Xbox

The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction

Sure, this game borrows a page out of the Spider-man 2 playbook (OK, so maybe it “borrows” the whole damn book), but its well worth your time and cash. Though a few of the story missions are total ass-pains, you’ll still spend many nights giggling at the unholy havoc you’re creating. Buy it.

Superhero games, like superhero movies, have been enjoying a spectacular renaissance of late. Ultimate Destruction is certainly the best Hulk game yet, and despite a few flaws stands tall as one of the best of this particular niche of the action genre. Hulk fans will adore it, but action fans definitely shouldn't overlook it.

The audio design is superb in its relentless ferocity, yet quite detailed and subtle at times as well. Naturally, everything in this title is about the smashing, crashing, and exploding, so those of you with subwoofers will find them getting quite a workout. The acting in the voiceovers is really well done, and even when the game really starts pushing its "comic book" themes you can feel the actor's commitment to their characters. None of the performances sound "phoned in" at all. This game is what most superhero games should be. There are many comic-book related items to unlock during the course of the gameplay, and this works very well as a reward for which the fans can strive. Whether you are a true fan of the Hulk or just feel that a game in which you can kill/smash/destroy everything in sight would be a great cathartic experience, you will have a great time with Dr. Bruce Banner's alter ego.

The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction is definitely one of the best superhero games I’ve ever played and I’ve played a lot of ‘em. Despite a few overly difficult boss fights and one or two unbalanced missions, UD delivers the goods big-time. Great looks, an amazing array of incredible moves, fully destructible environments and a physics engine that brings it all to life – Ultimate Destruction is the perfect Hulk simulator. If you’re a fan of the character, or just enjoy fantastic action gaming, pick up a copy. It’s the most fun you’ll ever have being a 2 ton, gamma-ray irradiated, bright green mutant freight train with the strength of 100 elephants. I promise.

The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction is simply a great game, despite its relatively short nature. Lots of things are there for you to unlock and for those of you who really love the game, you'll be glad to know that a harder difficulty is available upon completion, but while keeping all the abilities you've bought, something I was delighted with and dove into immediately. The missions are varied enough to keep you going and take advantage of what makes the game fun; if you like classic beat 'em up games like Final Fight or Streets of Rage 2, then Ultimate Destruction is a game you can't pass up. Mindless, destructive fun that has never been done better than this. Go check it out in a hurry, because this could be one of the last great Xbox titles before the Xbox 360.

Despite the few dings in this giant's armor, the good overshadows the bad by a colossal margin. If you fancy yourself an action fan, it might be a good idea to add this one to your collection. It's one game that's worth the price of admission. Not only is it a great action title, it may very well be the best superhero game for current-gen consoles.

You needn’t look too much further than the list of the collaborator’s credits to know that VU and Radical meant business on The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction. Sometimes an impressive list of collaborators doesn’t actually equal a great game, but VU and Radical have been on this block before and it shows. The result is one of the best action/adventures of the year and a strong candidate for the best comic book videogame ever made. Pick The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction up if you’re looking for offline fun that is on par with titles such as Mercenaries and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, or if third-person adventures are your bag.

There are a few flaws here and there but they are so minor that the only reason I mention them is to prove that I'm not biased. Sure I love the Hulk and I love this game but I can overlook a bit of gameplay repetition. At least it's the kind of gameplay repetition that I want repeated. Plenty of unlockables and a documentary of the making of the game will ensure that you get your money's worth.

Ultimate Destruction lives up to its namesake and delivers to Hulk fans what they’ve needed.

You need to buy The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction. It's the closest modern science will let us get to actually being the Hulk, plus without the possible side effects of gamma radiation. The only way this may get bumped to the rental zone is if you really dislike the source material, but how could you hate a title that lets you smash everything and anything you see?

The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction is – if you can’t tell – a fun game. (Smash Hulk through one of the auto service stations and listen to what the attend has to say!) It has its shortcomings, like the enemy “swarming” and a camera that sometimes gets blocked by buildings, but there’s too much to like about Ultimate Destruction – the feeling of being the Hulk, a great comic book storyline, lots of stuff to do, a deep combo system – to dwell too much on the downsides.

