- Release Date: May 17, 2001
- Genre: Action
- Style: Side-Scrolling Platform
- Similar Games: Batman: Chaos in Gotham (Game Boy Color), X-Men: Mutant Academy (Game Boy Color), Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker (Game Boy Color)
Game Description
Doctor Octopus has kidnapped Aunt May and unleashed The Sinister Six on Spider-Man. It's time to swing through 18 deadly levels to save your aunt and defeat this supergroup of villains. At your disposal are punches, kicks and webbing that paralyzes your foes. To stay alive, you'll need to collect power-ups like life, health and web cartridges. A password system is used to save your place in the game.~ All Game Guide
Review: Overall
Spider-Man 2: The Sinister Six doesn't offer much new compared to the webhead's previous videogame outings, but if you liked 2000's Spider-Man on the Game Boy Color, you'll appreciate this solid sequel, which makes slight improvements to its predecessor but doesn't tinker with a winning formula.At first glance, it appears that many of the graphics have been recycled from the previous GBC game, but close comparison reveals that the sequel has more refined animation, as well as some extra touches, such as the "kapow" and "boof" that appear when Spidey knocks out an enemy. The backgrounds are also richer, with more detailed buildings and backgrounds. These additions make what was an already impressive game even more attractive. Spider-Man himself still remains on the smallish side, but the attention that was paid to making him run, jump and swing smoothly makes it a fair trade-off.
The minimal storyline, which revolves around the kidnapping of Aunt May by the Sinister Six, is forwarded by some nicely drawn static cut-scenes accompanied by text dialogue. Mysterio, The Sandman, Doctor Octopus and other familiar enemies all make appearances, but most of the time you'll face the usual endless array of generic thugs and ne'er-do-wells.
The gameplay should be familiar to players of the original, which is to say that controlling all aspects of Spider-Man's movements is easy, from swinging on a web to crawling along the ceiling. And the game's levels are laid out in such a way that there's plenty of opportunity to do both. The environments are designed so that it's necessary to crawl through tunnels and up the sides of buildings to get to where you're going. The drawback is that sometimes it's easy to get lost in a maze of corridors without a clear sense of where to go next.
The fact that Spider-Man 2 doesn't stray too far from Vicarious Visions' 2000 effort should please fans of the original who are looking for more of the same, as well as those looking for their first taste of some web-slinging on the Game Boy Color.
~ Skyler Miller, All Game Guide
Review: Enjoyment
The gameplay can feel a bit stale at times, but the formula is executed extremely well.~ Skyler Miller, All Game Guide
Review: Graphics
The visuals aren't overtly impressive, but the level of detail put into Spider-Man's movement and animation is remarkable.~ Skyler Miller, All Game Guide
Review: Sound
The soundtrack is a nice mix of energetic tunes and appropriate sound effects.~ Skyler Miller, All Game Guide
Review: Replay Value
{*Spider-Man 2}'s quest offers sufficient length and challenge to hold most portable gamers' attentions.~ Skyler Miller, All Game Guide
Review: Documentation
The color instruction manual describes how to play, and gives the origin of {%Spider-Man} and his powers.~ Skyler Miller, All Game Guide
Production Credits
TORUS GAMES Managing Director: Bill McIntosh; General Manager: Steve Leonard; Producer: Kevin McIntosh; Lead Programmer: Grant Davies; Game Designer: Michael Solomons; Programmers: Michael Smith, Peter Suwara; Lead Artist: Andrew McIntosh; Artists: Paul Clarke, Teuvo Heikkila, Ivan Kenny-Sumiga; QA Managers: Brian Uniacke, Andrew Major; Lead Tester: Brad Lewis; Music and Sound: Manfred Linzer; ACTIVISION Producer: TQ Jefferson; Senior Producer: Marc Turndorf; Executive Producer: Murali Tegulapalle; Production Coordinator: Jay Gordon; VP, Global Brand Management: Tricia Bertero; Director, Global Brand Management: Melissa Chapman; Brand Manager: Nita Patel; Senior Publicist: Lisa Fields; Written by: TQ Jefferson, Marc Turndorf; Legal: Michael Hand, Rob Pfau; Activision Quality Assurance QA Console Manager: Joe Favazza; Senior Project Lead: Kragen Lum; Project Lead: Geoffrey Olsen; Testers: Carlos Monroy, Travis Tremblay, Jason Potter, Dave Stofla, John Sweeney, Eric Rodriguez; QA Special Thanks: Mom, Dad, Nicholas Favazza, Nathan Lum, Jairo Silva, Ben Deguzman, Tanya Oviedo, Blaine Christine, Matt McClure, Glenn Vistante, Tanya Langston, Nadine Theuzillot, Jason Wong, Sam Nouriani, Jeremy Gage, Tim Vanlaw, Jim Summers, Rob Brar, Mark Chubo
~ Rolando Eccleston, All Game Guide
