Genre: Action
Publisher: Activision
Developer: Raven Software
Release Date: May 1, 2009

The first thing I have to tell you about X-Men Origins: Wolverine is that I can't do it justice by writing about it. You've likely already seen screenshots and video of the gameplay as well as read tons of previews and hands-on articles (like this one). Still, none of that can prepare you for this game and just how amazing it is once you finally get to grab a controller and put ol' Wolverine through his paces. If you're not already counting down the days to this title, then you should be because it's ready to take your preconceived notions of movie-based games and blow them out of the water.

Actually, it's even unfair to call this a movie game because the team at Raven Software has been working exceptionally hard to make sure this title stands apart from the accompanying film. While most movie tie-ins are simple retreads of the film with playable segments, this game is an entirely different entity, a creation all its own. The developers like to think that their game simply suffers an unfortunate coincidence in that it shares its name with a movie, and that the two really are nothing alike, aside from who serves as the main character. That's an excellent way to consider this title because it's so much more than any movie game that's come before.

Enough about all that, though. Why do I say that you can't judge the game until you've played it? Regardless of which games you may have previously played featuring Wolverine, this character and this particular combat system in this particular game is the most visceral, satisfying and fun of them all. It's no secret that Wolverine is one of the most unhinged of superheroes, oftentimes more animal than man in battle. That sense of primal rage is conveyed perfectly here, as all attacks involve getting up close and personal with the bad guys and tearing them to shreds with our antihero's vicious adamantium claws. This sense of carnage carries over into the cut scenes, where Wolverine will tear off enemies' limbs, throw himself into engines and gears to stop machines, and even dispatch foes by letting their heads meet a helicopter's blades. This is one man who doesn't believe in negotiation, and it shows every step of the way.

Combat wouldn't be such a guilty pleasure if it weren't for the fact that it's so smooth and satisfying. Simple button taps allow you to launch into all manner of combos, and if you don't want to be bothered wearing down a foe, you can grab him and perform a unique quick kill, assuming you get the timing right. You'll quickly discover that the bad guys think they can hide behind guns and take out Wolverine from a distance since he's a melee fighter, but thanks to the lunge attack, you can instantly spring across the screen and take out a gun-toting baddie, showing that no one is safe from this man on a mission of revenge.

As fans of the character know, one of the most intimidating things about Wolverine is the fact that he's virtually indestructible. His adamantium skeleton and amazing regenerative capabilities mean that he's truly a one-man army and unstoppable when he's on a mission. Raven has handled the delicate task of how you kill the unkillable quite admirably, implementing two different bars to measure Wolverine's well-being. The first is a health bar that depletes quickly but regenerates just as rapidly when players aren't taking damage, and the second is a vitals bar that is much shorter and fills much more slowly. The idea is that as long as your vitals stay up, you can fight on forever, but too many shots to the heart or brain and even this man, who is still mortal, can die. It's going to take a lot of work for the opposition to bring down this hero, and if your options are to stand and fight against Wolverine or flee, then the smart money is still on turning tail and hoping you live to tell about it.

The last thing that has to be mentioned due to its sheer awesomeness is a boss battle we got to see against a Sentinel. As fans of the comics know, these massive machines were mass-produced with one objective — to kill mutants — and the X-Men had all sorts of problems dealing with these towers of power. In Origins, Wolverine runs into one of the early models, and rather than trying to find a safe place to hide, he does what he does best and goes after it head-on. The first part of the battle is a fairly standard affair where Wolverine slashes at the Sentinel's weak points on its hands and feet until the machine begins breaking apart.

At this point, the monstrosity attempts to ignite its rockets and escape, but our protagonist isn't letting go that easily. What follows is a sequence where Wolverine cuts the machine's engines when it's somewhere near the Earth's upper atmosphere and then spends the entire fall back to the planet dismantling the Sentinel piece by piece to make sure that it doesn't come back for him later. Keep in mind that this is not one long cut scene, but rather a fully interactive boss fight where players will be controlling Wolverine as he makes what would surely be a fatal plummet for any mere human. When the battle finally ends with Wolverine blasting through the Sentinel's head like a 200-pound bullet, you'll likely be on your feet cheering at the screen — assuming you can even speak after experiencing something so incredible.

As I sit and write this, all I want to do is go back and play more of X-Men Origins: Wolverine. It's one of those games that has taken hold of my brain and refuses to let go. In a way, I'm thankful that it's taken me so long to get a chance to play the game because if I had seen it months ago, then the wait for its release would be even more torturous. I know the gaming media takes a lot of flak for hyping up games that ultimately prove to be disappointments, but I strongly feel that won't be the case here. Come May 1, we're all in for a treat. I just wonder if the box office receipts for the movie will suffer because we're all at home playing the game instead.