The video game movie tie-in industry is littered with failed attempts to capitalize on a popular movie; and by failed, I mean the games that usually tie-in to movies are hastily thrown together and easily forgotten. In other words, the games are bad. For a perfect example of this, check out J.J. Abrams reacting to the critical failure that was Star Trek: The Video Game. Without doing any research whatsoever, I’ll still say it’s easier to name the successful movie tie-in video games than it is cataloging all the failures.
In a world where Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher’s Bay and Goldeneye for the Nintendo 64 are still the standard, it’s easy to see that particular niche has failed to live up to its potential.
With that in mind, please use cautious optimism when reacting to the teaser trailer for the upcoming Amazing Spider-Man 2 movie tie-in game, which actually comes out before the movie does. The trailer doesn’t reveal much about the game, but then again, that’s why they call it a teaser:
According to VG247.com, ASM2 will again feature the free-roaming-via-web-slinging around Manhattan, which sounds like a good enough reason to play in and of itself. Further details include a behavior gauge that monitors Spidey’s fight against New York’s criminal element:
The game also contains the “Hero or Menace” system, which incentivizes Super Hero behavior by rewarding the web-slinger’s crime-fighting efforts, and adds consequences for letting criminality fester.
As indicated, the game is expected to be released shortly before the movie, giving players something of a leg up concerning the sequel’s plot. Activision is planning an across-the-board release, as well. The includes both versions of the PlayStation (3 and 4) and the Xbox (360 and One); the WiiU, and for the PC.
[Lead image courtesy of The Amazing Spider-Man Game’s Facebook page]