The Gist:
The fourth wall breaking merc with a mouth has been given his own video game adaptation. Only after he slices and dices his way through the board members that is. Next follows a series of stages and adventures where he meets up with classic heroes such as Wolverine and Cable. Cue vulgar humour and hilarity to the extreme.
The Review:
So it goes without saying that after this year’s flop that was Fantastic Four, it’s pretty obvious Twentieth Century Fox doesn’t have a clue about how to make comic book movies. To the hard-core fan base, that became apparent when they decided to sew Deadpool‘s mouth shut in X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Hopefully they learnt their lesson with the anticipated Ryan Reynolds film but for now, we have Deadpool the video game.
We begin with Deadpool sitting in his lonely rundown apartment arguing with his inner voices. His proposal for a video game has been rejected having written it in crayon and he sees this as a reason to go and kill the head of the company. Along the way he has to team up with Wolverine, Rogue and other members of the X universe. Having said all that, there isn’t much point to the story to be honest. What you want here is Deadpool being himself and that is what you get. Voiced by Nolan North, a veteran in games and animated shows, Deadpool is both crass and hilarious, as he argues with his inner voices and well just about anyone he meets.
The game play is a mix of hack n slash and gunplay, all in third person except for a few minigun sequences. This should have been one of the highlights for Deadpool is an accomplished and skilled fighter. While there are a few moves to pull off for sure, there isn’t much of a need to. The button combinations can be tiresome and whoever thought of putting the execute and dash button as the same needs a good kick in the nuts. That’s not to say it ruins the game by any means, just a flaw which could have easily been avoided. We have hundreds of hack and slash games from Devil May Cry to God of War, and each possess a unique fighting style despite being similar overall. Deadpool I’m afraid doesn’t have that uniqueness. I also found the aiming system to be a bit off at times, I’m sure I wasn’t drunk when playing this although that would have made for an interesting experience. There are the usual upgrades to his weaponry and such plus you can also pick up other weapons that enemies have dropped too.
What the game does rely on if you haven’t figured that out already is its humour and that comes aplenty. The graphics accordingly are very well done. Wade is fully rendered and despite the actions shortcomings, he moves fluidly and looks fabulous as he does. Other character models are also worth a mention for their detail and design. Level designs are good but your main focus will be the central character regardless.
Nolan North who has voiced Superboy and Cyclops to name a few voices Deadpool here and nails the humour perfectly. The fourth wall is broken so much in this game that hell it doesn’t even exist anymore. Deadpool constantly addresses the player and himself which never gets old. The rest of the cast do a splendid job, as for sound effects and music, top notch.
The Verdict:
While personally I wasn’t craving for this game, it was a pleasant surprise which also sparked my interest for the movie more. While it has some shortcomings when it comes to gameplay, nothing can be said about the story presentation and acting. Deadpool, the floor is yours.
Story: 4/5 Fun and filled with excellent in-jokes, it will keep your chuckling throughout
Graphics: 5/5 Forget nitty gritty, this is as colourful as can be
Gameplay: 3/5 Could have done with some improvements but it works for the most part
Sound: 5/5 Both action and voice acting is on point
Available on: PC, Xbox 360, PS3
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