Spider-Man: Friend or Foe Review

By Kristan Reed Published 23 October, 2007

Foe.

Version tested: Xbox 360

Friend or Foe, Good or Bad? The answers are 'foe' and 'bad', I'm afraid. Spider-Man: Friend or Foe has 'filler release for the young 'uns who don't yet know better' written all over it from the moment you start mashing those buttons in earnest, and scarcely gets any better hours later. It's a game with precious little content, piss weak combat, and some of the blandest graphics yet to hit the 360. No wonder Activision's not shouting about it.

Problem number one: Friend or Foe is yet another isometric Marvel game. That's not necessarily a bad thing in itself, but Activision has long been guilty of milking the ageing formula to death over the past few years. This, frankly, stretches Marvel fans' patience beyond breaking point - especially in a year when we've already had to stomach one lacklustre Spider-Man game.

At least last year's Marvel Ultimate Alliance was exhaustive attempt at packing in more content than any previous isometric brawler. Having so many different characters and permutations (not to mention online play) offered a fair incentive to carry on, even when your brain was being numbed by the inherent repetition of the gameplay. By comparison, Friend or Foe is limp and insipid, with a mere fraction of the features on offer in Raven's surprisingly decent effort.

PSone and only

Central to the general boredom surrounding this game is the aforementioned piss weak combat. Evidently designed for morons who derive pleasure from joylessly stabbing X or B and killing everything without, you know, requiring any hint of skill whatsoever; it's a game you can romp through by repeating the same boring moves against the same dull, lifeless drones, across five bland environments. So lacking in ambition is this game, it could have easily have been designed for the PSone and the ancient Sony hardware wouldn't have broken sweat. There's no place for games like this in the full price market - even for die-hard Marvel mentalists. It's a fun-free zone, where you're going through the motions.

'Spider-Man: Friend or Foe' Screenshot hula

Hula hoop with a difference.

Not convinced? Then I'll attempt to describe a typical encounter in Friend or Foe. You, and one of the 14 unlockable characters wander around lifeless environments on the hunt for some evil dude or other. From nowhere, Bad Guys enter the scene. You clobber them to bits by mashing X, or web-line/shoot/stun them with B. Hit B again and you'll probably swing them them around a bit and smash them on the floor amusingly. When all the various respawning goons have finally been beaten to a pulp and disappeared (convenient!), you'll wander on through boring, linear environments, smashing random boxes for currency. Another cluster of enemies will enter the scene. And again. Eventually you'll find a 'secret' key, and a 'secret' arena, where you can (optionally) fight a bunch of more boring drones. From there, you'll plough through dozens more idiotic enemies, using the same old tactics, reaping the same rewards and barely ever feeling remotely threatened. After a few more tiresome encounters you'll face a mini-boss with a health bar. You'll pluck his projectiles out of the air and fling them back at him. You'll dodge waves of determined attacks. You'll notice that even when you're being hit a lot, you die rarely.

And while all this sterile nonsense is playing out, you'll either have an AI player helping out occasionally, or one of your actual real-life friends (or foes, who knows?) will be dishing out some clobbering too. To begin with, you only have one character to choose from, but as you defeat each corrupted boss monster, they go from being your foe to being your chum in a united battle against whatever's raining comets down on various parts of Planet Earth. That in itself is quite a neat touch, and being able to swap over to different characters during the game or between levels makes for a fair bit of variety - in theory at least. In practice, the core piss weak combat is just so dull, and the sense of challenge so muted that you'll quickly lose the will to see the game through.

Heroes and Villains

In between levels you'll get the obligatory chance to upgrade your character or characters as you see fit. On a basic level you can power up your health, strength and resistance to damage, but beyond that you can choose to spend your winnings on unlocking more powerful or more exciting special moves. Not that you need them, of course. They're there for show as much as anything, dishing out perceived rewards and offering a tiny carrot to continue.

'Spider-Man: Friend or Foe' Screenshot opera

Opera with a difference.

Another thing to mention is the ability to pitch any of the unlocked characters against one another in a traditional 3D beat 'em up in an arena-based environment. While this could be quite interesting in its own right, the game's rather inept combat makes it feel like a clumsy, tacked-on afterthought. Sure, you can use all your special moves and settle a few scores about whether Spider-Man's really harder than Green Goblin, but it's no substitute for a proper Marvel beat 'em up, put it that way.

Whether you agree that the gameplay is a shoddy, lightweight travesty, or a pleasant diversion for younger or casual gamers is one thing. What's indisputable about Friend or Foe is just how rubbish the graphics are. Cribbed from mid-90s brawler design, the hilarious lack of any attempt to lavish the game with any love in the art department is stunning. The character models are acceptable (in cut scenes, at least), but beyond that the game takes place in such depressingly vanilla locations that the only possible explanation for how the game ended up like this is down to severe deadline restrictions imposed on Next Level. Given the Canadian team's serviceable track record to date (including Mario Strikers Charged), we can't think of any other reason why the game ended up being such a waste of everyone's time.

