X-Men: Mutant Apocalypse

X-Men: Mutant Apocalypse is an action game developed and published by Capcom for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1994. The game is based on the X-Men comic book franchise from Marvel Comics. It was the second game Capcom released based on the franchise, the other being a fighting game titled X-Men: Children of the Atom, also released in 1994.

X-Men: Mutant Apocalypse
North American cover art
Developer(s)Capcom
Publisher(s)Capcom
Producer(s)Tokuro Fujiwara
Composer(s)Setsuo Yamamoto
SeriesX-Men
Platform(s)Super NES
Release
  • NA: November 1994
  • JP: January 3, 1995
  • EU: 1995
Genre(s)Platform, beat-'em-up
Mode(s)Single-player

In Mutant Apocalypse, players control five of the X-Men: Beast, Cyclops, Gambit, Psylocke, and Wolverine. After guiding each of them through their own dedicated levels, players can then select which level to complete next as well as the team member to complete it with. The end goal is to defeat Magneto on his Avalon space station. The game was well received by critics.

Gameplay
Psylocke's first stage

The player takes control of five X-Men who each have their own objectives, and different moves and capabilities activated by certain control combinations. The player has a limited number of lives that count for all five X-Men and not one individually.

The levels may be played in any order. At the end of each level, a boss must be battled and defeated. The next three levels are linear and require each boss level to be defeated. This is followed by two straightforward boss battles in the Danger Room. Finally only one of the X-Men can be selected, each one going through a different end level.

After beating the first five stages, a password can be acquired. The game has health pickups, as well as extra lives in the form of collecting three "X" icons hidden throughout each stage.

Characters
  • Beast - Possesses superhuman physical strength, agility and ape-like appearance.
  • Cyclops - Produces powerful, uncontrollable beams of concussive force from his eyes, forcing him to wear a specialized visor at all times.
  • Gambit - Has the ability to manipulate kinetic energy and charge objects with it and is also skilled in card-throwing, hand-to-hand and staff combat.
  • Psylocke - She can use her telepathic powers to form a 'psychic knife' from her fist. An expert martial artist, she has the most techniques of all the playable characters.
  • Wolverine - A gruff mutant possessing superhuman senses, enhanced physical capabilities, adamantium coated bones and claws and regenerative abilities. The game however does not feature his healing factor.

Plot

Charles Xavier sends five of his X-Men to sabotage various operations and structures on the Genosha island complex to liberate mutants in captivity. Further investigation reveals Queen Brood and Tusk involved in this matter and headed by Apocalypse.

After defeating all evil forces on Genosha. Xavier finds out that Magneto intends to destroy Genosha from his space station Avalon. To prepare for the confrontation, Xavier tests the five X-Men in the Danger Room to defeat holograms of Omega Red and Juggernaut. After passing the tests, the X-Men go their separate paths inside Avalon facing and defeating Exodus and then battling Magneto and thwarting his plans.

Reception

Three of Electronic Gaming Monthly's four reviewers declared it to be by far the best video game based on the X-Men to date, citing the large levels and demanding difficulty.[3] Though they remarked that it "may become repetitive after a while", GamePro concluded that the game is "a solid hit," particularly praising the graphics, the high difficulty, and the Street Fighter II stylistics.[10] Next Generation stated that "While it would've been nice to see more X-people, this game plays great. Nothing revolutionary, but fun."[5]

In a 2011 retrospective, GamePro listed the game's "strong soundtrack, unlimited powers and a focus on combat rather than platforming," as well as the fact that the levels can be beaten in any order, among its strong features, but criticised a "fairly limited" moveset of the characters.[11] According to a GameFan retrospective, "fans of the franchise and of the genre it represents here will be equally impressed with what is on offer." They specified the impressive visuals, tight gameplay, and perfectly balanced difficulty.[12]

In 2013, Nerdist included X-Men: Mutant Apocalypse among the top ten most iconic Marvel video games, calling it "extraordinary for its time, with beautiful visuals and far more accessible game play than its Sega Genesis counterpart."[13] That same year, this "pretty damn good" side-scrolling action game was also ranked as the 20th best Marvel video game by Geek Magazine.[14]

References
  1. "X-Men Apocalypse for SNES". GameRankings. Archived from the original on December 9, 2019. Retrieved 2013-07-10.
  2. Kanarick, Mark (2010-10-03). "X-Men: Mutant Apocalypse - Review". allgame. Archived from the original on February 20, 2012. Retrieved 2013-12-18.
  3. "Review Crew: X-Men". Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 66. Sendai Publishing. January 1995. p. 38.
  4. "X-Men:Mutant Apocalypse". Retrieved 2012-07-10.
  5. "Finals". Next Generation. No. 1. Imagine Media. January 1995. p. 104.
  6. "Import : Super Famicon : Image" (JPG). Download.abandonware.org (in French). Retrieved 2016-04-22.
  7. "MegaFun Magazine (February 1995)". Archive.org. Retrieved 2016-04-22.
  8. "SNES : X-Men Mutant Apocalypse : Image" (JPG). Total.bee-ware.ch. Retrieved 2016-04-22.
  9. "Video Games The Ultimate Gaming Magazine Issue 72 January 1995". Archive.org. Retrieved 2016-04-22.
  10. Doctor Zombie (February 1995). "X-Men: Mutant Apocalypse". GamePro. No. 77. IDG. pp. 28–29.
  11. "The Good, the Bad, and the Juggernaut, Bitch: A Look at X-Men Games, page 6, Feature Story from GamePro". Web.archive.org. 2011-10-15. Archived from the original on October 15, 2011. Retrieved 2013-12-18.
  12. Reive, Neil (June 16, 2011). "Best Bits: X-Men: Mutant Apocalypse". GameFan. Archived from the original on November 24, 2013.
  13. "Top Ten Most Iconic Marvel Video Games". Nerdist.com. 2013-11-08. Retrieved 2013-12-18.
  14. Jones, Elton (2013-10-22). "Marvel Comics' 25 Best Video Games - Geek Magazine". Geekexchange.com. Archived from the original on October 27, 2013. Retrieved 2013-12-18.
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