by Montana Firth on May 15, 2009

God of War, Hugh Jackman, Marvel Comics, Wolverine, X-Men, X-Men Origins, X-Men Origins: Wolverine

If there’s a better way to introduce myself to Mg readers than with explosions of reckless abandon and a hearty portion of blood lust, I don’t know what it could be. I’m going to dive in with Marvel Comics’ most popular claw-based hero, Wolverine, and the recent X-Men Origins: Wolverine title released in tandem with the film of the same name. Every one that has played a movie licensed game knows that you should never expect much, however this is one of the few exceptions to the rules. Origins: Wolverine offers a solid gaming experience that offers quite a bit of fun.

The amount of polish that went into this game definitely helps set it apart from the norm. Raven Software had this game ready when the Wolverine movie was set to hit theater. When the movie got pushed back, it gave them a lot more time to tweak the game, really working with the game play. Honestly it shows, I almost wished when I was playing I could have played the original they had planned to released just to check the difference.

But let’s get down to brass tax here: in this game you play as Wolverine (Logan, James Howlett, whatever your fancy) as he (mostly) follows the story-line created for the movie. What stands out about the story is the amount of extra content they put in. Throughout the game’s main story you are put in flashbacks of Logan’s work with Striker and the others in Africa. Even the subtle differences in the story, such as finding Blob in a grocery store rather than in the gym really keeps the game fresh from the movie. After all, a complete carbon copy of a movie can be an acceptable game, but most times that really just doesn’t offer a new and engaging gaming experience.

Speaking of gaming experience, did I mention the fact that Wolverine serves up a platter of vengeance the likes of which this world has never seen? Seriously, I found myself wincing a few times at the violent arm-ripping, statue-impaling, face-crushing combos that litter this game. The term hack and slash definitely suit this game, because you are constantly in a shower of bad guy blood and furious Hugh Jackman screams (naturally, he supplies the voice for Wolverine).

One of the coolest moves in this game that really makes controlling the protagonist so entertaining is the Wolverine lunge. Simple to do, but somehow never tired. For instance, an enemy will be across the map minding his own business thinking villainous thoughts. Simply lock on and push a button (I played on the 360 so it may be different, I’m sure the handy dandy tutorial will elaborate more), and Wolverine soars across the map rocking that guy’s world more than anything in his short video game life.

The controls are very easy to pick up, anybody familiar to other traditional hack and slash games will be able to catch on quick and be fighting for revenge in no time. However this game is in no way perfect. Something that has been a continuing feature in games is the God of War-esque button sequences, which Wolverine features in abundance.

If your looking to seek some quick revenge on those who wronged you (Lord knows I was) X-Men Origins: Wolverine is definitely a title worth playing through. It supplies nice visuals (some of the in game movies are just liquid awesome), fun game play, and a lot of Weapon X style fun.

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