If they can pull that off that'd be excellent, must go and google for more rumors.

This message was edited by CURTCONNORS on May 10 2006.

How come nobody has posted screens of the game yet?
I saw pics in OPM and it looks awesome. Ghost Rider is boring without his bike though.



also, Wii will get 4 bonus characters.


This message was edited by Kudzuka on May 17 2006.

There are already a couple of images in the 'Image Section'. I'll post them up for those of you who haven't seen them. Click to enlarge.

Ultimate Alliance Progress Report
Who's up for a Marvel super hero smash-up?
by Kathleen Sanders

July 28, 2006 - We were pretty impressed by the demo of Marvel Ultimate Alliance on PlayStation 3 that we saw at E3. At the San Diego Comic-Con we watched an extended demo of what Raven have been busy with since then.

Of the 140 (and counting) licensed characters in the game, about 24 will be playable. At Comic-Con we had a chance to check out The Human Torch, Iceman, and The Invisible Woman for the first time.

On the surface, the comparison to X-Men Legends II is understandable. Then as the screen filled with enemies and erupted with superhero special attacks -- with no apparent slow-down on the Xbox 360 version -- we began to think this could be the superhero-sized version of that game.

Chris Palmisano, Associate Producer on Marvel Ultimate Alliance for Xbox 360 and PS3, ran the demo for us. He explained that the team has been working hard on lighting and texture effects, pushing the limits of what next-gen machines can do, and it shows. Captain America and Spiderman's costumes looked almost plastic at E3, but now they look remarkably cloth-like. As the Human Torch begins to explode in an amazing ring of fire, distortion ripples away from him as the heat pushes out along the flames. It looks impressively bright and violent.

The level that improved most from what we saw in May was the underwater Atlantis area. The texture and depth of the water, the way the characters moved through it and how the water altered the look of their superhero powers was actually quite incredible.

We were treated to two new levels in this demo. In Mandarin Palace, which houses lovely, ornate woodwork and richly colored rugs, you can unleash superhero dogs of war. We also got a peek at Murderworld, which is the subterranean mad carnival of beloved Marvel guest-villain Arcade. In the comics Arcade is known for his delight in tailoring Murderworld to exploit the specific weaknesses of his target and then watching with sadistic joy as he is killed by a variety of whimsical and deadly traps.

The game seems like an action-packed, playable Marvel Dictionary. How we clapped with nerdy glee as we spotted bad guys like The Rhino and The Shocker among the licensed characters Ultimate Alliance packs in. Since many of the 140 licensed icons will be mini-bosses the game might offer some fun fights. With 24 playable characters -- each with a minimum of four different costumes -- the game should offer an impressive level of customization.

We're looking forward to seeing more of this super hero super party soon. Marvel Ultimate Alliance is scheduled for the release this fall on nearly every system known to gaming.

It seems that Marvel: Ultimate Alliance will be a PS3 Launch title.

Marvel: Ultimate Alliance Hands-on
We spend a few hours playing Activision's beat-em-up to discover plenty.
by Hilary Goldstein

October 2, 2006 - When Activision's Marvel: Ultimate Alliance was announced, many in the IGN office instantly dubbed it "X-Men Legends III featuring Spider-Man." After spending extensive time with the upcoming action-RPG on both the Xbox 360 and the PS3, we can assure you that there's more here than just an XML clone. Ultimate Alliance is a Marvel geek's wet dream, filled with both popular and obscure characters and locales. And it has Pitfall. But more on that in just a bit.

There are more than 20 playable characters in Ultimate Alliance, which allows for a diverse number of possible teams. After passing the Hellicarrier training levels (which unlock a healthy number of useable heroes), you are able to create your own team. We're not just talking about sticking four guys together and coming up with a slick catchphrase (FYI, "Dumbasses, Get to It!" has been taken by IGN). In Ultimate Alliance, you'll name your team and choose a team icon. Who you select is important, because the longer these four characters fight together, the higher your teamwork bonuses. Though you can freely swap in other heroes, the more you play with one team, the more efficient your characters become at stomping baddies.



You can choose to use a pre-made Marvel team, if you lack creativity. The Fantastic Four are available early on, so if you want, you can choose to play as Marvel's First Family. Just as in X-Men Legends II, if you assemble a classic Marvel team, you get a special bonus. But these hidden bonuses are also determined by the costumes each character wears. So you can assemble the Avengers or you can switch costumes and place Thor, Iron Man, Captain America and another playable character we can't talk about, and you have the Ultimates. Now you're stacking bonuses, as you earn both the teamwork benefits for playing together and a special bonus for playing as the Ultimates. You can still name the team whatever the heck you want, but your team name earns a modifier. So if you are playing as The Cowlickers, you would become The Ultimate Cowlickers.

Each character comes with four costumes, though most must be unlocked through gameplay. Unlike your typical skins, these costumes have an influence on gameplay. Remember how overbearing collecting and managing the numerous items became in XML2? This time around, items you find (which are Marvel-specific and no longer generic) are locked into your costumes as upgrades. This means you can turn Spidey's Iron Spider suit into an offensive force while making the Symbiote Suit tuned to defense. This way you can switch costumes based on your needs for a particular mission. The costumes make the man (or woman) in Ultimate Alliance.

A few of the characters' costume changes are a bit of a stretch. The Fantastic Four have not had any major costume changes over the past four decades. Each of their alterations is a little underwhelming. On the other hand, Iron Man, Wolverine and Thor have some very distinct looks. It's too bad that there couldn't be a few more costumes for some of the characters. It would have been nice to have 2099 Spider-Man or Age of Apocalypse Wolverine (with the one hand and all), but with two-dozen playable characters, there are limits on how much time can be focused on giving characters different colored Underoos.