It hasn't been a good year for Peter Parker, has it? First, a lacklustre movie tie-in, then a critically murdered movie, and now a thoroughly unnecessary isometric brawler that ranks alongside Transformers and Pirates of the Caribbean as being one of the worst uses of a high profile license we've seen this year. If you're skipping to the final paragraph, here's what you missed: Friend or Foe's main punishable offence is for being bland to the point of irrelevance. Skill-free button-mashing combat, crappy AI, uninspired level-design, horribly sterile environments and a game so short you could finish most of it in an evening. Please: stay the hell away from it.

3 / 10

Read the Eurogamer.net scoring policy
Picture of Kristan.

About Kristan Reed

Kristan is a former editor of Eurogamer, dad, Stone Roses bore and Norwich City supporter who sometimes mutters optimistically about Team Silent getting back together.

Read more articles from Kristan by visiting the Kristan Reed archive page.

You may also like...

Comments (57) Latest comment 4 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Killerbee #1 4 years ago

    Ouch.

    Mind you, it wasn't on my radar in the first place, so no great disappointment.

  • Kniteshade #2 4 years ago

    spider pig

  • krudster #3 4 years ago

    Does whatever a Spider-Pig does.

  • S.J.Rogers #4 4 years ago

    spider pig

  • souljacker2000 #5 4 years ago

    can he swing from a web??

  • Lionheart #6 4 years ago

    Pwnd!

  • dirigiblebill #7 4 years ago

    No he can't, he's a pig.

  • jonthepymm #8 4 years ago

    Spiderman 4, 5 and 6 - the movies - have all been given the green light. So there could be more of this rubbish over the next 10 years...

  • Derblington #9 4 years ago

    I like it :(

  • Guv #10 4 years ago

    watch out...

  • haowan #11 4 years ago

    Ah Next Level Games, the guys who have managed beyond all reason to provide a sensible working environment for their staff. Good to hear, shame the games don't necessarily live up to the same standard.

  • souljacker2000 #12 4 years ago

    here comes the spider pig.... dont hold me to that im not sure

  • Brodie #13 4 years ago

    GIVE. THE. MARVEL. LICENSE. BACK. TO. CAPCOM.

    That is all.

  • skybluesam86 #14 4 years ago

    Spiderman 4, 5 and 6 - the movies - have all been given the green light. So there could be more of this rubbish over the next 10 years...

    Spiderman 2 was great.
    If they can go some way to recapturing that, they're on the right lines.

    Stuff like this, though, is filler tat.

  • andromeda #15 4 years ago

    read like a 1 out of 10
    where did u scrape 3 points from?

  • fiery_jackass #16 4 years ago

    sounds foe-king awful

  • ZuluHero #17 4 years ago

    "Foe"

    lol - i knew what the score was going to be based on that :D

  • MBar #18 4 years ago

    If you're skipping to the final paragraph ...

    Yes, he was talking to me when he said that.

    Surprisingly bad, in a way.

    Severely not unexpectly bad, in another.
    Edited by 1 at 23/10/07 @ 12:20

  • JedEvangelion #19 4 years ago

    Check what 'isometric' means. Because it doesn't mean what you think it does.

  • Triggerhappytel #20 4 years ago

    Activision must pay a lot of dollars for licences like this and Transformers, so why churn out such obviously shit, underdeveloped games? Sure, they can make a quick, lazy buck, but the long-term potential is far greater if they make sure each game is a product of quality.

  • philw #21 4 years ago

    Brodie: GIVE. THE. MARVEL. LICENSE. BACK. TO. CAPCOM.
    +1 on that.

    On the plus side, that's a cool pic of spidey on the home page.

  • Steroyd #22 4 years ago

    Wow... how did EG know I'd skip to the last paragraph. o_O

  • miiiguel #23 4 years ago

    I like it, I don't love it. It's not Halo, it's the opposite - it's small, light-hearted... .
    The humour lines are pretty good (old-school comix humour).

    Co-op double the good points of the game. You gotta be "young at heart" to enjoy it.
    One thing is very stupid though, death brings no penalty, at all...

  • bonker #24 4 years ago

    "Ah Next Level Games, the guys who have managed beyond all reason to provide a sensible working environment for their staff. Good to hear, shame the games don't necessarily live up to the same standard. "

    And the moral of the story being ...

  • krudster #25 4 years ago

    miiiguel, I can't believe you parted cash for this, or did you? I notice you have 44,000 odd gamerpoints, with 1000s on some of the most terrible games ever made. Are you a masochist?

  • rashes #26 4 years ago

    It'll probably be in the top 5 of the charts...