If you're talking about what makes the Hulk a great character, Radical's new game has it in spades. I can't think of a more cathartic and enjoyable vent for rage and stress than the one offered as you hurtle through the city of the green goliath's latest adventure. Ultimate Destruction profoundly succeeds at exactly what a sandbox game like this should; it makes the gamer feel a sense of total freedom to move, act, fight and play.

If you're easily discouraged by failure, this might not be the game for you. If you're the type that feels liberated by overcoming a tough challenge, Ultimate Destruction is right up your alley. It's easily an experience that everyone needs to check out with a weekend rental. The side mission mini-games alone are worth playing the game, which vary from simple follow-the-markers, golf variation, field goal kicking cars, to lifting cars and trying to put them as high on a tower as possible. For the hardcore, this should be a pleasure to have in your collection.

This is the Hulk game fans have been waiting for and it could be argued The Hulk: Ultimate Destruction is the best adaptation of a comic book character to game. Easy summed as a "Smash", the Hulk is the sleeper hit of the summer. It's a smashing good time.

Repetition and environmental limitations aside, The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction is a terrific way to pass the time for existing and future Hulk fans. There are more moves to choose from here than in any other game of recent memory and the attention to detail aimed at fans (expect references to Jarella, the Pantheon, and issue #102 among others) is a great touch. And just like San Andreas and Spider-Man 2 before it, this is one of those uncommon games where it's just as much fun to run around town causing trouble, as it is to do the main missions. A must-have for Hulk fans everywhere and a must play for any self-respecting action fan.

All in all, even with no multiplayer, Hulk: Ultimate Destruction is a game that is well worth the time, albeit shorter than many games, and although the setting is limited to only the cityscape and the desert environments over and over, the missions and mini-games mixed in with the carnage that only a brute like the Hulk can provide, it all makes the Hulk’s outing this time well worth it.

Quibbles aside, Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction is a blast to play. It's very easy to pick up and satisfying. The essence of the Hulk, his chaotic power and affect on normal civilization, is captured perfectly. The game ends long before the giddiness of smashing your way through puny humans and their best military efforts wears thin.

The storyline, despite being written by former Hulk writer Paul Jenkins, isn’t particularly strong or well told, despite the fact that it’s more than faithful to the Hulk’s comic strip roots. Difficulty can occasionally be an issue too, with large numbers of foes frustratingly able to somehow become a match for the Hulk at the worst possible times, but for the most part these spikes in the difficulty levels can be quite manageable. Ultimate Destruction certainly is a far from perfect title, but it’s one of the best super hero video games we’ve ever played.

Throughout my gaming career, I've stood amidst roaring flames and smoldering wreckage with police sires blaring in the distance more times than I can count. I've carried out incredible displays of unbridled destruction in innumerable ways, though the aftermath is typically the same regardless of the game. As I played The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction, I once again found myself surrounded by screaming civilians and the twisted shells of vehicles, but I can say without reservation that I've never had this much fun getting there.

Bonus materials excluded, there is still plenty in this game to keep you playing, because between the free roaming, the wacky challenges, and, oh yeah, smashing, The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction is a solidly put together comic book based game that shines brilliantly where other similar games before it have failed miserably. Some blemishes sometimes slow down the Hulk’s otherwise unstoppable rampage, but there’s enough quality here to satisfy almost any gamer’s craving to break stuff as the big green one, fan or not. You’ll love him when he’s angry.

In many ways, The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction is exactly what a quality single-player adventure based on a license ought to be. It pays ample service to the Hulk fan base through numerous obscure references to assorted comic-book bric-a-brac and lots of unlockable materials, and it manages to get the game portion of the equation down pat, creating a world well-suited to Hulk and his destructive tendencies. Sure, it isn't the deepest, longest, or most technically proficient game out there, but fans of the comic book are sure to have a blast smashing their way through every destructible obstacle the game throws at them, and anybody else with a penchant for obliteration ought to at least give Ultimate Destruction a look.

