X-Men 2: Clone Wars | |
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![]() North American cover art | |
Developer(s) | Headgames |
Publisher(s) | Sega |
Producer(s) | E. Ettore Annunziata France M. Tantiado |
Designer(s) | William Novak Joshua Gordon Stephen Patterson |
Artist(s) | Steve Ross Spencer Boomhower Doug Nishimura |
Composer(s) | Kurt Harland |
Series | X-Men |
Platform(s) | Mega Drive/Genesis |
Release | |
Genre(s) | Platform game |
Mode(s) | Single-player, two player |
X-Men 2: Clone Wars is a 1995 platform game developed by Headgames and released by Sega of America for the Mega Drive/Genesis as a sequel to the 1993's X-Men . The game is based on the adventures of the Marvel Comics superhero team, the X-Men. A sequel, titled X-Women, was cancelled.
The game begins with a cold open; the first level begins as soon as the game is turned on with a random character (depending on the direction the player pressed on the controller's d-pad) after completing the first stage, the title screen and credits roll, and the player is given the option to switch characters. [1]
Each character has a "mutant attack power" that can be used in combat. Unlike the preceding game, there is no energy bar that limits the amount of mutant attack powers a player can use. Some of the mutant attack powers can be charged to a greater effect by holding down the power button. The attack powers increase in power when the character has nine or ten bars of health and can perform different functions if the character is in the air.
In addition to these attack powers, each character has several lesser abilities, maneuvers and quirks which make gameplay a different experience with each (see above) these attack powers can be used to reach hidden health pickups (which take the form of a double helix) or as a shortcut. Players begin the game with eight lives (meaning nine attempts) that are shared by all characters, with no way to gain more.
The game is based on the current story arc from the comics at the time of development. The plot is narrated through the Cerebro and Professor X's communication with each other. Cerebro detects that the technorganic alien race known as the Phalanx have returned and have contaminated a sentinel manufacturing facility. Learning this, Professor X sends the X-Men (Beast, Psylocke, Gambit, Nightcrawler, Wolverine, and Cyclops) to destroy the Phalanx virus, but discovers that the virus has spread to Avalon, home of Exodus and Magneto. Magneto then allies with the X-Men in preventing the Phalanx from taking control of Earth by assimilating all of its inhabitants. They trace the Phalanx to Apocalypse's facility, where he has allowed the virus to spread. After defeating him, they leave to the Savage Land where they defeat a Phalanx clone of Brainchild who was overseeing the assimilation. They continue to the Phalanx ship where they are attacked by Deathbird, and then proceed to the clone factory and the Nexus before confronting Phalanx clones of themselves. [2]
X-Men 2 was one of a handful releases for the Sega Genesis in 1995 that used a paper box rather than the standard clamshell case Genesis games came in. The European release of the game reused the same cover art as X-Men 2: Game Master's Legacy for the Game Gear, a different and unrelated game. The game was given a KA (Kids to Adults) rating by the Entertainment Software Rating Board.
The game's music was composed by Kurt Harland, of electronica band Information Society. A soundtrack album was released in 1996. Some levels featured different soundtrack elements depending on the character selected although the basic structure of the level's musical theme remained the same. [3] [4]
Aggregator | Score |
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GameRankings | 70.00% [5] |
Publication | Score |
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AllGame | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Electronic Gaming Monthly | 6.8/10 [7] |
Next Generation | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Game Players | 76% [9] |
Mean Machines Sega | 87% [10] |
Mega Force | 86% [11] |
Player One | 89% [12] |
VideoGames | 8/10 [13] |
X-Men 2: Clone Wars was met with mostly mixed reviews. GamePro remarked that the sound effects and music are a mixed bag, and criticized the two-player mode's tight scrolling, but praised the large sprites and the special abilities of the player characters. [14] Electronic Gaming Monthly also complimented the characters' special abilities but criticized that the game is little different from the original X-Men and suffers from a number of weak points, and concluded that "the game never seems to come alive, despite a few cool (not to mention huge) bosses and challenging levels". [7] GameFan 's Takahara found the graphics, cinematic intro, and the need to match each character's unique abilities to each stage to all be impressive, though he rated the music as "average". [15] A reviewer for Next Generation remarked that the game has more playable characters, more complex moves, more levels, and more gameplay twists than the original X-Men, but is still no more than a rental title. [8]
According to a retrospective review in GameFan, "in short, Clone Wars is everything Uncanny X-Men was not: nice to look at with its well-animated 16-bit characters and multi-layer backgrounds, easy to pick up and play thanks to good controls and an easily understood interface; a story that is fine for one player but more fun with two", adding, X-Men "ranks among the best comic book games produced in the era". [1] Complex ranked X-Men 2 as the 18th best game on the Sega Genesis, adding that "the game achieved the rarely seen balanced gaming". [16] It was also ranked as the 20th top Genesis game by ScrewAttack, who noted it for having in their opinion the best soundtrack on the system. [17] X-Men 2 placed 19th on the 2013 list of best Marvel video games by Geek Magazine, who stated that "the soundtrack was just as good as Mutant Apocalypse , and each stage was ripe with cool nods to the comics". [18]
A sequel featuring only the female members of the X-Men had been in development by Sega for the same platform, [19] [20] and was due out in early 1997, [21] but was cancelled.
The X-Men are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby and writer/editor Stan Lee, the team first appearing in The X-Men #1. Although initially cancelled in 1970 due to low sales, following its 1975 revival and subsequent direction under writer Chris Claremont, it became one of the most recognizable and successful franchises of Marvel Comics. They have appeared in numerous books, television shows, the Disney's 20th Century Studios X-Men films, and video games. The X-Men title may refer to the superhero team itself, the eponymous comic series, or the broader franchise including various solo titles and team books such as the New Mutants, Excalibur, and X-Force. This team of heroes marks a striking resemblance to another superhero team conceived by DC Comics called Doom Patrol, that released three months prior to release of the X-Men.
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