Posted 5/18/07 @ 12:28 AM CST

“Spider-Man 3”

Platform: Xbox 360

Developer: Activision

FYI grade: C

Based on Sam Raimi’s latest Spider-Man flick, “Spider-Man 3” places you in New York City, where you’ll be able to engage in various crime-fighting missions, races and other special events. The game’s box boasts that you can choose from 10 different story lines to play, including the movie plot. While that sounds pretty super, the story lines are divided up into smaller missions, and you’ll often have to play missions from each of the story lines in order to advance through the game. It makes for one convoluted storytelling experience.

In combat, you’ll be able to take advantage of a wide variety of special moves to aid in busting up the baddies, most of which are performed by various combinations of the X and Y buttons. You’ll unlock a good deal of new moves as you progress – so many that you’ll probably forget about half of them, useful as they may be.

Combat isn’t bad overall, but what makes it a pretty shaky affair is the game’s camera. Although you have some control over camera positioning, your foes will usually be attacking you from off-screen and the herky-jerky movements are sure to make you sick – I got a headache and queasy stomach on three separate occasions while playing this game.

This time around, there are context-sensitive mini-games you’ll have to engage in. These act much like they do in the “God of War” series, forcing players to copy on-screen button prompts with their controller. These events will happen without any warning, so you’ll often be biffing it up your first time through. Thankfully, the game will usually start you back at the beginning of the context-sensitive sequence instead of at the very beginning of a mission, though I have firsthand experience with having to replay 20 minutes worth of work for missing a button press.

Swinging from building to building at high-speed using Spidey’s webbing is easily the best part of the game, although to get the most out of your swinging experience you’ll have to manipulate three different buttons in conjunction with the analog stick. It’s a bit complicated and definitely takes some getting used to, but in the end, your freedom of movement above the city streets is fantastic.

The game’s visuals aren’t quite up to par with the latest 360 releases. However, character models for Spider-Man and the major villains look outstanding. While the city appears stunning while swinging at high speed, there isn’t a lot of detail up close. Building interiors are often devoid of any decorations and walls are sometimes just a solid block of color.

The game’s symphonic-style soundtrack isn’t spectacular, but it certainly doesn’t interfere with play. Oftentimes, the music will be quite mundane, sticking to the background where you won’t notice it. Overall, this is a game where you’ll probably want to turn on your own soundtrack via the Xbox 360’s ability to stream audio from your computer to your console as you play.

Sound effects are appropriate, but not particularly amazing. You’ll be hearing a lot of “kapows” and “wa-bams” from punching and kicking opponents, while earth-shaking explosions are noticeably absent for an action game. While walking the streets, you’ll often hear the thud of what is probably supposed to be someone’s car stereo pumping out the hot jams. It’s really annoying.

Thankfully, there is some decent voice acting work from the cast of the film. B-movie legend Bruce Campbell also returns as the game’s narrator, providing a pleasant dose of sarcastic reassurance and guidance to the player.

Ultimately, “Spider-Man 3” is a middle-of-the-road deal that fans of Spider-Man might slightly enjoy, while nonfans are sure to be bored by. Your time is probably better spent catching up on that flood of fantastic holiday-season releases gathering dust on your shelf.