The problem with PowerUp Heroes is that there just isn’t much of it. The mechanics are a blast, and chaining together several power moves can have a devastating - and satisfying - effect. After each special move, that attack needs to recharge, so it is also important to pick suits that have other benefits, like a more powerful attack, or a better dodge - which can be activated by moving to one side or the other. Certain attacks are more useful to help chain attacks than others, and picking two suits that complement each other can make a big difference. Certain attacks stun enemies, allowing you to follow up with a similar attack, or switch suits by raising your left arm then unleashing a different type of attack. The special moves alone are fun, but they are far more effective when linked. Some are straightforward enough (in the Volta suit, which is lightning-based, you raise your arms then lower them for an electrical attack), while others are a bit more bizarre (the Necromancer suit, for example, allows you to call up a few skeletons to hold your enemy for a second attack). Each suit offers three special attacks that are unique to the suit. Each suit offers you the ability to rush the enemy and activate a close-quarters fight by raising your knee, but the real fun is in the special attacks. Once you have your two suits, the fight begins with the camera over your shoulder as you face the enemy. As you level up you can also unlock special modifiers as well. At the load-out screen before each battle, you choose the enemy you wish to fight, then select two suits from a list of defeated enemies. The game uses your Xbox avatar as the main character, and unless you choose to have him or her wear a helmet, you will see your mini-me wearing each suit. With each victory you gain the suit of the vanquished foe, which gives you their powers. Using those, you then take on several enemies given powers of their own. The good alien crashes, but gives you his powers. There is an evil alien robot named Malignance heading to Earth to enslave us because he is evil or something, but a good - and thankfully, superpowered - alien is on his tail. This title mostly avoids that by having ranged moves lead into combos. The second thing PowerUp Heroes uses is the superhero genre, and combining the two to make a superhero-inspired fighting game that you physically control using the Kinect is not just a good idea, it is overdue. It’s minor enough that it is easy to ignore in most titles, but with fighting games, where reactions are everything, can lead to frustration. The problem with a standard fighting game on the Kinect is the slight lag inherent in the design of the hands-free controller. It is slightly simplified, and yet it offers a ton of variety. It is a fighting game, but not a traditional one. PowerUp Heroes takes two good concepts, mashes them together and throws them on the Kinect. By the third hour most will have moved on to something else. By the second hour, you will have seen everything the game has to offer. For the first hour of playing, it is hard not to have fun with this game. As a franchise, the series has as much potential as any game on the Kinect. I like the simple comic book-inspired look. I like almost everything about Ubisoft’s Kinect-specific PowerUp Heroes. In content, however, it is sorely lacking. Stand in front of the TV, pretend to be a superhero, and beat on evil enemies with special attacks unique to each character.
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