Once again, activision brings us a Marvel-themed run-around-and-mash-the-buttons RPG adventure.

In the newest adventure from developer raven studios, you take control of four marvel heroes from the extensive selection of spandex-clad freak shows from the marvel universe in an attempt to save the world from Dr. Doom.

The game, put quite simply, is an action RPG. You will find yourself running around different environments solving puzzles, doing mini-quests, and most importantly of all, beating up the bad guys. Much like the X-men Legends series, you get to select four characters, all of which with unique, upgradeable and customisable abilities, and then stick them in an environment where they can cause the most havoc. In fact, put simply, this game might as well be called X-men Legends 3.

Still, to say it is bad would be another thing. Sure, it?s not very original and has been done (twice) before, but both previous games were excellent, so why should this be any different?

Marvel Ultimate Alliance expands on the X-men Legends series in many ways. The level of characters you can choose is immense. Spider-man, Thor, Captain America, The Fantastic Four all make an appearance, as well as a few X-men, and many other unlockable characters. This makes for a different pace of play, as well as a great diversity in the characteristics of the heroes you will be playing with. Spider-man rather hyperactively swings around the levels, where as Wolverine, rather more subdued, will Run around at a steady pace using Brute strength instead of immense speed. Something I feel was missing form the X-men Legends series was a diversity of characters. Sure, there were many, but most of them did the same thing. It?s good to see some deviation in the characters this time.

Secondly, I found the Legends series to be incredibly shallow. Great fun, but shallow. Essentially, you would run from level to level pounding the attack buttons until your enemies reach their doom. Of course, there?s little else you can do, and it?s not like there?s one attack button you are mashing or anything, but it did get very tedious. To tackle this, Raven studios have implemented a couple of nice little changes. On occasions, there will be context sensitive situations, whereby a situation will cause one of your heroes to be rendered helpless until you press a series of buttons that flash up on screen. It?s an incredibly neat little addition and makes for a little deviation in play. However, these sections are few and far between and are a rare treat. Similar to these are sections where your characters will be forced to run rather than fight. The camera will switch from the usual top-right down camera view to a view whereby your characters can run out of the screen. For example, toward the end of the game, you must escape the wrath of Galactus, a mutant that?s so huge it?s not even funny. Realising that they wouldn?t even stand a chance against this guy, your heroes will have to run away. It?s a nice little change and it makes you feel a little less suffocated, which the constant running-around in corridor-type gameplay may often make you feel. Again, though, these sections are a rarity and more would have been welcomed.

On the downside, the series seems to have been taken down a peg. Whereas the Legends series could be described as nothing less than mental (there was ALWAYS something exploding on screen), Ultimate Alliance seems to take things in a far more serious direction, with less chaos on screen than before. It certainly makes things feel less daunting, but one could argue it takes some of the satisfaction away.

The level designs are pretty well done. You?ll find yourself moving from Space stations to deep jungles to even under the sea! It?s pretty cool to have a wide range of environments and the marvel universe is displayed pretty well. The characters themselves also, look awesome and the ability to change characters? costumes is a neat feature of the game. Should you hate wolverine?s black leather costume, you can give him the classic yellow spandex thingy that everyone seems to love! Another interesting feature is that different costumes give your heroes different abilities. The characters look just like their comic book counterparts and really give Marvel fans something to be proud of.

However, in terms of visual splendour, the game seems to suffer from framerate issues at times, and the PS2 struggles to keep up with the level of action on occasions.

In terms of the sound of the game, there?s not much to write home about. The music?s pretty average and the sound effects can get annoying but the voice acting of the heroes is pretty good. The music doesn?t exactly annoy but it isn?t anything special.

The multiplayer, much like the Legends series is good fun and different to your average multiplayer fest. Players can create combos by attacking the same enemy with a friend and also work cooperatively to achieve level goals. A welcome change from you average ?lets kill the other guy? affair. However, due to MAU?s level of action, those who are used to the relentless chaos of legends may find themselves at a bit of a loss.