There is no multi-player or Xbox Live functionality to speak of, so online play and replay value are really non-factors. Once you beat the game one time, there’s little reason to play it again, unless of course, you’ve had a really bad day and need to smash things to tiny bits for fun. In short, while The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction isn’t a long or involving game, what is here is fantastic and deserves a look. Rent it for fun, but only buy it if you are a Hulk fan, or need stress release.

This game, along with a wealth of others, is proof yet again that there is a whole genre emerging around the sandbox style of open-ended city-based game play which games like Grand Theft Auto really pioneered. It also goes a long way toward proving my theory that these open-ended games are perfectly suited for comic book adaptations such as Spider-Man and the Hulk. There are some games that are just worth renting and some that are actually worth plopping fifty dollars on the counter for. This is the second kind. Even after you've beaten everything and unlocked the Hulk's different styles of shorts, you'll be back because you'll have a few more buildings to bust into rubble.

For the voice acting, Radical brought on board Hulk alumni Neal McDonough who voiced Bruce Banner in the mid-1990s cartoon version of the Hulk reprises his old role, and Hellboy actor Ron Perlman appears as the voice of Emil Blonsky/Abomination. Both actors suit their respective roles well even though players only hear Banner (except for the odd brief cinematic) through the course of the game. Elsewhere the audio of Ultimate Destruction is solid from the rumbling of Hulkâs footsteps to the screaming citizens of the city as they try to escape the clutches of Hulk. The sound effects of the special moves making contact with a tank or concrete is full and intense, again accentuating the power of the Hulk.

In terms of value for money, Ultimate Destruction is one of those games that's relentlessly enjoyable and hugely entertaining from the first minute to the last. You could bracket it firmly within the '30-seconds of fun over and over' school of game design. It's by no means complex or brutally challenging, either; even with over 30 missions it'll take you no more than 10-12 hours on the first run-through. Sure, there are unlockables (such as the hard mode, a special version of Banner to play as, and the ability to play as The Abomination) but by then we'd had our fair share of button mashing super heroics. Like a satisfying Hollywood action flick, it's instant, thrilling and gratifyingly disposable. It's the three-minute pop song of videogames, with all the hooks in just the right places, and for that we salute Radical for giving us a game that really does deliver Ultimate Destruction.

There are quibbles that may irk some (such as the types of mission being too repetitive, in essence there are only two main level types consisting of desert Badlands and Cityscape, and instances of pop-up) but these are very minor compared to the fun provided. Radical Entertainment have produced a game which is every Hulk fan's wet dream and even those with little more than a passing interest in this game will be unable to deny that it is fun to play.

Gobs of great game play, powers and moves that have to be seen to be believed, and a decent storyline combine to make The Hulk: Ultimate Destruction a very enjoyable experience.

The best open ended superhero game to date, despite what the score says. Excellent action sequences, but needs more mission variety.

This game is a must for true Hulk fans as it captures the spirit of this green beast to perfection, BUT the game play as mentioned before it repetitive and short lived if you are just going to play the main missions. Your best bet is to rent it out first before shelling out your hard earned money.

Ultimate Destruction est un jeu qui vous défoulera comme aucun autre. On retrouve toute la verve de Hulk dont les capacités n'ont jamais été aussi bien exploitées dans un jeu vidéo et se retrouver face à un mélange de Spider-Man 2 et de Rampage n'est pas si courant. Malheureusement, un manque de variété des missions, des gros problèmes de caméra, des loadings incessants et une difficulté surhumaine ternissent le tableau. Le jeu de Radical conserve tout de même de grandes qualités qui ne pourront que parler au côté bestial qui sommeille en vous.

Though the game has some low points, the tenacity of the developers has to be admired. As a whole, Ultimate Destruction satisfies your gaming itch and succeeds where thousands of other games have failed. The mini-games are great diversions, and the core system of Hulk proves that there is a great game within just waiting to be unlocked. Although it's a few notches short of perfection, Radical has established some very solid groundwork for what could lead to an amazing series of games. Should another installment ever materialize, they just need need to address those boss issues and offer some varied battle environments.