Fantastic 4: Rise of the Silver Surfer 2K Games (PS2)
The rate of subpar movie-to-game releases has been shocking in the last few months, and Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer does little to change the notion that these games are nothing more than playable swag to go along with plastic toys, branded hats, t-shirts, keychains and coffee mugs.
In this most recent movie tie-in, players assume the role of every member of the Fantastic Four - Mr. Fantastic, Human Torch, the Invisible Woman, the Thing - and battle through various locales from the movie trying to foil the Silver Surfer's plans of world domination with nothing more than a few kicks, punches and "flashy" special moves at your disposal.
I can indulge in a hack-and-slash game as much as anybody, but Rise of the Silver Surfer almost revolutionizes the term "redundant." There are little to no variations of action with any given character, any given level and any given boss battle - just hour after hour of tap-tap, push-push.
If you think I'm being too harsh on a game that's supposed to be a bit mindless, riddle me this: In over 20 years since Gauntlet appeared in arcades all across the world, how does Rise of the Silver Surfer somehow push that level of redundancy backwards? I'm positive that any given Elf or Warrior in Gauntlet had limitless depth compared to the bone-headed action employed in this most heinous of cash-ins. The movie was terrible, and now it has the perfect companion-piece.
Overall: Why are you still reading this? The only aspect of Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer that's rock-solid is the Thing, and even that's a bit of a stretch seeing that he looks like a chunky pile of brown putty...or worse.
