn't mean the game is going to be super easy at all, folks. The AI is extremely fierce and loves to shoot you in the back, in the front and anywhere else it can if you get careless enough to expose poor Spidey to a lead diet. Fortunately, controls were responsive and lightning fast in the demo. The dev team has clearly done their homework and it feels as if the game has been tested to death. The level of detail throughout the build (plus the amazing-looking versions of Spidey's most familiar rogues gallery) should please fans of the comics while also revealing that Spider-Man games are back to where they need to be.
While we didn't get to see any of the Amazing Spider-Man stages, the screens below definitely indicate that this era will be quite a blast to play. As I don't keep my ear to the pavement on Hollywood news, I have not a clue as to when the next Spider-Man movie is coming out, but I'll bet that Beenox might be the ones working on it (or at least some developer is going to be using their rather versatile game engine). Anyway, September 7, 2010 is the official release date, so I'd say PS3 and 360 owners will be more than happy to snap up this new take on Marvel's hugely popular character.
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