VIDEO GAME REVIEW 'Spider-Man 2' takes adventure to a new level

By TOM HAM
SPECIAL TO WASHINGTON POST
This loose interpretation of the movie preserves its basic story line -- the evil Dr. Octopus is running rampant in the city and Spider-Man has to save the day -- but gives gamers plenty of ways to depart from that path. Each chapter in the game has a specific goal, but you're allowed and encouraged to take time to do some good in the city. Rescue a civilian from danger or take an injured person to the hospital and you'll win "hero points" that yield new powers and skills. And you can do this for hours on end if you want to.
Fighting has been revamped to allow such complex combinations as air juggles and multiple-hit attacks on enemies. Better yet, swinging from building to building on your spider threads feels much more natural (if that's the right word). The stiff, restrictive feel of previous "Spider-Man" games has been traded in for simple, responsive control of direction, height and distance.
As for graphics, the living, breathing scenery -- far below you, cars move and people mill about -- will certainly keep your interest. (Those graphics look a little sharper on the Xbox.) Voice-over work, meanwhile, was done by the original actors, including Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst and Alfred Molina.
X"Spider-Man 2: The Game," by Activision/Treyarch, is for PlayStation 2, Xbox and GameCube.