Case in point – a scientist by the name of Walker Sloane (an original creation from comic book creator Peter David) has built a company that will take the Amazing Spider-Man down an alternate path, rather than where he was originally intended to go. Unfortunately, this path leads to much danger, as Walker is up to less-than-good intentions. As a result, he eventually perishes. Or does he? Spider-Man 2099 catches on to the events at hand, and does everything in his power – along with a fully aware Amazing Spider-Man – to stop the plan before it leads to the end of the wall-crawler. In this interesting twist, you’ll deal with both characters – sometimes at the same time. When you’re in control of one Spider-Man character, you’ll run across segments where the other appears in the corner of the screen, communicating any upcoming danger or talking about a perilous situation that could affect both of their missions. This “picture in picture” display of sorts is a genuinely good idea, and one that manages to keep the story moving. It’s not just a movie show, though. You’ll need to perform tasks that have some sort of effect on the other’s character. In one part of the game, you’ll play as Amazing Spider-Man in the present, and 2099 is in the same location, but another time.
Radiation starts to succumb 2099, leaving him paralyzed. Amazing has to fight his way through the reactor room, shutting down tanks and eventually bringing 2099 back to health. Likewise, Amazing could find himself in limbo, and 2099 has to fight his way through the situation in order to keep him from falling apart. Again, it’s a nice twist on the storyline that keeps things from getting dull – even if the other two Spider-Men from Shattered Dimensions aren’t involved. When it comes to combat, Spider-Man: Edge of Time continues the same free flowing system that worked so well in Shattered Dimensions. You can beat up multiple opponents at a time, focusing attention on a specific one through simple lock-on. Furthermore, each Spider-Man has their own special abilities. Amazing can use Spider Sense to avoid danger on a snap judgment, as well as speed past an enemy’s attack. Likewise, 2099 has the ability of accelerated vision, so he can use faster skills to beat down his foes and maintain little damage. Both characters swing with utmost grace, using the same abilities as before. There are also abilities that you can upgrade, though Activision hasn’t detailed them quite yet.
We’re guessing it’ll be a similar system to Shattered, where you can unlock things and eventually level up. Oh, yeah, and there are boss battles with various creative enemies from the Spider-Man universe too. So far, the only one that Activision has unveiled is the fight with Anti-Venom, a somewhat mutated version of the Eddie Brock character. He’s effective enough, brutal in combat but hardly invincible. You’ll try to reason with him, only to have to bring him down to size as a last option. Other alternate characters will be introduced as well – perhaps after E3, we’ll have a list…? Spider-Man: Edge of Time is looking superb at this point. Beenox learned a thing or two about level design with Shattered Dimensions, and it shows here with highly interactive environments, superb lighting (especially in the darkly lit areas) and great, fluid movement of the Spider-Man characters. The frame rate is pretty good at this point, though there are times that the camera needs adjusting.
It’s not a horrible thing, mind you, and we’re sure that the final game will run a little more smoothly once Beenox irons a few things out. There is one significant voice change in Edge of Time. Rather than being played by NPH (or Neil Patrick Harris), like in Shattered, Amazing Spider-Man’s role falls to Josh Keaton, who voices Noir Spider-Man previously. He fills the role of Amazing pretty handily. As for 2099, he’s voiced by Christopher Daniel Barnes, who once again returns from Shattered – and definitely sounds game for his role. Other voices sound good, and neat little background music plays during most of the action segments. No, Spider-Man: Edge of Time isn’t EXACTLY a sequel to Shattered Dimensions, and considering how great a game that was, we’re mildly surprised that Activision didn’t go that route – and include Spider-Ham, for that matter. That said, Edge of Time is a great alternative choice, one that provides plenty of thrills and interesting twists to keep comic book fans and casual players equally involved.