Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 (Wii, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Nintendo DS, PSP, Nintendo DSi, PlayStation 2)

common sense media says

Exciting action game where superheroes join forces.


parents & educators say
  • 67% say language is an issue
  • 67% say there are positive messages

What parents need to know

Parents need to know that this is an action adventure game based on characters from the Marvel Comics universe. Signature characters such as Spider-Man, Iron Man, and Wolverine team together to thwart attacks on Earth. Players will take down enemies, ranging from robots to humans, with a variety of punches and kicks as well as with superpowers. The combat is pretty intense, but never bloody or graphic. The game is also playable online, a feature Common Sense Media does not recommend for children under the age of 12. While playing online, players can have open chat, so questionable language might be heard.

Educational value: Not applicable.
Positive messages: The superheroes strive to do the right thing, although at points in the story, they arrive at a conflict over what decision is the correct one. Ultimately, they join together in their goal is to protect the Earth and its inhabitants.
Positive role models: While both groups of superheroes are shown disagreeing and even fighting over the right thing to do, they ultimately reach a consensus and learn working together will help achieve their goals of protecting Earth. The common goal is always keeping the peace and thwarting evildoers.
Ease of play: Fighting breaks down into two attacks: punch and kick.  Strung together, players can unleash simple combos.  Players can also add special powers to the mix, which are easily executed by pulling the back trigger and pressing the appropriate button. The game also includes thorough tutorials and training modes to help novices grow comfortable.
Violence: Heroes battle an array of foes such as robots and human opponents with a series of punches, kicks, and throws. Heroes have their own set of powers that they can use to inflict damage, ranging from lightning bolts and laser beams to sharp claws and guns. Enemies are shown flying into the air after particularly powerful strikes. However, the combat is neither bloody nor gory.
Sex: A couple of the female heroes are seen wearing skin-tight outfits, but nothing too revealing.
Language: The word s--t is used, but foul language is rare.
Consumerism: Not applicable.
Drinking, drugs, & smoking: Not applicable.

More on Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2

What to talk about

Talk to your kids
  • How does this game, based on the Marvel Universe, compare to similar titles?  Is it better or worse?

  • What's it like to take control of a superhero in a video game? How does it compare to other media such as superhero movies?

What's the story?

What's the story?

Based on the Marvel Comics storyline Civil War, the game begins with a fatal attack in Connecticut caused by a superhuman character. The government is forced to pass the Superhero Registration Act to keep track of these powerful beings, forcing a rift between supporters such as Iron Man and opponents such as Captain America. The heroes begin fighting each other before they realize a more dangerous enemy lurks, prompting them to work together again to protect the Earth.

Is it any good?

Is it any good?
 

The title is a pretty simple beat-em-up where teamwork is crucial. In fact, building teams properly can lead to special bonuses. For example, playing as the Fantastic Four provides a stamina boost. Heroes can perform team strikes called Fusion Attacks used to deliver heavy damage to multiple enemies. While the game feels very similar to the original, Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 presents an intriguing story as well as a proven gameplay formula that's fun and intense.

Visually, the game looks much better, as players will notice more details in heroes' costumes and mannerisms. On the standard difficulty, it seems pretty easy to coast through each levels and defeat the toughest of foes with little trouble. Players can also unlock a bevy of costumes, power boosts, and dossiers which provide extra details on each Marvel character. Once the single-player campaign is complete, players can opt to tackle it again in cooperative mode or alone on a tougher, unlockable difficulty. Fans of the original Ultimate Alliance should be pleased with the sequel.

Online interaction: The game has online chat during cooperative sessions, where players work together to win. Questionable language is possible.

Game themes & details

Themes
Game Details
Available on: Nintendo Wii, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Nintendo DS, PSP, Nintendo DSi, PlayStation 2
Available online
Genre: Action/Adventure
Developer: Activision
Released on: September 15, 2009
Price: 59.99
ESRB Rating: T for Mild Language, Violence
Screenshots

This review was written by Brett Molina
 
 

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What parents & educators say

8
Based on 3 parent & educator reviews:
  • 67% say language is an issue
  • 67% say there are positive messages
  • 33% say violence is an issue

Most useful reviews by all members

pie or pie
kid, 12 years old
 
awsome
i have the 1st one and i need to get this one and i know this is vilont and some parents dont like the superhero named deadpool but buy it you kid will love you more

shakennotstired
teen, 15 years old
 
waste of money
the game is extremely repetitive and does get boring eventually but it is fun unlocking new characters

