Mark Gruenwald Pwns Larry Flynt

[thebitterguy]

I know some people will disagree, but I still really like Marvel: Ultimate Alliance. I've been replaying it since I got the 360, and it's just as much fun as it was originally.

Now, admittedly, this is almost purely because if it being a huge testament to continuity porn. No, seriously, it treats The OHOTMU as a stroke mag.

And, first, I'd like to say that OHOTMU and NWOBHM are my two favourite acronyms ever.

Anyway, the sheer amount of delight to be found in there for an old comics fan (35 is old, now) are great. You see various fairly obscure characters show up (Tiger Shark? Longtime Bitter Guide punchline Attuma?) and there's not a sign of Jennifer Jones, who is not that interesting a character. Sorry, kids.

And now that they've made Hawkeye, The Hulk, Cyclops & NIghtcrawler available as PCs (how they integrate that with Nightcrawler's rather important NPC role in one chapter will be interesting to see) it's even better. I've started walking through it with old school Avengers Captain America, Iron Man, Hulk & Thor. I presume that the Mandarin level will be just as annoying the second time around.

If only there was an option to play through as Alpha Flight. Ah, well. Maybe in the sequel.

Comments

[viktor-haag.livejournal.com]

NWOBHM?

Does that have something to do with Hustler Magazine?

[thetathx1138.livejournal.com]

I loved the continuity porn aspect, but the mechanics of UA just piss me off. The entire fun of the X-Men Legends games outside of the sweet, sweet fanservice was tweaking the characters and matchups. It wasn't quite an RPG but it was pretty close. UA the character modifications is just "Oh, you can make their superpowers stronger and select the ones you want to use." Zzzzzzzz.


That said, I definitely understand why you'd keep it around just for the continuity porn. Your stroke mag analogy is NOT far off!

[thetathx1138.livejournal.com]

Google thinks it means the New Wave of British Heavy Metal.

[viktor-haag.livejournal.com]

Ah! I was envisioning Neat Women Of Busty Hustler Magazine, or some-such, from TBG's subject line...

[thebitterguy]

New Wave of British Heavy Metal Music.

And I suspect Ozzy may have been interviewed in Hustler on occasion.

[thebitterguy]

I really ignore that to a degree that is almost criminal. The costume variety is fun, and I tend to just pick a power and ramp it up and use it to punch people.

[thetathx1138.livejournal.com]

Well, yeah, that's what the game was designed for, wade in and press the attack button until either you or your opponent die. What I liked was taking, say, Colossus or Iceman and making them almost offensely overpowered. Nothing like making henchsicles. :-)

[tfbretz.livejournal.com]

True conversational snippets from Casa de Bretz this past Sunday:

*********

Unit-387: Dad? Can I play your Marvel Alliance game?

Me: Sure

(about an hour passes)

Unit-387: You know that level you couldn't beat with the missiles? I figured it out.

(another hour later)

Unit-387: I have to fight this enormous dragon!

Me: Is he wearing pants?

Unit-387: No! Why?

Me: How is he going to stuff you in his pants then?

(Twenty minutes later. Overheard.)

Unit-387: Mom! I beat this HUGE DRAGON!

Jane: Was he wearing pants?

*********

I love my family.

[thetathx1138.livejournal.com]

There's nothing like family bonding over Fing Fang Foom the Flasher.

[srhall79.livejournal.com]

You certainly married the right woman.

TBG, you've invoked the holy name of Gruenwald- I was a big fan of the Avengers during his days as editor. Now by drawing a connection between him and this game, I will have to seek out a copy to try it out.

[bluelang.livejournal.com]

Alpha Flight Ultimate Alliance.

For the Win.

[thebitterguy]

I'll take two!

[thebitterguy]

Did he mean the Captain America training disc level? Because that was a pain.

And Nextwave FTW.

[tfbretz.livejournal.com]

No, he meant pretty much the first assignment Fury gives you in the game, where you have to stop a missile launch or something.

Have I ever mentioned I totally suck at vidyagames?

[thebitterguy]

Ouch. Well, at least you have a young child to help you.

[tfbretz.livejournal.com]

Well, to be fair, part of my problem with the game is said young child's help when we were playing it previously. See, he's at that age where he can read, but he doesn't read. So whenever helpful little tidbits, like say -- MISSION INSTRUCTIONS -- show up on the screen, I have about a picosecond in which to read them before Mr. Twitchythumbs hits the X button and sends them to limbo.

I imagine the game is much easier when you have a clear idea of what you're trying to accomplish.

[dewline.livejournal.com]

It would be nice, wouldn't it?

(Wishing I had an AF icon right now...and hating "The Collective" more than ever.)

[thebitterguy]

I really miss Super-Storm in the original XML. She won the game solo.

Two unrelated items I'd actually like to ask you about:

A) Is bs_about_comics worth reading? It seems to have replaced seebelow's snark with whine.

B) So, now that HD-DVD has run up the white flag, what are your feelings?

[thetathx1138.livejournal.com]

bs_about_comics isn't as far ranging as I remember seebelow being, but it's generally not bad. It lives up to its name, certainly.

As for HD-DVD versus Blu-Ray, one had to win the format war to go forth and be at best a niche product against DVD. Unless the cost of Blu-Ray players sinks like a rock and the massive wave of HDTV sales that home theater geeks insist is going to happen any day now ever does actually happen (they seriously hold this as an article of faith, that the American people will spontaneously all see the light at once and rush out to get new TVs, instead of spending twenty bucks on a converter box, or not even noticing the HD switch because their cable settop does it for them)...I would hold off.