Spider-Man 2: Enter Electro

Overview

A sequel to the Spider-Man game from 2000, largely following the same action-adventure brawler blueprint.

Gameplay

The game is sectioned off into 24 levels, usually having accompanying cutscenes before and after to set the scene.

By playing the game players can achieve certain goals and claim new costumes. Many of them give Spider-Man certain different abilities. All of the costumes from the previous game are also included in Enter Electro.

The gameplay and design of Enter Electro follow the same path as the previous game, one of the main differences including playing at ground level. In the prior game, if a player swung too low, they would be engulfed by a poison yellow mist and fall to their death. Unlike that game however, Enter Electro presented itself as city level streets, that were shown in an almost grid like form, as opposed to fee roaming from the last game. Also the player doesn't have to stop to fire a web ball, now able to do so in mid air, which is usefull during combat.

When Spider-Man goes to the training section, he finds himself in the X-Men Danger room being guided by Professor X and Rogue.

Hand animations were also updated, so as to not have characters constantly just waving fists during cutscenes.

Plot

Having met up with the Beast from the X-Men and recieved a brief lesson, Spider-Man finds that somebody is staging a robbery at a company called BioTech. Intervening, the thieves take off but Spider-Man quickly places a tracer on the leader's motorbike. As Spidey follows them to a warehouse, he finds himself in a warehouse where he takes out all the thugs, saving the leader for last who he then interrogates. The thug tells Spidey where his boss, The Shocker, is, and Spider-Man takes off to battle Shocker. Defeating him, the Shocker mentions an airfield and on his way to the airfield, Spider-Man helps contain a bomb scare. When he finally reaches the airfield, Spider-Man sees a plane being taken off, but when he finds that the supposed pilot is unconscious, he places a tracer on an accompanying helicopter. Spider-Man frees the Pilot who manages to take control of the plane, stopping it from crashing, Spider-Man begins to chase down the helicopter to a train yard where he finds the Sandman. Fighting the Sandman and defeating him, Spidey then flees aboard a train, where he sees Beetle disapear, but not before he leaves a clue for Spidey to find.

Following the clue to a Science and Industry ball, Spider-Man witnesses Hammerhead kidnapping Dr. Watts. Spider-Man fights Hammerhead, but by the time Spidey wins, he finds that Sandman has escaped with Dr. Watts in his stead. Spider-Man, out of leads, decides to investigate BioTech for clues, where he encounters the Lizard. After a brief battle, the Lizard morphs back into Dr. Curt Connors who explains to Spider-Man that the mastermind of the plot is Electro, and that he plans to steal a Bio-Nexus device and that Spider-Man should make his way to Dr. Watts' lab.

Spidey arrives at the lab and finds out about the Bio-Nexus' power source, when suddenly, the Sandman appears and the two fight. Upon defeating Sandman, Spider-Man sees a news report about the Bio-Nexus' power source; a sapphire on display in a local museum called Zeus's Tear. Spidey makes his way there, finding Dr. Watts and Electro. As Spidey and Electro fight, Electro manages to grab Dr. Watts and says he will give Spider-Man Dr. Watts if Spidey gives Electro the sapphire. Spider-Man throws the sapphire but misses in an attempt to grab it again, once he has Dr. Watts but fails and Electro grabs the sapphire.

Using the gem to supercharge himself, Electro becomes Hyper-Electro and flys into a conductor to charge himself up. Electro screams: "TONIGHT, ELECTRO DANCES WITH THE GODS!"

After an extensive battle, Spider-Man defeats Electro. The game ends with Electro and his cronies in the same cell as the villains from the previous game. As Spider-Man reads the Daily Bugle, he sighs as all his work has been credited to the Mighty Thor.

September 11, 2001 edits

Originally, the game's final boss battle was to be set atop of the World Trade Centre, but the events of Sept. 11, 2001 resulted in the game being pulled and certain aspects edited. Originally, Spidey realised where Electro was going thanks to the clue of Electro shouting "Top of the world, Man!" but Spidey just happens to guess correctly in the edited version.

At the end of the game, The Mighty Thor is given all the praise for defeating Electro. In the original cut of the game, Thor was intended to have appeared in a video segment, where he speaks with Spidey just after Hyper-Electro was defeated, and Thor is seen later as having defeated Electro.

Multiple levels of the game were renamed.

Response

The game recieved rather negative riews in comparison to it's predecessor. IGN gave the game 5.5/10 bluntly stating "Don't buy this game." making mention of inconsistent gameplay, and an overall irritable experience.

On Gamespot, the game got 7.1 however. Noting that it was somewhat short, and not necassarily worth buying, but recomending a weekend rental.

On Metacritic, the game has a score of 74/100, lower than it's predecessor, but still around average.

Cast

Spider-Man, Palooka, Police broadcast...Rino Romano

Electro / Hyper Electro, Hammerhead, Beast, Computer 3, Lizard/Dr. Curt Connors...Dee Bradley Baker

Female Computer voice, Female walky talky voice...Kathryn Fiore

Rogue, Dr. Watts, Computer 2...Jennifer Hale

Shocker, Sandman, Public Address, Professor X, Beetle...Daran Norris

Main Thug, Prisoner #1 yelling...Rob Tinkler

Terrorist #1, Security Guard #1, Train Yard Guard #1, Train Yard Guard #2, Thug laughing #1, Prisoner #2 yelling...Marcus Shirock

Henchman, Terrorist #2, Train Yard Guard #3, Thug laughing #2 (Hugh pitch), Prisoner #3 yelling...Christopher Corey Smith

Narrator...Stan Lee