When video game powerhouse Electronic Arts announced that it was creating a fighting game featuring characters from Marvel comics as well as the Imperfects, characters in a new EA created super-villain game, the gaming community let out a collective “huh?” Does that mean that John Madden will fight the Hulk? Will Doctor Doom duke it out with the car from “Burnout Revenge”? Will a fighting game from EA be worth our time? Well, “Marvel Nemesis: Rise of the Imperfects” is out and the answer to all the aforementioned questions is “No.”
EA’s brawler is part beat-’em-up, part fighter and all mediocre. The multiplayer environment is entertaining for about a half an hour. It’s fun to see superheroes slug it out in the game’s 3-D environments. It’s fun to watch Spider-Man grab someone with a web and then kick them into the air. It is fun to throw a large flaming truck at your buddy. But the novelty quickly fades when you realize that the combat system is about as complex as “Super Mario Bros.”
Single player is so dull you almost forget about it while playing the game. To add insult to injury, you have to play through the single-player mode if you want to unlock any characters. There are only six characters unlocked from the outset. These characters are fairly standard and get stale after a few plays.
If you are a huge fan of Marvel and are willing to do some legwork to play a mediocre fighting game then you should rent it. The rest of you go pick up “Def Jam Fight for NY,” if you are looking for a good brawler.

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