X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse Review

Now just what was explained here only actually happens in the cinematic cutscenes and in-game sequences in which you are briefed on your missions. So what about when you actually take your team through the environments that come with the missions you are currently set on? Well each character has a set of recorded dialogue that they say when different things happen while fighting your adversaries. When a character levels up, when they’re low on health, when they need help fighting something or finally take down an enemy, they have different lines for it. For example, when Storm levels up, she’ll say “I’m as strong as a hurricane!” When Wolverine is low on health, he’ll say “I’m doing so good here!” When Magneto requests aid, he may say “Please help me now!” (yeah, rather simplistic) Now thankfully because there are so many members to choose from when going through these missions, these lines won’t seem too repetitive. However, if you’re like me and only use one team for most of the second half of the game, you will hear the same thing a lot. It doesn’t necessarily annoy you, but you’ll probably find yourself not listening to it much after so long. Some of the characters actually speak to each other depending on your team, so you have that to look forward to as well.

So if you’re a fan of the X-Men and any of their videogames, you should have no problem finding interest in the music and sounds of RoA. The voice each character delivers offers a very authentic atmosphere for the superhero universe, and the special effects displayed with both the destruction of your environment as well as the powers of each mutant is enough to please any adrenaline junkie. Just hearing a nice explosion as Magneto draws a number of metallic objects towards you, causing damage to your enemies upon contact is ever so satisfying. The music may not be the most memorable feature of the game, but it gets much better during the latter half of RoA.

Another feature of RoA that hasn’t changed much since XML is the whole gameplay aspect. Now granted that doesn’t mean it’s not different at all, because it actually is, but it’s different in a more unique and desirable way. Everything from the combat and leveling up engine to how navigation can be done was taken from XML and given total revamps.

Combat is actually done the same exact way in RoA as it was in XML, but it was hugely expanded upon to offer a lot more variety than previously delivered. Yes you still have your powers with each mutant and the combos that you can execute with them. But instead of only having four upgradeable powers for each mutant, they all now have at least twelve. The menus for leveling up, boosting powers and assigning equipment are virtually the same from XML, but they are a little more refined and organized. You still have the option of manually upgrading everyone and everything, or you can choose to let the game do it for you. If you choose to have it set on auto, you can actually customize how the game actually executes what is needed when leveling up occurs.

However, even if you choose to go it manually like I did (and for XML as well), it’s not entirely difficult. You upgrade the stats of body (total HP), energy (for powers), strike (for melee) and agility (defense and speed). It’s simply done by taking all the stat upgrade points you’ve received so far from leveling up and just hitting A to increase the number. The same applies to boosting your powers. You have powers that can be unlocked after reaching certain levels, but have three at the very beginning. Each upgrade takes up one square in which there is a huge line of them per ability. The powers are also accessed in battle using the same face button HUD. When holding R, you see the four different powers available at your disposal. The A and B buttons are generally for offensive abilities, X is for status effect and protective abilities and the Y is specifically for two extreme powers that each mutant eventually has. Another beauty of having more than four powers per mutant this time around is once you actually begin unlocking them, you can change them on the fly. The power HUD is shaped identically to the GameCube controller D-Pad, and that’s all you have to use to change your powers. Each direction on the D-Pad is dedicated to one of the power slots on the HUD. So up on the D-Pad will change your extreme power, right will change your status effect/protective abilities and so on.

In terms of your equipment, the game itself is extremely helpful. The only disadvantage of your equipment inventory is that it’s way too small. You will probably run out of space for new pickups rather quickly, and even using the Hero Stash at each of your bases throughout the game isn’t much more useful. That too will get filled up, so once that happens you probably won’t care much to go after anymore equipment. But the best equipment designed for your particular team will be automatically assigned upon pickup, so you never really have to worry about changing who’s wearing what yourself.

Speaking of your bases, this is a pretty big part of the game that drives the story. Both the X-Men and Brotherhood will take shelter at five different locations depending on which Act you are currently active in. You will be based anywhere from Magneto’s home in Genosha, the old and abandoned Weapon X facility to the Pyramids of Giza. Each location will usually have the following to come along with it: Professor Xavier (mentor), Forge (equipment seller/maker), the mission computer (for briefing), the Danger Room computer (for Danger Room scenarios), the Trivia Computer (for answering questions to get XP), the Review Computer (view things you’ve unlocked so far) and finally the Hero Stash (your secondary equipment inventory). It is actually pretty cool to move from one base to another because the environment changes so drastically, and the supporting cast from other X-Men, Brotherhood and other mutants is very intriguing.

So these bases are actually connected to five separate Acts in the game. The first four Acts take you through missions that will having you fight each of Apocalypse’s Four Horsemen, as well as completing objectives to stop Apocalypse’s ultimate plan. That happens to be simple. Apocalypse is going to eventually kidnap four different mutants, because he is seeking what is known as harmonic DNA. Now obviously so as to not spoil anything we’ll not go into just why, as you’ll eventually find out yourself if you play. But just to offer some excitement, the battles with Apocalypse’s Horsemen are very intriguing, especially the first one. Even some of the battles you fight with major side bosses can be very action packed because of how strong they are. Let’s just say a certain four armed man from the future isn’t the nicest character around.