The Amazing Spider-Man 2 Review
PROS
- Swinging through New York is fun
- Lots of missions to keep you occupied
CONS
- Horrible camera
- Cumbersome controls
VERDICT
Swinging through the city streets is entertaining, but The Amazing Spider-Man 2’s control and camera issues prevent it from becoming a marvel.
- Full Review
- App Store Info
With a great licence comes a great chance of disappointment. And, we'll admit, before even firing up the game, we were prepared to be underwhelmed by The Amazing Spider-Man 2.
Things got off to a shaky start. Gameloft has squeezed an overwhelming amount into its latest movie tie-in, so within moments we were expected to have come to grips with the game’s virtual stick, buttons, and touch controls. These, along with a camera that could barely keep up with the action, combine to make navigating the streets of Manhattan a real struggle.
Thankfully, things got easier once in combat. With only three commands most battles with the game’s various thugs just involved hammering the punch button, throwing in occasional counters in response to onscreen prompts. While camera issues persisted, the slower pace and smaller areas minimised its negative effect on play.
However, once we became accustomed to all of The Amazing Spider-Man 2's idiosyncrasies, we found ourselves having fun. While the camera issues were never resolved, the freedom of swinging through the city streets was exhilarating in short bursts.
The city is filled with missions such as quick-time car chases, and battles with Spidey's iconic supervillains. We found our favourite of these tasks was delivering injured NPC’s to hospital. Along the way the wounded character would tell you their story, nicely filling in gaps in the plot and ensuring that even the most mundane actions had some flavour.
The big spider in the bathtub is The Amazing Spider-Man 2’s positioning as a premium game with in-app purchases. It is a worrying trend, but, here at least, Gameloft isn't being too comically evil. IAP’s speed up unlocks which you would easily arrive at organically through the course of the game, with only a few (albeit expensive) cosmetic options locked behind a paywall.
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 flaws linked to its intended scope. It struggles to squeeze as much as it can onto your tiny touchscreen, it results in a slightly ragged and unweildy product. It's a passable open-world action game, with enough content to keep hardcore Spidey fans amused for a while.
Screenshots
$6.99
