Spiderman 3 reviews/Discussion

[DesertEagleXIX]

from:
http://valleywag.com/tech/activision/activision-goofs-up-spider+man-3-257476.php

When it comes to making software, it's Q/A that really sucks. The job is totally thankless. As if this weren't bad enough, there is a distinctly finite amount of actual programmers in the games industry, and they all know each other. And, more importantly, they all know the ones that stink. Those stinky programmers still get jobs, though, and it looks like Activision managed to hand off the engine development duties for its Spider-Man 3 movie game to some numbskulls that didn't understand the RAM constraints of the various consoles. After the jump, the gory details, as told to the ConFonz over web-covered beverages.


The initial intention of Activision was to have the Spider-Man 3 movie tie-in game out a month ahead of the movie's release, evidently. But when it turned out that, one month before ship date, the game was still gobbling up RAM as though every console was an Xbox 360, the company panicked. According to the Conference Fonz's inside source, Activision had to halt all other publisher-side Q/A work in order to get this turd ready for market before the movie arrives tomorrow.

Thus, nothing else could get through the company's Q/A department in April. Of course, the company was still able to ship "Pimp My Ride" for PSP, but that chunk of plastic probably doesn't include anything that can be tested, beyond the standard questions of "Is this game completely stupid? Does it have an IP tie-in? Will we make oodles of money from idiots?"

So, when you wake up and run to EBX, er.... GameStop, tomorrow morning to get your copy of Spider-Man 3 for Nintendo DS, Xbox, et al, just remember that the Q/A department died for your sins. And your games.

[DesertEagleXIX]

First reviews:
http://www.pgnx.net/reviews.php?page=full&id=13876

9.5/10

http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=76037

6/10

Hmmm

[propeller_head]

i heard the movie sucked. i havent seen it yet though.

if it does im not going to be a happy camper.

wish marvel would just make their own movies instead of giving IP to sony & fox. i have a feeling the new fantastic 4 is going to suck even more than the 1st. if they can make galactus lame, thats some real talent.

[jer7583]

I liked Spider-Man 2(Game and movie), but I feel about as excited for this as taking a cumulative medieval philosophy final this week. Meh.

Those late in the game issues don't sound promising either.

[JDUB X]

Ive played a couple hours of the PS3 version and its okay. Its a lot like Spiderman 2, just much more shiny.

[propeller_head]

ive noticed lots of ps3 games look shiny. almost like everything's covered in wax.

[jkam]

I rented the Wii version. It is kind of fun to swing around using the nunchuck and wiimote but just when you feel you've got the hang of it...it doesn't work quite the way you thought it would. The combat feels a bit on the slow side...I guess it might improve with some hero upgrades. I am having fun with it but I would think most people would be better off either renting it or waiting until it hits the $15 to $20 range. Although its still early into my play time with it...It probably comes in at around a 7.0 - 7.5 for me.

[schuerm26]

ive noticed lots of ps3 games look shiny. almost like everything's covered in wax.

I hate when it looks like that. As for the reviews, they really seem to be varied on this one.

It seems like the problems come from the fact that eventhough it is next gen, it feels like Spider-man 2.

I'll wait for the inevitable big time price drop for the Wii version.

[Richlough]

ive noticed lots of ps3 games look shiny. almost like everything's covered in wax.

Specular lighting overload .

[BREVITY]

Since I own all three systems I dont know which to get it on. I want another PS3 game but the thoughts of web slinging with my Wiimote & chuck just sounds great.

[SilverPaw750]

All the complaints seem to be that it feels like Spider-Man 2...which I don't mind. I can understand why people would rate spider-man 2 a 7-7.5, but I absolutely loved it, despite its flaws, and would give it an 8.5-9. It's one of the few games I actually played nothing else for a week to beat it completely (even getting 50,000 hero points at the end!).

So if Spider-Man 3 is like 2 with a few improvements and better graphics, I'll probably rent it for now and pick it up when it's cheaper.

Jury's still out on the Wii version though?

[schuerm26]

All the complaints seem to be that it feels like Spider-Man 2...which I don't mind. I can understand why people would rate spider-man 2 a 7-7.5, but I absolutely loved it, despite its flaws, and would give it an 8.5-9. It's one of the few games I actually played nothing else for a week to beat it completely (even getting 50,000 hero points at the end!).

