Nintendo Wii Review: Iron Man

This one-player action title takes off at high speeds with fast loading graphics and expanded villains from the comic book while creating a few unexpected limits related to the abilities and physics.

Even though Tony Stark has limitless resources and piles of money, the Iron Man game naturally has some limits so game producers can create a matching, exciting experience. The game basically expands the film’s realm of action while following the basic plot. The storyline adds a few character spins and even contradictions into the mix. For example, Stark jettisons the weapons aspect of his company then declares, “This is the best weapon ever!” when testing his Iron Man suit in beginning levels. Take your time in the beginning levels if you want to get all the secrets/options established. After that, you get simple missions where you can destroy an immense amount of baddies along the way.

Jarvis, Stark’s managing computer, becomes the default party pooper here, telling you to not fly out of the compound through your training. The later levels do expand, but the most unpleasantly surprising element is Iron Man’s physics. Exploding barrels that don’t cause that much damage can annoy, but not being able to bash through buildings and enemies like a bowling ball hurts the experience. It just takes the air out of the thrilling excitement when your gaming flow is deflated with a sudden, silent stop. At least some thundering thud or related visual would help keep the excitement going as you work through the control learning curve.

The third person camera view helps players see the big picture, which helps you learn the remote/nunchuk movements faster. The scheme works well, especially for high speed flight, except when you must flick/move the nunchuk or remote. Players must point the remote at the screen to establish the direction Iron Man moves, a minor issue compared to the next related flaw. Players can’t move backwards, which, predictably aggravates when trying to defend attacks from the rear.

The graphics don’t slow down even with multiple enemies. It’s one of the game’s biggest selling points. These enemies lack decent AI (even on hard level), so, unfortunately the sheer high volume presents the biggest challenge – you just decide how efficiently you defeat them. Auto target and the all-purpose repulsors help a lot. Players need to have good management skills to get the most bang for their buck when using the specialized weapons and diverting power to key parts of your suit. You can even try to 'restart' your heart after a fatality.

This game has a low replay value. Players work towards some weapons upgrades and artwork unlockables when you destroy Stark weapon crates. The music does add a little excitement including the familiar "Iron Man" song performed by Black Sabbath. A surprising amount of language with largely bloodless violence is found throughout the game.

Iron Man is rated T (Teen) by the ESRB for Alcohol Reference, Mild Language and Violence. This game can also be found on: PS2, PS3, PSP, Xbox 360 and a very different Nintendo DS version.