There are seventeen different locations in Ultimate Alliance, each broken down into five or six levels. Activision allowed us to explore five different areas. And though we'd seen most of them in previous demos, this was our first chance to dive in and explore on our own.

The game begins on the SHIELD Hellicarrier. Nick Fury has called in a group of heroes to save his ass from an attack by Dr. Doom. These early levels serve as a tutorial. For anyone who has played X-Men Legends, these tutorials are pretty standard stuff. There are no recycled XML moves (not even for Wolverine), but accessing powers, tossing objects at enemies and performing team-up moves are on the same control scheme. The levels are fortunately light on the tutorials and heave on the ass-kicking. Though the Hellicarrier is clearly warm-up for the intergalactic war to come, it's still satisfying to pummel the crap out of enemies.

For two more pages of this, please click [here].

Ultimate Alliance: Caged Lightning
Activision unveils its Hero for Hire and gives Storm a Mohawk. New videos, screens and impressions.
by Hilary Goldstein

October 16, 2006 - Arriving for Xbox 360, Xbox and PC next week and Wii and PS3 at launch in November, Ultimate Alliance puts you in control of two-dozen superheroes battling to save the universe from Doctor Doom and a cadre of super-villains. Featuring more than 140 characters from the Marvel Universe, Ultimate Alliance sports the largest cast of characters ever in a licensed superhero game.

Many of the characters and levels have already been revealed, but many more remain a mystery. Today, IGN pulls back the veil on the impressive Shi'ar level and two playable characters: Storm and Luke Cage.



Teleported from the Inhumans' home by Lockjaw (think: giant bulldog) the heroes arrive in the fighter bay of the Shi'ar ship, the Talon. They are met by Corsair, a swashbuckling space pirate and father of the X-Men's Scott Summers. He tips the team to the fact that Shi'ar Queen (and former Charles Xavier lover) Lilandra has been dethroned in a coup by her evil sister, Deathbird.

The Talon is under Deathbird's control and is tracking Lilandra's escape ship. The heroes must race through the belly of the Talon and take out its engines. If they fail, Deathbird will catch Lilandra's ship and end any hopes for the former Queen's return to power.

The Shi'ar level is further proof that Ultimate Alliance truly takes gamers across the entire Marvel Universe. From the SHIELD Hellicarrier to the Skrull Throneworld to Atlantis and beyond, Ultimate Alliance is a comic-book geek's dream come true. And for the non-geeks out there, this is the perfect introduction to the Marvel U. Or, at the very least, a nice sightseeing tour filled with plenty of button-mashing goodness.

The Shi'ar ship is one of the prettier levels in Ultimate Alliance. The interiors are sleek and shiny and a perfect example of next-gen technology. We've yet to see the current-gen version of this level, but we'll assume it is slightly less sleek and not nearly as shiny. The Shi'ar are among the most technologically advanced races in the Marvel Universe and the Talon certainly follows suit. It's easy to get lost in admiration for the next-gen shimmer while beating down the throngs of Shi'ar warriors barring your path.

The struggle to reach the engine room culminates in a battle with Gladiator, the most feared member of the Shi'ar Imperial Guard. There's a reason Gladiator is feared -- that mo'fo is tough. In fact, it's impossible to do any harm to Gladiator until activating four separate machines, which then zap the arrogant Imperial Guard. Once stricken by the rays, it's time to rush at Gladiator with the might of all four heroes. As we found, the most potent team consists of Thor, Dr. Strange, Spider-Man and Captain America. With these four, poor Gladiator doesn't stand a chance. That is until the effects of the ray wear off and it's time to activate the four consoles again.

Gladiator isn't posed as a major boss battle. Like many of Ultimate Alliance's characters, he is merely a sub-boss on route to something far more dangerous. Still, Gladiator gives quite a challenge. What happens after his defeat remains a secret for you to discover once Ultimate Alliance is in your hands.



The man with unbreakable skin, Luke Cage, is as tough as they come. In Ultimate Alliance, Cage is unleashed as a pure brawler. With no true long-ranged attacks, Cage is limited to bashing enemies up close. His various attacks involve brutalizing the opponent, including bashing their face into the ground.

Cage has one slightly ranged attack with his chain. Like Ghost Rider, Cage can crack heads from a few feet away and also grab enemies with his chain. While it's fun to whip Doombots with the chain, Cage is more effective using his fists. Though he may not look as imposing, Cage is as potent a slugger as the Thing. He makes for a nice alternative, especially if you want to create your own New Avengers team by aligning Cage with Iron Man, Spidey and Wolverine.

If you want to crack baddies with style, Cage comes with alternate '70s Power Man costume. The ladies love Power Man.



The X-Men's resident Goddess graces Ultimate Alliance with her dominating weather-based powers. Like Thor, Storm can command lightning to strike enemies with incredible force. But unlike Thor, Storm looks damn hot doing it.

You won't want to use Storm in a hand-to-hand brawl. Though she can handle herself fine in close combat, she's better served staying behind the frontlines and attacking from afar. While Raven Soft could have taken the easy way out and recycled a bunch of Storm's powers from X-Men Legends, they instead gave some new wrinkles to her abilities. She maintains the Chained Lightning attack that made her deadly in XML 2, but this interactive power forces you to button-tap to increase the power of the lightning strike.

Storm is one of the better choices from the women available in Ultimate Alliance. Plus, her badass '80s Mohawk is unlockable.

there gunna be an ultimate alliance 2