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	Spider-Man: The Movie
	Developer: Gray Matter Interactive Studios Publisher: Activision Genre: Action Players: 1-4 Similar To: Spider-Man (99/2000) Rating: Everyone Published: 06 :12 : 02 Reviewed By: Nick Stewart Overall: 8 = Excellent

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Thankfully, with this new storyline also comes a newfound sense of freedom, as the fog that marred much of the web-slinging fun of the original title is now gone, leaving New York City's skyline wide open for our hero to explore. That's right, Spidey is finally free to swing across the tops of high-rises and skyscrapers, swooping over rooftops as traffic presses on far below him. More so than any other aspect of this game, being able to finally pursue this high-flying action is a glorious and truly breath-taking experience, as Spidey comes to life like never before. What's more is that you'll also find yourself doing battle in these unfriendly skies against all manner of robots, freaks, and villains, lending even further credibility to the fact that you are indeed Spider-man. The only downside to the tremendous web-slinging fun offered by the skyline levels is that it makes the indoor levels feel that much more claustrophobic and restrictive, forcing Spidey to work around the newfound lack of freedom. It should be noted however that while the indoor areas are less appealing than the wide-open missions, they are still well-designed and offer plenty of opportunities to creep stealthily through the shadows, not to mention that there are enough overhangs, catwalks and other elevated surfaces to zip and swing onto. To be fair, a game full of non-stop swinging through skylines would be rather dull, and although there's a fairly good mix of indoor and outdoor levels, it's impossible to deny that Spidey shines brightest when he's given the most room to maneuver.

Fortunately, Parker has been given considerably more abilities to work with this time around, imbuing him with a great deal more power than previous games have allowed him. While classic stand-bys such as the web-swing, zip-line, impact webbing, web dome and web-yank have been carried over intact, Spidey now has access to a greater amount of skills that he can use to mete out his own unique brand of justice. For starters, there's the signature "yo-yo" move, where you hang upside-down from the ceiling on a line of webbing, using it to lower or raise yourself in order to stealthily check out a room or to take aim at an unwary enemy. Additionally, Spidey can draw upon a staggeringly wide variety of combo-powered attack moves, which range from barroom-style uppercuts and haymakers to fancy acrobatic footwork such as handsprings and diving rolls, and even to items you'd expect to see on the gridiron, like tackles and field goal-ish kicks. The sheer number of attacks afforded Spidey makes it feel as though you're truly controlling a genuine crimefighter, and definitely help to add to the wild comic-book style that oozes from the game's every pore.

Of course, this Street-Fighter-like repertoire doesn't come automatically; in fact, the game makes you work for it, forcing you to seek out and discover the moves on your own, giving you an additional move every time you collect one of the many oft-hidden gold spider icons. In fact, Spider-Man: The Movie is rife with touches such as this that help to give the game an incredibly healthy degree of replayability. Perhaps the most obvious example of this is the 'point' system that's in place for each and every level, whereupon accomplishing certain feats - such as finding all the secrets, beating the mission under a certain time, fighting with a sufficient amount of flair -- will earn you a better score which in turn will unlock features or secrets. Some extras, such as different skins and tutorial options, are of a cosmetic variety, while others go so far as to offer organic webbing and even an additional playable character. There's even an entire slew of viewable production art and even deleted CG-movies, offering Spidey fans enough unlockable content to choke a Rhino. Combined with the fact that you can instantly jump back and forth between levels you've completed, this system does wonders for extending this excellent game's shelf life.

Graphics: 9/10
Although not photorealistic, Spider-Man: The Movie's graphics certainly come close enough to make you forget about the shoddy visual treatment PC gamers were submitted to at the hands of Spidey's last PlayStation port. Gone are the ugly angles and bland textures from the previous version, instead replaced with gorgeous and incredibly detailed costumes, clothing, and buildings that mimic the movie version impressively well - so well in fact that you'll likely find yourself spending extra time swinging across the NYC skyline just to admire the realistic look and feel. Even small details help to flesh out the ensemble, such as the bustle of traffic far beneath your feet as you swing through New York, or even the nicely fluid animation that powers Spidey's every movement. Although this version of the game doesn't feature any drastic improvements over its console brethren, the ability to boost the resolution is a definite plus to an already impressive graphical outing.

Sound: 8.5/10
Since Stan "The Man" Lee wasn't part of the Spider-Man movie (apart from an incredibly brief cameo), his terrific narration no longer figures into the game; however, if you're going to replace The Man, you'd best be sure that you have someone equally charismatic and cool, and let's face it, Bruce Campbell fits the bill perfectly. Although his vocal stylings only figure into the tutorials and initial stages, Campbell stamps his sarcastic, mocking tone onto the game and sets the tone for the good times to come. What's even more surprising than Campbell's appearance here is that both Tobey Maguire and Willem Dafoe voice their digital counterparts with every bit as enthusiasm as if they were on the big screen. Maguire does a particularly good job injecting a greater sense of wisecracking humor into his character here than in the actual movie, more closely approaching the comic book Spidey with his constant mockery of his enemies - the bit where he refers to Shocker as Quiltman springs to mind. There is some repetition during prolonged boss battles, but it's not so bad that you'll forget how great the sounds and vocals truly are.

Control: 3/10
If there's one aspect of Spider-Man: The Movie that drags it down from "classic" status to simply "excellent", it's the controls. As is the case with practically every third-person action game ever created (with perhaps the exception of Max Payne), this title suffers from a god-awful camera system whose shortcomings constantly interfere with your ability to effectively fight crime, or even survive. As was the case with past Spider-Man titles, the camera struggles to keep up with you as you zip and swing about while trying to fend off groups of attackers, and as a result, it's almost never pointing in the direction that you need it to be. Now, this problem is somewhat mitigated by the Camera Lock option that enables you to more easily track selected enemies, but when you're attempting to fend off large groups or duke it out in closed-in spaces, this option becomes practically useless. Additionally, because the camera is so unwieldy, you'll often find Spider-Man himself to be extremely difficult to control. Pressing up can have a variety of different effects depending on which direction the camera is facing, and since you spend virtually all of your time jumping about, this direction changes wildly from moment to moment. As a result, it's incredibly easy to take a misstep into the path of a trap or an enemy's attack, not to mention that it's incredibly frustrating. Using an actual controller is a slightly more viable option, but even then, the problems are unfortunately still quite persistent. It's often enough to make you want to turn off the game out of sheer frustration, but its fun factor barely manages to save it from the brink time and time again.

Overall: 8/10
Though it's not exactly perfect, Spider-Man: The Movie represents a landmark in Spidey's digital history, as it is the first time that he has truly been done justice on the PC. Web-slinging and swinging high above New York City is an absolutely breath-taking experience, and is one that has been rendered beautifully within the confines of this terrific game. The drastically enhanced combat system also plays a considerable part in bringing the player more fully into Spidey's tights, enabling you to string together various combos and web-based moves in order to bring the bad guys to justice. Unfortunately, persistent and frustrating camera issues constantly threaten to ruin the fun, often leaving you to wonder if the real bad guy is the Green Goblin, or the woefully inadequate control scheme. Still, for all its problems, even the awkward controls can't rob the game of its comic-book brand of atmospheric cool, its incredibly stylish visuals, and most importantly, its undeniable fun factor. If you're looking to live the action-packed super-hero experience, you'll be hard-pressed to do better than Spider-Man: The Movie.

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