X-Men: Next Dimension

X-Men fans have plenty to get excited about with this title. Not only is it the best in the series, by far, but it actually supports a decent combat system with a fairly balanced cast. Unfortunately, the graphics and animation aren’t much better than in the previous PS2 version, and the controller will take time to get used to. If Activision can improve the superficial aspects and make the combat deeper and more precise, this series can be a serious contender.

Activision has brought this title a long way since its first incarnation, refining Next Dimension to the point of being a fighter that holds its own. The combat system makes the most significant leap forward. It now feels much less random and hectic, and is fairly precise. Performing air combos, regular combos, chains, and super moves is easy with a little training. Although the combat is relatively more open-ended, ND still cannot touch the depth and precision of Capcom’s Marvel titles.

If you love the X-Men, fighting and tight fitting clothes on women, this game is for you. Then again, if you love the X-Men, fighting and tight fitting clothes on men, this game is also for you. I guess this game is for everyone thirteen or older. Enjoy it and remember, Juggernaut may be slow, but he will tear you up if you can not move fast and jump a lot.

One of the biggest problems with this version is the controller. It will cause much frustration when you are in the heat of battle, if it wasn't for the shrunken d-pad and awkward placement of the buttons, this would have been much more enjoyable game. If players are a fan of X-men games they will still get a kick out of this game. One thing that increases the replay value is the ability to unlock extra costume, and hidden characters, which will be a pleasant surprise to gamers. I highly suggest that you rent this game before you purchase it, to see if you like the fight style and playing it with the GameCube controller.

One of the least popular fighting games around the office in quite a long time, X-Men: Next Dimension is certainly not for everybody. Ribbed on as it may be by the other guys in the desks around me, nobody spent as much time with it as I did either. And nobody besides me was privileged enough to discover just how decent this one can actually be.

X-Men: Next Dimension hat was! Zwar kommt es aufgrund diverser Mängel nicht an die Topspiele des Prügel-Genres heran, aber Spaß macht es allemal. Viele Moves gehen nach kurzer Zeit gut von der Hand und auch der Einsatz von Kontern ist nach ein paar Übungseinheiten kein großes Problem. Fans der X-Men sollten schon allein wegen der Charaktervielfalt unbedingt einen Blick riskieren.

While not as impressive as other Xbox fighters, the Marvel Universe comic book heroes and villains certainly look the best they ever have in videogame form in XND. The AI challenge pushes even the best gamers too. But the game’s good looks and taxing challenge level cannot help overcome the difficult fighting controls that made playing not very much fun at all. In fact, the controls absolutely ruin the XND experience. Even fighting game veterans will be reduced to button mashing mayhem. If this game’s controls could have came anywhere near the responsive wonderfulness of DOA3, this could have been a a great addition to the Xbox fighting game genre. As it is, only the most rabid of X-Men fans might want to consider picking up.

This game could have been so much more. Even the Spider-man title, though heavy on action and combat, managed to thread together enough of a story to keep it evolving and entertaining. The storyline in this game is supposedly the reason for all the combat. Well, the very nature of X-men tales was good enough for that ­ not only do they have to contend with the Sentinels, but the Brotherhood as well.

X-Men: Next Dimension is a superhero fighting game that shows a lot of promise but comes up short in so many ways. And while the fighting mechanics are decent at best, the game fails to capture the raw excitement of playing as a favorite superhero or villain. Next Dimension is definitely a good rental for fans of the comics and movies.

Back at the 1998 Electronic Entertainment Expo, a little known Activision project called X-Men appeared as a somewhat basic fighter reminiscent of Tekken. Of course, X-Men eventually became Mutant Academy, and ended up being a product that was not much better than the demo on display at E3 '98. A graphically impressive but limited fighting experience in a myriad of ways (can you say hyper-AI and corner traps boys and girls?), the PlayStation One effort was a sub par attempt at 3D mutant action.

One of the least popular fighting games around the office in quite a long time, X-Men: Next Dimension is certainly not for everybody. Ribbed on as it may be by the other guys in the desks around me, nobody spent as much time with it as I did either. And nobody besides me was privileged enough to discover just how decent this one can actually be.

