- Fantastic Four (1997 video game)
Infobox VG
title = Fantastic Four
caption =
developer =Probe Entertainment Limited
publisher =Acclaim
distributor =
designer =
series =
engine =
version =
released =1997
genre =Beat 'em up
modes =
ratings =
platforms =PlayStation
media =
requirements =
input = Controller
footnotes =
cabinet =
arcade system =
cpu =
sound =
display ="Fantastic Four" is a
PlayStation video game developed byProbe Entertainment Limited and published by Acclaim. The game was released in1997 , and is based on the popularMarvel Comics characters of the same name, and not on the subsequent2005 feature film.Storyline
Doctor Doom has developed a device that transports theFantastic Four (and theShe-Hulk ) to various locations to do battle with various monsters and supervillains. One or two players (or up to four with a special adaptor) can controlMr. Fantastic ,Invisible Woman , The Thing,Human Torch orShe-Hulk through variousside-scrolling arcade levels until Mr. Fantastic is able to assemble a time machine that allows him to transport the team to Doom's tiny kingdom for a final battle.Gameplay
The format of the game is similar to arcade game such as "
Golden Axe ", "Final Fight " or "Streets of Rage ". As the player controls the superheroes through the various levels, groups of thugs, robots and mutants will appear on each screen and need to be destroyed before the player can advance. Each character has various short-range fighting moves (i.e. punching, kicking, jumping, and even tossing enemies into the back or foreground) that can be used to destroy the various minor enemies and the bosses. Some of these minor enemies will leave behind icons that give the player an extra life, or restore their health or superpower energy bar.Each character has a circular "super power" energy bar; this allows the use various special fighting moves. At the end of each level there is a supervillain to defeat, i.e.
Mole Man ,Super-Skrull ,Attuma ,Sub-Mariner ,Psycho-Man ,Doctor Doom . After the defeat of the boss, without the loss of any player life, there is one of three bonus rounds. The fights here are set againstDragon Man , the Incredible Hulk, or Iceman. During the loading time between each level the player is able to play a mini-car racing game.During the game (or when there is a loss a life) the player can switch between any of the superheroes (not already being played), and announcer's voice-over tells which character is chosen. Some of the major bosses will also speak briefly before they fight or are defeated; this is affected by the choice of player.
If you use the same move too many times, a "cheesy" icon appears but otherwise has no impact on the game.
Levels
Each level has a title to it, and three sub-stages to it. Most of the sub-stages have a sub-boss to defeat, often a large monster, with the supervillains appearing at the end of the third stage.
* Level One "Attack of the Molemen!" - Boss is the
Mole Man .
* Level Two "Subatomic Nightmare" - Boss is thePsycho-Man .
* Level Three "The Last Days of Skrull World" - Boss is theSuper-Skrull .
* Level Four "Atlantean Attack?" - Bosses areNamor andAttuma .
* Level Five "Is the World Doomed?" - Boss isDoctor Doom .Critics
Acclaim's previous
PlayStation 1 video game titled "Iron Man and X-O Manowar in Heavy Metal " was a widely popular video game, based on twocomic book characters and hopes were high that the "Fantastic Four" video game would be equally as successful. However, most video game magazine critics panned the game for its weak storyline, playability, sound and the odd features such as the mini-battles.Trivia
* Acclaim reportedlyFact|date=February 2008 wanted to use the
Silver Surfer , instead of Iceman for the bonus level battle. However, they could not get the rights to use the Surfer and thus had to settle for Iceman.* While
Galactus does not appear in the game, it is clear that he is behind the destruction of the Skrull homeworld.External links
* [http://marvel.com/videogames/ Marvel video games on Marvel.com]
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