“It seems we both have a grievance with Apocalypse.” Says Magneto, Master of Magnetism and leader of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, to the man he helped rescue from a secret installation. 

The rescued man in question, who is slumped over in his wheelchair, is Professor Charles Xavier. The same Professor Xavier who runs the School for Gifted Children and is the psychic force that guides the superhero mutant team known as the X-Men. The most interesting part about all of this is that Magneto isn’t a hero, he’s the villain that has fought Xavier and the X-Men. Yet there he is, standing along side the X-Men, helping Xavier escape. Yes, some force has arisen and it threatens not only all mutants but also all mankind. This threat is big enough to unite both good and evil to fight the threat known as Apocalypse.

X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse, quickly sets in motion the events that lead up to the teaming up of these two rival forces. It seems that while the X-Men were off investigating strange occurrences in Egypt, Professor Xavier and Polaris were attending a convention for Mutant Awareness when they were captured during an attack on the city. As the X-Men quickly discover, the attack is the brainchild of a new and somewhat ancient kind of enemy that goes by the name of Apocalypse. Who this menace is and what he plans to do is a mystery that will become unraveled but it isn’t until Apocalypse kidnaps someone close to Magneto that the evil leader puts aside his hatred for the X-Men and Xavier to team up to stop Apocalypse once and for all.

And it is in this teaming up that makes Rise of Apocalypse an even better game than the spectacular original. While the rest of the game remains relatively the same from the last game, fitting Magneto, Toad, the Scarlet Witch or even the powerhouse that is the Juggernaut with the likes of Cyclops, Wolverine and Jean Grey is a comic book fan’s dream come true. Making their return are also Rogue, Nightcrawler, Colossus, Gambit, Iceman but, alas, Magma is a no-show this time around. That’s all right, though, because the game throws in some new characters like Bishop and Sunfire. The result, though, is an interesting match up of good and bad guys working together, although you’ll often hear Brotherhood or X-Men characters trade insults.

The game’s basic structure and gameplay mechanics are the same from the original. In fact, very little has changed in this aspect and that’s perfectly fine since the first game played perfectly. You’ll still be able to find an extraction point throughout the different environments to switch teammates if you feel like it or when you need Iceman to make an ice bridge to get to an unreachable area or when you need Cyclops’ optic blast. You will still need to level up your character’s abilities, distributing the points to various skills, strengths and mutant abilities. There are items you can select to strengthen your health or add more focus, allowing you to perfect mutant abilities.

It is in leveling up that you come to fully appreciate each character’s mutant abilities. Magneto starts out pretty tough but once you reach a certain level, his ability to manipulate metal becomes a force to be reckoned with. Even Toad, whom I always thought was the laughable loser of the Brotherhood, becomes a most valuable team member. Of course, it is in mixing and matching each member of your four-member mutant team that will determine the success of your mission. Similar to the Dungeons & Dragon RPGs, it’s important to have the muscle (in this case it could be Colossus or Juggernaut), the powerful mage-like member (Storm or Jean Grey) and the specialist or fighter (Nightcrawler or Toad). Like the first game you’ll need certain mutants at specific points in the game to move forward.

One of the things that was endearing about the original X-Men Legends is the RPG elements that make interacting with this particular universe such a joy. You will get to return to Xavier’s Mansion and you will be able to interact with characters straight out of the Marvel Comics universe. You’ll meet characters familiar to those who read the X-Men comics like Lady Deathstrike, Omega Red, Mr. Sinister but also recognizable Marvel characters like Nick Fury and Ironman.  

The best additions, though, are the facts that the game runs smoother and the load times not as painful on the Xbox. Add in Xbox Live support that allows you to play through the Skirmish Danger Room battles but also Story mode with up to four players. That’s right, you can go through the game’s main story with other gamers. Online the game moves at a steady framerate and thanks to voice chat you’ll be able to communicate throughout the levels. As for leveling up the game does a quick leveling up to keep from stopping in mid-battle to do so. It works wonderfully and should be the way similar games should handle co-op.       

Graphically speaking, Rise of the Apocalypse hasn’t changed at all as well. That’s not necessarily a bad thing seeing as the look was the perfect blend of cartoon and comic book. The good thing is that the characters are wonderfully detailed to the point that you won’t have a hard time identifying them even when enemies overwhelm you. Combat looks good, although you’ll often see the same animations when a character performs his or her mutant ability.

The sound, on the other hand, is a treat thanks to the stellar score and the great voice acting. The soundtrack is appropriately dramatic when it calls for it and loud and tense during action sequences. You’ll know enemies are about to burst into a room when the music suddenly picks up. As for the voice acting, it’s handled beautifully. Patrick Stewart voices Professor Xavier (and plays him in the movies as well) and he does so wonderfully again and the other characters are done just the way you’d expect each character to sound. Overall, this is some great stuff.

X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse deserves a spot among your Xbox collection. It not only manages to brilliantly fuse action and RPG elements beautifully but it also does it in the Marvel Universe. Its story will hook you and it will not fail to make a fan out of you from the very start to the nail-biting finale. This is one game you will kick yourself for missing out on so buy this one, X-Fans, you’ll definitely enjoy it.

Gameplay: 8.5
Very little has changed gameplay-wise and while that normally would have raised a red flag, the original played excellently and, thusly, still plays just as good now. The mixing of X-Men and Brotherhood characters make this a comic book fan’s dream come true.

Graphics: 8.0
The cel-shaded characters are still nicely detailed and look like they would in a comic book but I wish there were more animations when it comes to the mutant powers. Still the environments fit the game’s overall look well enough and there are some good visual effects.

Sound: 8.6
The game’s score is top-notch and does a magnificent job of punctuating each cut scene or break in the action. Aside from a great score the voice acting is once again a highlight with returning favorites including Patrick Stewart. Even the sound effects are good.

Difficulty: Medium
Once again leveling up your characters and selecting the right members of your team makes the difference between solid teamwork and getting slaughtered. You’ll go up against some pretty interesting foes, many of which make the Sentinels from the first game seem like mechanical wind-up toys.

Concept: 9.0
Like X-Men Legends, this sequel once again brings back the various collectables such as artwork, comic covers and Danger Room maps and scenarios. The characters are true to the comic and boy, is it a thrill to be playing past enemies like Magneto or Juggernaut. There’s also Xbox Live multiplayer and it is good ... really good.

Multiplayer: 9.0
If you were among the many gamers that wished the first X-Men Legends had online multiplayer, well, get ready to be happy. Not only does this game feature Xbox Live multiplayer Skirmish but it also allows gamers to team up and tackle on the Story mode together. It even runs smoothly and offers voice chat. Thank you, Activision.

Overall: 8.9
You don’t have to be a fan of the comic book to enjoy this unique and wonderfully addictive game that manages to cram in all the things you could ask for in an action RPG. For fans of the X-Men or role-playing games in general, this one is destined to become a fan favorite so do not hesitate to buy this one right away.