A number of X-Men: Next Dimension's characters require unlocking, and various other extras--mostly alternate outfits for characters--can also be obtained from repeated play. Still, the problems with the fighting system will probably keep you from playing X-Men: Next Dimension extensively. It can be a fine game to play with casual gamer friends who are fans of the source material, but since a number of better fighting games starring the X-Men already exist, it's hard to get too excited about this one. In the end, even the most ardent X-Men fans should probably just rent Next Dimension rather than buy it.

A number of X-Men: Next Dimension's characters require unlocking, and various other extras--mostly alternate outfits for characters--can also be obtained from repeated play. Still, the problems with the fighting system will probably keep you from playing X-Men: Next Dimension extensively. It can be a fine game to play with casual gamer friends who are fans of the source material, but since a number of better fighting games starring the X-Men already exist, it's hard to get too excited about this one. In the end, even the most ardent X-Men fans should probably just rent Next Dimension rather than buy it.

A number of X-Men: Next Dimension's characters require unlocking, and various other extras--mostly alternate outfits for characters--can also be obtained from repeated play. Still, the problems with the fighting system will probably keep you from playing X-Men: Next Dimension extensively. It can be a fine game to play with casual gamer friends who are fans of the source material, but since a number of better fighting games starring the X-Men already exist, it's hard to get too excited about this one. In the end, even the most ardent X-Men fans should probably just rent Next Dimension rather than buy it.

In the end, X-Men: Next Generation is just one big could-of-been. The fighting system could-of-been great if things were executed better, but they weren’t. The game’s story could-of-been great had developer Paradox simply used an old X-Men plot, but they didn’t. Finally, had Paradox tried some new things and built their game around the X-Men license, X-Men: Next Generation could-of-been great. Skip this one, you can thank me later.

Next Dimension features interactive environments, objects that can be used as projectiles by some characters, and opportunities to knock characters off buildings, into cars, etc. However, most of this only serves to enhance the drama; identifying usable projectiles isn't very intuitive, and the damage inflicted by knocking someone off a building is surprisingly negligible.

X-Men: Next Dimension plays similar in some aspects to a 2D fighter where you basically just have to rush in and pummel the other character into the ground before losing. The core of X-Men, gameplay wise, centers on doing hand to hand combos to deal heavy amounts of damage. The combos themselves are very basic requiring just a couple of button taps to pull off. Most of them can be learned after a couple of two round matches with each of the 24 characters.

Encore une fois, les X-Men ne parviennent pas à convaincre sur console. Manque de rythme, réalisation trop limite, on les préfère largement lorsqu'ils apparaissent en 2D dans des productions plus musclées.

Encore une fois, les X-Men ne parviennent pas à convaincre sur console. Manque de rythme, réalisation trop limite, on les préfère largement lorsqu'ils apparaissent en 2D dans des productions plus musclées.

Encore une fois, les X-Men ne parviennent pas à convaincre sur console. Manque de rythme, réalisation trop limite, on les préfère largement lorsqu'ils apparaissent en 2D dans des productions plus musclées.

X-Men: Next Dimension borrows inspiration from Dead of Alive 3's multiple arenas, but like everything else in the game it is a pale copy of the original. While it is true that you can knock an opponent into the next arena, it is impossible to move back into the prior one, even if it makes logical sense. For example, one level takes place inside the mansion. From the main room you can knock an opponent into Xavier's office. From Xavier's office you can see back out into the main room, yet you cannot run back out there. Very odd, indeed.

Compared to the GameCube port, the PlayStation 2 version does have the advantage of using the Dual Shock -- arguably a much better controller for fighting games than the GameCube's stock controller -- but it also has to deal with the dearth of fighting game options available to PlayStation 2 gamers. The limited selection of the GameCube library is enough to make gamers consider giving X-Men: Next Dimension a look.

X-Men: Next Dimension borrows inspiration from Dead of Alive 3's multiple arenas, but like everything else in the game it is a pale copy of the original. While it is true that you can knock an opponent into the next arena, it is impossible to move back into the prior one, even if it makes logical sense. For example, one level takes place inside the mansion. From the main room you can knock an opponent into Xavier's office. From Xavier's office you can see back out into the main room, yet you cannot run back out there. Very odd, indeed.