Dan’s Top 3 Comic Book-Themed Video Games
[Three ground rules. 1) All games considered must have its origins rooted in a published comic book, ie: Marvel, DC, Image, etc. Power Puff Girls and the Simpsons do not qualify since they were “born” on screen. 2) WOW factor must be taken into consideration when ranking the games. WOW factor is defined by how the game was recieved by comic fans/gamers when it came out. This is very important because it opens up the field to any console/arcade game, any year. ie: I would argue that of the two Spider-Man games based on the movies, Spider-Man 1 would rank higher than Spider-Man 2 because even though Spider-Man 2 had better graphics and GTA-style game play, Spider-Man 1 laid the foundation. Spider-Man 2 built on and improved that model, but its WOW factor was diminished because of it. 3) Only games I have actually played can make the list!]
3. Batman: Rise of Sin Tzu (2003)
Hands down, the best Batman game ever made. Video games haven’t been Batman’s strong suit over the years, but this one comes through. A run of the mill brawler brought to life by great animation and a plethora of gadgets/combos to unlock. Not to mention co-op play, and the ability to choose from Batman, Robin (Tim Drake), Nightwing, or Batgirl (Barbara Gordon). In addition, the main villian of the story was specially created for the game by fan favorite, Jim Lee. It’s head and shoulders above any other Bat-game made, and it’s a can’t miss for all Bat-fans.
2. X-Men – Arcade (1992)
You can’t go wrong with 6-player mutant brawler action. Die Sentinals, Die!! I remember burning through lunch money playing this game at Time Out, back in the day. For its time, this game had top-notch graphics. Multi-player brawlers were nothing new to the arcade, but how could you resist playing as everyones favoirte muties? My one complaint, what’s up with the miniature Sentinals? Those suckers are suppose to be ginormous!! The success of this game spawned another Marvel-based team brawler, The Avengers. It featured Captain America and Iron Man among others, but it pales in comparison to X-Men. The children of the atom rule the second spot!
1. Spider-Man – Atari 2600 (1983)
Behold the pixelated materpiece that is Spidey! Nuff Said!!!
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What about Marvel vs. Capcom?
Fintan Patch,
While it’s true Marvel vs. Capcom is a good game, here is why it didn’t crack the list. Referring to groud rule 1, this game has a mixed cast of Marvel & Capcom charactors. Because of that it couldn’t be considered. Also its WOW factor, (ground rule 2)wouldn’t be high enough to make the list. Marvel vs. Capcom is a quasi-sequel to Marvel vs. Street Fighter, which was released a year earlier.
Dan
I must agree – that Atari 2600 Spider-man game was very cool.
Okay, maybe M vs. C doesn’t count. What about Marvel Superheroes then?
I keep reading that Spider-man: Web of Fire for the 32X was great.
Batman for the NES was pretty cool in its day. X-Men: Mutant Apocalypse for S-NES was supposed to be pretty good. The new X-Men game for all the systems looks like it could kick ass.
That Batman game you mentioned – that’s not technically based on the comic – it’s based more on the cartoon, I think. The first Batman game for X-Box, PS2, etc… was pretty decent.
Definitely one of the worst comic games of all time was the Hulk for the PS1.