So if Spider-Man 3 is like 2 with a few improvements and better graphics, I'll probably rent it for now and pick it up when it's cheaper.

Jury's still out on the Wii version though?

From the reviews I have seen, they are saying the Wii version is the better of them. Going by Metacritic reviews.

Edit: Wii and PS3 have 68 avg. reviews, 360 has 66. The PS3 though is helped out by a 95 from PGNX Media. Not sure exactly what that is.

[BREVITY]

Reposting from my Wii ubber mini review.
On the way back from seeing the movie I stopped and got Spidy3 for Wii. Having beat 1,2 and the Amazing Spidy we were ready for some more action and what better to play it on then the Wii where you get to really sling those webs. WORST GAME EVER! Total ass, I want my rental money back. Graphics=crap (not even Wii lvl, not really PSP lvl, DS maybe. Sound=real issues here, sound goes out often when I beat a mission and at other times, car sounds are the worst about this. The constant loading, loading, loading is killing me. The controls are not at all that good either. My son has been playing these since he could pick up a controller and now that he is 6 he is very good at these game types, he is having a lot of trouble with the controls so far and so am I. The look with the C and chuck is the worst. Over all I give it a 2/10, just poor looking, playing and sounding

[tangytangerine]

Sounds like Activision did a quick port on the PS2 version. Every review has mentioned it's buggy as hell. It's got a 55% on Gamerankings right now and it's probably going no where but down. IGN's review pretty much sums up what is wrong with the game.
http://ps2.ign.com/articles/785/785702p1.html

The Wii version seems to be getting praise for the controls. Of course it's going to get praise, the Wii doesn't have a normal controller. Although it sounds like it's got some of the same bugs the PS2 version has.

Looks like the 360 & PS3 version are the only ones getting mediocre scores.

This has to be the biggest fuck-up since Enter the Matrix

[62t]

Treyarch only made Spiderman for PS3 and X360. The PC version is a port of the X360. Some other team made the PS2/Wii and portable version.

[jlarlee]

rented the 360 version and i like it. The camera can be a pain but everything else works well. I didn't play much of spidey 2 so it being similar doesn't bug me

[tangytangerine]

Some other team made the PS2/Wii and portable version.

Vicarious Visions, the only console Spider-Man game they've done is Spider-Man 2: Enter Electro for PS1. They usually do the handheld versions, seems Activision should've kept them on the handhelds only and had some other developer handle the PS2 & Wii versions.

[Kaijufan]

I really loved Spider-Man 2 so I'm planning on picking up the 360 version of 3 after a price drop or two.

[abhinav]

This has to be the biggest fuck-up since Enter the Matrix

Well said.

Treyarch only made Spiderman for PS3 and X360. The PC version is a port of the X360. Some other team made the PS2/Wii and portable version.

Are you sure about the whole PC thing? The PC version is only $10....

[jlarlee]

[QUOTE=This has to be the biggest fuck-up since Enter the Matrix[/QUOTE]
Not even close. No where near the bugs that turd had

[BREVITY]

After playing through it some more I think its clear that either they didnt beta test this at all or didnt listen to the testers b/c the Wii version atleast is horrid. It sounds like the others are as bad but IMO they should pull the Wii version from the shelves. I am glad as well that I just rented it. To tell you the truth though its not just the bugs like with the sound. Its nearly everything that was done right with Spidy 2 was done wrong here. Loading screens every few seconds, after every mission for sure.

[Wolfpup]

Is this worth $10? The Windows version is on sale at Circuit City for $10 this week, but I don't know that it's even worth that (can't believe some people are going to pay $60 for it!?!)

[darthbudge]

Well I just started playing the PC version and it looks good but even with my pretty good system:
P4 3.6 GHz Dual Core Processor
2GB of DDR2 PC-6400 RAM
Nvidia 7600GT

Even with that system I have to run it on low to be able to play it smoothly. I have been reading online and it seems that you need to upgrade your Video drivers and it will help the frame rates.
Right now I am really hoping that they release a patch soon because it is very annoying.

[dallow]

I really wanted to like this game.

[-Never4ever-]

Been playing the 360 version, decent game, but definitly not worth $60+

I find it funny that the DS version is by far the most critically acclaimed.

[Wolfpup]

Been playing the 360 version, decent game, but definitly not worth $60+

I find it funny that the DS version is by far the most critically acclaimed.

