Leading up to the release of Deadpool, there was one thing every Deadpool fan was wishing for: please don’t be awful. While that seems like a pretty standard request, comic book games have a poor track record. With the success of the Batman: Arkham series, comic book games have a much higher expectation to meet. Deadpool is a character that has the ability to translate well to a video game, but how did High Moon Studios handle this transition? It isn’t terrible, but it is far from being a good game.
Right from the beginning, Deadpool slaps you in the face with its self-aware humor. Deadpool wants to make a video game, so he calls High Moon Studios, and after some “negotiations,” Deadpool receives a script for his video game. Throughout the campaign, Deadpool will make comments about how this level should be different, or he will complain that they only had enough money to hire D-list villains from the Marvel universe. The humor in Deadpool is very hit or miss. While it tries to be extremely over the top with the jokes, most of the time it was the subtle jokes that made me laugh out loud. Other jokes felt incredibly forced, sometimes making me cringe.
As the game progresses, Deadpool will make jokes about specific video game tropes. The jokes that are made would be funnier if the game did not suffer from common problems that show up in mediocre games. For starters, the controls in Deadpool are very clunky. It feels like he just ice skates around each level. The game also suffers from terrible camera angles. The camera is way too close when fighting enemies, making it hard to see what is happening.
The combat in the game is very similar to the Arkham games. You have a basic attack, heavy attack, a block, and a counter button. Like the Arkham games, a prompt will flash over an enemy’s head when Deadpool can counter. These will help you get through an enemy trying to block, and save your skin when you are surrounded by dozens of goons. Sometimes when an enemy is dazed, you’ll be able to finish them off with a gruesome finishing move, even if they have half of their health left. Deadpool has access to three melee weapons: swords, sais, and giant hammers. Each melee weapon is dual wielded, and offer different play styles. The swords are used for a more balanced approach, sais for quick combos, and hammers for slow, powerful hits.
In addition to melee weapons, Deadpool has an arsenal of guns that he can use at any time. He starts out with a pistol, and can purchase a machine gun, a shotgun, and a pulse rifle. Like the melee weapons, each gun is dual wielded. The gunplay is pretty average in Deadpool. With the clunky camera, it is sometimes really difficult to get an enemy in your sights. To combat the slow moving camera when aiming, High Moon Studios did include an aim assistant. If you hold down the left trigger while aiming at an enemy, the reticle will stay locked on. Deadpool also has access to grenades, mines, and bear traps to round out his arsenal, giving him a lot of firepower to get through the game.
As you defeat enemies, you will gain DP, or Deadpool Points. This serves as the ingame currency to purchase upgrades. You have the ability to upgrade his weapons, or himself. A few examples include swords becoming deadlier, guns holding more rounds and dealing more damage, and Deadpool being able to absorb more damage. But the game is incredibly unbalanced. The last few missions are very difficult, with the game sending dozens of enemies at you, all at the same time. To make matters worse, it will mix the enemy types between melee and enemies with guns. In these situations you just have to run around hoping you don’t get surrounded.
Deadpool does have the ability to teleport a short distance, but this is another mechanic in the game that does not work well. Instead of actually teleporting Deadpool, the game will make him invisible and move the character a few feet, and then he reappears. If you see a small obstacle that you could definitely teleport through, the game will not allow it because it sees that obstacle in the way. You could be in the middle of combat, trying to teleport away to regain health, and get stuck on a small rock, allowing the enemy to deal a great amount of damage to Deadpool. These situations are very frustrating, and happen more than they should.
The presentation in Deadpool is one of the stronger points of the game, which should say something about the gameplay. It is rather average in the graphics department. Deadpool himself looks great with a highly textured suit, and the rest of the supporting cast looks fine. The environments can have rather muddy textures, especially in areas outside. But most of the areas you go through will be covered in red as Deadpool is an incredibly violent game.
Anyone that is familiar with Deadpool will know that he loves to fight, and make it as messy as possible. The game does not hold back on the violence, with enemies losing limbs, being decapitated, and exploding into a red mist when they are hit with a grenade or the pulse rifle. Deadpool will also take a lot of damage, and it reflects on the character model. Like the X-Men Origins: Wolverine game, you’ll be able to see all of Deadpool’s injuries in graphic detail. If his face has been hit, you can see his skull, or his intestines after taking a damaging blow to the stomach. After a few seconds his body regenerates back to normal, which is always fun to watch.
Deadpool is voiced by iconic video game voice actor Nolan North. As a matter of fact, in the first few minutes of the game, Deadpool calls North himself to ask him if he wants to be in the game. North does a great job with the character, providing the voice for both Deadpool and the two voices in Deadpool’s head. He does a good job of replicating Deadpool’s silly and carefree attitude. Former Deadpool writer Daniel Way penned the script for the game, so it does have an authentic Deadpool feeling.
This game was made for fans of Deadpool, and they will be the ones who appreciate it the most. With the mediocre gameplay, frustrating difficulty curve, and some awful attempts at comedy, there is not much in this game for outsiders of the fiction to enjoy. It should be noted that the first playthrough of Deadpool took me about five hours. There are some challenge maps where you can go and fight enemies, but it isn’t enough to keep me coming back to the game.
There are some redeeming qualities though. While the game does get difficult, there are times where Deadpool is slicing his way effortlessly through enemies, and it is very satisfying. There are some moments in the game that are laugh out loud funny, although sometimes you are too upset at the game to even want to laugh. North’s performance as Deadpool is great, and some of the references to past video games are a welcome addition.
Deadpool was almost there. It had the potential to be an above average game. But the end result is a game that will be added to the list of disappointing comic book games.
Score: 6/10
Deadpool was developed by High Moon Studios and published by Activision for the Xbox 360, PS3, PC and Mac on June 25th. A copy of the game was provided to us by Activision for reviewing purposes.
