Download hero lab mutants and masterminds
Flardcore fighting game fans will be disappointed. For fans, this is a keeper, for everyone else, XM:MA is a short-lived button-masher. Other simple routines will see you to the end just as easily.
I was able to juggle Gambit, Cyclops and others, in the corner, using only Beast's strong uppercut, pressing only one button. And while the game has responsive controls, the enemy Al is surprisingly dimwitted. That would be permissible, since it just plays like a 2D fighter, but there just isn't enough to it-the fighting system is incredibly basic. So what's the problem? Well for one thing, the game doesn't let you move in 3D, only left and right. The usual survival modes and versus modes abound, and the game makes good use of the Thrill Kill/Wu-Tang graphics engine. A Cerebro Mode contains all the sketches, CG renders, into movies, and even the theatrical trailer from the X-Men movie. It also offers a neat-o take on the typical training mode by offering the "Academy Mode," set in the Danger Room where you learn your character's techniques. Featuring all the characters found in the movie, it features some nice 3D characters and backgrounds, non-embarrassing vocal samples, responsive controls and a wealth of X-Men-related paraphernalia to unlock by beating the game. Scheduled to come out just in time for the movie, X-Men: Mutant Academy is an X-Men fan's dream come true.