PlayStation

The Fantastic Four

I really enjoy this type of game, so I was very disappointed that Fantastic Four was not done better. The long, monotonous levels will leave you screaming for some variety. I still don't understand why there are 5 characters and they are called the Fantastic Four, but this really does not matter when playing the game. Overall, you will tire quickly of the game, which is a shame.

Wrap the whole package up with an enormously grating smooth jazz soundtrack, and you have a superhero game that even The Power Pack wouldn't put its name on. If you're not familiar with that sub-par superhero team, we recommend you dig up some of their comics in a 25-cent bin rather than play this piece of pulpy trash.

Overall, Fantastic Four could have been a much better game, and it's unfortunate that the core game isn't better. All the external features are nice, but without a good game to center it all, it just falls flat. Fans of beat-'em-ups would be better served by Eidos' similarly-themed Fighting Force.

Unfortunately, the character animation is stiff, the sound effects are campy, and the gameplay quickly becomes repetitive.

Then it gets really bad. The control is, well, abysmal. The response is tediously slow, turning what should be standard punches and kicks into lethargic geriatric exercises. Add in jerky animation and rough sprite characters, and you've got one laughable game. We even went into the Options menu, hoping that maybe the 'Fun' option had been turned off. No such luck. Aside from the mildly entertaining load screen game, Fantastic Four is just plain horrible. It's insulting that Acclaim would still try to foist this on us after claiming it had changed its ways. Apparently old habits are hard to break.