The Incredibles: Rise of the Underminer Preview

The Incredibles was a great film, and those who could look beyond the film’s animated trappings found a very intelligent film that stands as one of the best superhero movies to come out in a long while. The follow-up game was also not too shabby, even though some pretty bad issues hindered it, like overly repetitive action and complete dependence on the film’s story arc. However, the developers are looking to repair these issues in the sequel, The Incredibles: Rise of the Underminer. For starters, the story is a brand new adventure, taking place immediately following the events that transpired at the end of the movie. The team developing the game has been collaborating extensively with the folks at Pixar in order to get the characters just right, both aesthetically and storywise. The result should be a compelling adventure that fans of the film will do well to check out.

As I mentioned earlier, Rise of the Underminer takes place moments after the end of the first film and has the hero, Mr. Incredible, faces a brand new threat, a super villain known as the Underminer. Fortunately, this isn’t a journey that he must take alone, as his buddy Frozone (voiced in the film by Samuel L. Jackson) will come along for a piece of the action.

The addition of Frozone is probably the biggest gameplay element to be added to the formula, as his character is always around to help. When flying solo, Frozone is controlled by the AI, helping you in your quest. You can also plug in a second controller to have a buddy take control of him at anytime, a la Champions of Norrath. Teamwork plays center stage in this regard, as both characters will have to use their powers in conjunction to take on the threat of the Underminer.

Frozone has a host of great moves to bring to the table, including an ice slide, where he glides through the air on ice slides, kind of like Iceman does in the X-Men comic books (but not in the films, bleh). Frozone has the element of speed on his side, which is a nice complement to Mr. Incredible’s sheer brute force.

Graphically, the game is looking excellent, thanks to the help of the Pixar folks. The characters are very well animated and reflect the style of their film counterparts, making the game as visually compelling as it is fun to play. The sound is also pretty cool, with some banter between Mr. Incredible and Frozone giving the characters an extra sense of personality and adding a lot to the game’s overall charm.

While the original Incredible’s game left a lot to be desired from some gamers, this entry should give players what they want by providing an interesting storyline and some great team-based gameplay elements. Check it out this November.