AvengingRelic
parent of 13 and 16 year old
 
There are better games for the price.
Boring game play with repetitive action. It's hardly a challenge to beat NPC's.

saakar
teen, 17 years old
 
all ages
i think this game is one of the best marvel video games out there, well first of all they get this storyline from secret wars and civil war storyline, i havnt got the chance yet to read either of those comics yet but i hope to get around to it some day, well anyways the violence isnt bad niether is the language or sexual stuff, i absolutely loved this game and i would recomend it to any of those comic book fans out there, you will love it.

elite gamer
kid, 11 years old
 
horrible game isnt for kids
i despised this game from the first second i played it. it is boring, suspiciously like an ad, and language filled. superheroes may seem good but theyll beat up someone at the drop of a hat.

mkalv
teen, 17 years old
 
Comic game is fun
I think is one of the better comic-book games. Its fun, has alot of characters to play as, and the plot is from the comics. It is too violent for the younger kids, though.

Airlocke
teen, 17 years old
 
i didn't really like the first one. but this one was okay. it was better. but the real only reason i played it all the way through though, was because of deadpool.

chimera
kid, 12 years old
 
should be M. i mean cmon. its worse than modern warfare 2 (by far). if you cant complete the objective within 5 minutes nick fury goes berserk, telling you what you should be doing then swearing at you (knock down that statue, d****t) every ten seconds, and when characters die they say stuff like oh s**t, and in cutscenes they say iffy stuff like man that turret and unleash h**l, which can be repeated over and over and over. also the violence isnt extreme but you still puch and kick people or even use special powers to kill them, though no blood or gore. also, one character is named deadpool which parents (or certainly mine) would hate.

prince of ...
kid, 12 years old
 
a lot of bad words
well it does have at least 28 dam-s and some suc-s no to menshin some hel-s

movie fan141999
kid, 12 years old
 
ok
so alsom but some blood and one kiss and some bad words but ok

thegoldenwarrior
teen, 14 years old
 
perfect for teenagers, but not tweens.
even though it looks like violence is gonna be a big consern, it isnt very bad violence, about the same as lego star wars. the big consern is language. iceman cusses alot, and so does nick fury. the bad thing is they do it in mini videos, wich can be repeated over and over.

pandahugger110
teen, 14 years old
 
Any 11 and up
Ulltimate Alliance is a fansatic game my friends and I just love it. It does have some swearing though. The game is quit tough at some parts.

Bob Wakowski
kid, 12 years old
 
Perfect for 10+. Maybe 9.
I love this game me and my dad play it all the time together. I will say there may be too much violence for an 8 year old but a mature 9 year old can play it. There is language but what I've played so far I've only heard, "So why the he*l would you do that?"

knightsmoon
parent of 1 and 6 year old
 
Complex story, easy gameplay
We enjoy playing this game with our 5-year-old son, though we do have the volume turned down for most of the cut scenes, because the language is sometimes inappropriate. If he does hear something, we try to explain that *we* don't use that language in our family. It is violent, but it's very obviously fantasy, and it gives a complex issue to think about as a family---how to see right and wrong and is there something in between? Everyone in the game is trying to do what they see as the right thing, and it's a positive message to stand up for what you really believe in.

bkute65
parent of 13 year old
 
Fine if you don't have a problem with bad language
It shows team work and problem resolution. I don't know why they had to add foul language. It doesn't make the game any better.

captain ghost
kid, 11 years old
 
Its boring, and it should be M rated. I didnt complete the objective for a while, so nick fury starts yelling stuff like "god d*mn it" and "s--t". The violence isnt so bad though.

somebody
teen, 13 years old
 
Defeinetly should be M. First off, the violence-your a superhero who runs around aimlessly and beats the snot out of people. second-langauge. there is so much langauge. if you dont beat the objective in enogh time, nick fury swears at you, and then gives you the finger if its for too long.

theshark
kid, 12 years old
 
more of an ad than a video game
i dont think it is a very good game, because its probably more of an ad to get superhero junk than a video game. the violence is about the same in the superhero movies, wich some parents might think is really bad but some parents are ok with. they say bad words repeatedly in cutscenes and on missions, so im suprised the ESRB gave it the rating of "mild language"

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ON: Content is appropriate for kids this age.
PAUSE: Know your child, some content may not be right for some kids
OFF: Not age appropriate for kids this age