That's happened a lot of times with the GBA or DS version of a game, since it's typically 2D and is actually a totally different game design.

Of course the reverse happens too, and there have been numerous times where the DS version is the worst version...and then sometimes the GBA version is the same as the DS one, or better, or worse. Really have to check reviews!

I don't know, $10 for the full game is kind of tempting. I messed around with Spider-Man 2, and while the control wasn't perfect, it was kind of fun.

[tangytangerine]

Are you sure about the whole PC thing? The PC version is only $10....

No, Treyarch didn't do the PC version. Beenox Studios did development for the PC version.

It's a wait until the end of the week to buy type of game, cause there are not many reviews out on the PC version yet. The only ones Gamerankings has for the PC version is 1up.com(which I don't trust), who gave it 7.0, and some generic gaming site.

[jlarlee]

i deem it a perfect rental. I'm about 9 hours in and almost done

[guessed]

Well I just started playing the PC version and it looks good but even with my pretty good system:
P4 3.6 GHz Dual Core Processor
2GB of DDR2 PC-6400 RAM
Nvidia 7600GT

Even with that system I have to run it on low to be able to play it smoothly. I have been reading online and it seems that you need to upgrade your Video drivers and it will help the frame rates.
Right now I am really hoping that they release a patch soon because it is very annoying.
I haven't done much PC gaming in a long time, so please forgive my ignorance. I was considering picking this game up to test out my new laptop. It isn't a high end machine, but it is decent, I think, and it's the first one I've had with a dedicated graphics card. Would it even be worth trying to play this game on:

HP Pavilion dv7209us
Intel Core Duo Processor T2250, 1.73GHz Centrino
2GB (2x1 DDR2 PC5300 DUAL SO-DIMM) RAM
17-inch WXGA+ TFT Display (1440x900)
256MB NVIDIA GeForce Go 7600
Windows Vista Home Premium


I think the video card could probably handle it after driver updates and possible patches -- maybe not silky-smooth, but reasonable. My main concern is the processor. Ever since the switch to dual core, I don't know what beats what. The minimum requirements state a minimum 2.8GHz Intel P4 or AMD Athlon XP processor, and mine is only 1.73, but it is dual core, so I don't know how that fits in (I assume one can't just double that number to determine the speed, since both cores are limited to the same bus, but I really don't know).

Obviously my laptop is not as powerful as darthbudge's, but will it play at all? I'm really not as stupid as I seem here, I've just steered clear of worrying about system requirements for too long.

[Wolfpup]

You can't add up cores. Some games benefit from multiple cores, others don't (since this is kind of a "let's throw this out for the movie" type game, I wouldn't count on it having stellar programming).

That said, I'd think a 1.73GHz Core 1 should be around as powerful as a 2.8GHz Pentium 4.

Probably the bigger issue will be video drivers. A Geforce 7600 should be okay, but HP may not keep their drivers up to date, and you may not be able to install Nvidia's real drivers without an modded inf file (from like Driver Heaven or whatever that site is).

[guessed]

You can't add up cores. Some games benefit from multiple cores, others don't (since this is kind of a "let's throw this out for the movie" type game, I wouldn't count on it having stellar programming).

That said, I'd think a 1.73GHz Core 1 should be around as powerful as a 2.8GHz Pentium 4.

Probably the bigger issue will be video drivers. A Geforce 7600 should be okay, but HP may not keep their drivers up to date, and you may not be able to install Nvidia's real drivers without an modded inf file (from like Driver Heaven or whatever that site is).

Thank you for the response.

[jkam]

I really don't understand how the very first PSONE Spider-Man was so damn good and they have yet to build upon that framework. I guess Spider-Man The Movie was in that vein and it is harder to pull off a free roaming world but none of these titles seem to have captured what that first one did. I like these games but they still lack something. It might make more sense for them to try a more crackdown approach to the graphics as opposed to going for realism...I mean Spidey is after all a comic book character. I hope with the next few games they can work out the kinks.

[Wolfpup]

I *HATED* the PS1 Spider-Man game. IMO that's one of the worst, most overrated games I've ever played. The play control was abysmal...which is especially bad when you're supposed to be controlling one of the most agile characters ever made!

From what I played of Spider-Man 2 (Gamecube), it was way, way better than that old game, even if it was still far from perfect.

[propeller_head]

http://www.penny-arcade.com/images/2007/20070509.jpg
:lol: