Surely this is the biggest disappointment of the next generation so far. And not because it’s a poor adaptation of a poor film but because, more than anything else released on PS3 to date, it shows how little some publishers and developers care about making the most of the fantastic hardware in front of them and genuinely entertaining their loyal customer (you). The suspicion that, for many publishers at least, it really is all about money is all but confirmed here; with Spider-Man 3 there is no progression in the series from the previous generation, there is no innovation and, crucially, there is no fun.

Of course, in the run-up to this title’s release there was the inevitable hype designed to convince people that this was, in fact, a next-generation title. Most of this involved boasting about the manner in which the developers had resolved the linearity issues that plagued the previous Spider-Man titles, so it should say plenty that it’s here where the game is most disappointing. As well as mechanically working your way through the story chapters involving Mary Jane, the Goblin, Sandman and Venom, you’re also asked to take on several other missions, some of which involve photography freelance, human-sized lizards, and gangs that go by ridiculous names. The idea is that it gives you variety, but really it’s just more linearity disguised as variety. There’s nothing like the freedom we’d hoped for on the PlayStation 3 – just plodding, uninvolving plots and minimal choice.

Decorating the chapters are some rather uninspired conflicts with countless nondescript henchmen. Unsurprisingly, these conflicts usually mean nothing more than a bit of fisticuffs, so at times the game can feel like a series of scraps held together by a bit of webswinging and some flimsy storylines, mainly because that’s precisely what it is. This wouldn’t be too dreadful a scenario, however, if the combat wasn’t monotonous, tedious, buttonbashing dross, which it is. As with the other Spider-Man titles, it’s all about you furiously thumb-thumping at the punch and kick buttons, occasionally pulling off a combo and throwing a special move into the mix. It’s an uninspired process and it’s not long before you feel as though you’re just going through the motions waiting for the screen to clear.

It’s not all fists and feet though, and a fair number of the missions feature some rather uninteresting quick-time events. There are even moments when you have to defuse a bomb by doing precisely as you’re told. Welcome to the next generation.

Of course, it’s not all bad news – there are at least some positives in the control system. As in Spider-Man 2 and Ultimate Spider- Man, the webbed wonder moves swiftly and smoothly through the New York air. Most of his abilities are executed by a simple press of a button and the camera isn’t too obstructive (unless you’re climbing on ceilings, in which case it’s hideous). However, despite their indisputable functionality, we can’t help but feel a little disappointed that the developer didn’t bother to better use the Sixaxis in a more interesting manner. We’re not necessarily suggesting that the tilt function should have been implemented, but better use could certainly have been made of the shoulder triggers. This really exemplifies the developer’s failure to in any way embrace the next-generation technology.

But what of the webswinging itself? Having long been the most entertaining aspect of the series, many were wondering how it would fare on the PlayStation 3. The unfortunate answer is: exactly the same as it has done on the PlayStation 2. We say unfortunate because even though this should be just as enjoyable as it was in previous titles, it has, like so many other videogame elements that aren’t nurtured properly, become stale and dull. Gone is the thrill you’d feel as you zipped through the air, gone is the joy, gone is the hope that this series could ever live up to its promise. Matters aren’t helped by the knowledge that you’re only ever on your way to another repetitive mission, but this element is really just tedious all on its own.

Perhaps things could have been improved by having a city that didn’t look so hopelessly brown, but we’ll never know as every inch of Spider-Man 3’s New York seems to be covered in a thin layer of muck. A wellrealised expansive city should have been a selling point but, like the rest of the game’s visuals, it feels flat, dull and completely unappealing. This, we suppose, is the price we pay for other people’s strict deadlines and inability to conjure up anything aesthetically exciting from one of the most captivating cities on the planet. The increased size also serves little purpose other than to make the travelling between levels that much more infuriating.

At this juncture, we shall resist the temptation to be too pessimistic – we still feel as though there could be a truly superb superhero game on this console – but there’s no denying that this is a lame, unenthralling title that would have disappointed on PlayStation 2 let alone PlayStation 3. Miserable stuff.

Aaron Asadi