Review #727: Fantastic 4 - Flame On

 Fantastic one.

 With a title like Fantastic 4: Flame On you'd be forgiven for thinking that it was a dumpster fire. I thought so too, so I avoided this game... until I heard that it was pretty good for a licensed game a few weeks ago. And... it actually is pretty darn good, don't let the fact that it's a movie tie-in fool you, the developers put a lot of care into this little cart.

 While character designs and looks are clearly based on the horrible movie released in the early 00s, the game tells a completely different story. Right after Johnny and company get their cosmic powers, a date with a nurse goes awry and the Skrulls want to capture Johnny. And that's the gist of it, Skrulls want to capture Johnny and Johnny won't have any of it. He tries telling the other Fantastic Four but they don't believe him, so Johnny goes globe trotting around the world in order to stop them. The game lasts almost 2 hours, which is on the short side, but you can replay the game and continue to amass upgrade points if you want.

 Flame On is a beat'em up, through and through. You move from left to right defeating every enemy that stands in your way, with a few scenes freezing the scrolling until every enemy is gone. There are civilians to rescue, but while they do affect your score, it seemed to me like score and upgrades had nothing to do with each other. I might be wrong though. Every now and then you'll get to partake in a few crummy minigames, such as Snowboarding and Motocross, as well as sidescrolling shooting stages. While the minigames aren't too terrible, they can't hold a candle to the main gameplay.

 There's a bunch of different things the Human Torch can do in this game. B is your normal 4-hit combo, with invincibility frames on the combo finisher. A+B performs a tackle that has some invincibility frames, it can be aimed anywhere, but can only be used once until you land. Down + B shoots a fireball. Lastly, R and L perform two different super moves, which consume a gauge that fills as you deal damage. Combat feels fast and snappy, and the game can get quite challenging by the end! I actually had to think about what I was doing and how. Plus, every level has a single checkpoint, and healing nurses can be hard to come by! That said, movement can feel a bit floaty at times, but it doesn't get in your way too much.

 Every now and then the game will reward you with upgrade points, which you can then use on your HP, Punches, Fireballs or Tackles. As for me, I started alternating between Punch and Health, until the game toughened up and I started trading Punches for Fireballs, in order to play like a wuss. Hey, it got me to the end of the game!

 Fantastic 4 - Flame On is pretty good, specially for a Fantastic 4 game. It's a bit too short, but the gameplay is pretty dope. I'm not quite sure if the game lends itself to a handheld system, considering levels can be a bit long, but it's not a bad time waster.
 7.5 out of 10