The Amazing Spider-Man Preview (PS3)

When Beenox studio head Dee Brown kicked off Activision’s closed doors preview for The Amazing Spiderman with a wide smile, I knew instantly that he and the rest of his team were incredibly proud of their upcoming super hero game. And I must say, after getting an extended look at the web-slinger in action, they have every right to be, as this latest movie inspired game looks to be Spidey’s best yet.

The developer began the demo by giving us a nice close up view of Spider-Man, and wow was the level of detail on his costume astounding — every thread and ripple on the outfit seemed to pop off the screen. Believe it or not, it wasn’t until the demonstrator started moving the character that I realized I was witnessing in-game footage, so yes, it really looked that good. Beenox decided to go with a zoomed in camera that really lends itself to creating such an engrossing experience. Brown also took the time to point out that damage, including scratches, bruises and blood will all be reflected on Spider-Man’s costume. Beenox is going for a super cinematic feel, and nothing illustrated their efforts better than when Peter Parker started swinging around the city.

Web slinging is fast, fluid and gorgeous, rendering an experience that really captures what it would feel like to be Spider-Man. In addition, a new “web rush” feature takes that cinematic means of traversal to another level, allowing the player to freeze the game, pinpoint particular destinations and watch as Spidey pulls off all sorts of crazy parkour-style tricks. In the demo that was shown at Activision’s booth, this mechanic allowed the player to run along the tops of moving buses and leap from car to car as Spider-Man made his way to his final destination.

As one would suspect, combat also plays a particularly significant role in the experience. While not quite as impressive as the city traversal, taking down bad guys looked quite smooth, making me instantly think of something akin to a faster-paced version of Batman: Arkham City’s combat. The game is set in Manhattan, with the entire city open for you to explore, and while this is undoubtedly a great thing, I couldn’t help but once again draw parallels to Rocksteady’s take on the Batman franchise. The demo gave us a look at one of the game’s many villains, Rhino, and since it takes place after the events of the movie, it has allowed the team to expand the cast and interject a bit of their own creative ideas. Unfortunately however, the characters in the game that also appear in the movie are not voiced by the original actors.

Fans of the comics will also be pleased to know that as Spidey explored the city, he stumbled upon a few of the many comic book pages that litter the city. As you collect the pages, actual full digital copies of the comic books will be available for you to view in the game’s built-in comic book reader. There’s no doubt that Beenox is really working hard to defy the notion that all games tied to movies suck, and based off of what I’ve seen thus far, The Amazing Spider-Man is on the right track.

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