  • Talha #27 4 years ago

    What in the game warrants a 3 instead of a 1? You know, someone might decide it is not bad enough and might not STAY THE HELL AWAY! :-)

  • MBar #28 4 years ago

    What in the game warrants a 3 instead of a 1? You know, someone might decide it is not bad enough and might not STAY THE HELL AWAY! :-)

    Graphics look decent in the screenshots.

    ... And that's about it.

  • miiiguel #29 4 years ago

    krudster: that's a bit unfair, to say I have 1K but in atrocious games, I have 1K in almost every game I own (and yes, every game you see in my game list I own and I payed for):

    1K @ (for examle):
    Bioschock
    Oblivion
    Tenchu Z (acquired taste, I like it a LOT!)
    Enchanted Arm
    PES 6
    Homecourt
    Def Jam Icon (quite proud of this 1K, it was very hard!)
    LMA Manager 2007
    Viva Piñata
    CoD2
    Condemned
    Tomb Raider Legend
    NFS Most Wanted
    DW5 Empires

    and some "close ones", which I'm also proud such as 965 @ Burnout...; 950 @ Blue Dragon (I'll do the remaining 50...).

    The ones really bad I have are: RTWC and Superman.
    To each its own, but I think your Friend or Foe review dind't focus on the essence of the game. This is a kinda 50's/60's comix alike item. Not a word on its humour lines?
    Edited by 3 at 23/10/07 @ 13:29

  • krudster #30 4 years ago

    Don't get me wrong, some of your achievements show an extremely impressive degree of dogged determination, but there are an awful lot of games that made me think "he played THAT p.o.s?! To 1000 points?" I'm interested in what motivates people to play obviously rubbish games above and beyond the norm, almost for the sake of mining them for gamerpoints. I've got an excuse, because it's my job to play crap like Superman, Transformers, PotC and this, but once I've finished the game, there's absolutely no way I'll waste precious hours of my life just to gain some gamerpoints. I'd rather start a new game that's better than linger on some of the dross out there.

  • bushwod #31 4 years ago

    @JedEvangelion

    'Check what 'isometric' means. Because it doesn't mean what you think it does.'

    eh? Yes it does! What you on about?

  • miiiguel #32 4 years ago

    yet again, and let me point this out and underline it clearly:
    RTWC and Superman are in fact atrocious..., and it's rather shamefull to have a 1K on it rather than something to be proud of. I give you that...

  • yupyup #33 4 years ago

    I'm usually not one to knock scores, but how did you give it more than a 1. From your review it really sounds like there is no redeeming features to the game at all?

    o_O

  • Daymare #34 4 years ago

    Activision "themselves" (press conference) pointed out that this game's target audience are kids, which is kind of obvious. So I presume it wouldn't be a 3/10 for them, krudster? Just asking if you reviewed it with that in mind and it got a 3/10 or it's 3/10 for us, "serious" gamers, but kids can add a point or two to the score?

    /has too much time and therefore asks kindda stupid, irrelevant questions :)

  • miiiguel #35 4 years ago

    farticus: let us analise this - it's my console, my games, my time, I like to do the Achievements, why judge that ? Please undersstand that I don't do them to compare myself with anyone, just like to do the chalenges.
    I'm an average gamer, just persistent, and... mental.

    Miiiguel is an homage to Takeshi Miike - and I have spiked hair.

    By the way...: I'm not sure I'll ever be able to do "Overkill"; "Two for One" and "Steppin Razor" @ Halo 3 :(
    Any tip welcome...
    Edited by 3 at 23/10/07 @ 14:50

  • krudster #36 4 years ago

    It's nice that people play games thoroughly, I just wonder why anyone would play Surf's Up, Cars, and that sort of rubbish for fun.

    As for the 3/10 score...the game works, it's polished and sometimes has the odd mildly entertaining boss section. Is the crappy, undemanding combat an excuse for being "for kids"? Aren't kids often stupidly good at hardcore games at a phenomenally young age? I've never understood the mentality of kids games being easy - these are the kind of people who have the spare time to get good at the really hard games...

  • Sid-Nice #37 4 years ago

    Marvel-Arse.

  • miiiguel #38 4 years ago

    IMHO, the main problem of its "easyness" is that there's no penalty for death. The combat is not that stupid, the aforementioned thing is.

    Cars is not that bad, neither is Surf's Up, the later even scored 7/10 @ Eurogamer.
    I think this "kids games" thing works both ways in term of stereotypes - devs tend to "under-hype" them, and critics tend to bash them, unfairly (sometimes).

  • miiiguel #39 4 years ago

    farticus: you're bloody right! These simplistic co-op games are great for non-gamers, they get so excited for "owning" (like...: "see...; see what I did there? saved you're arse from that big robot!" - "yeah, yeah! Thanks a lot! I wouldn't have done it without you!";), it's a joy to watch their eyes glowing in amusement.
    Edited by 1 at 23/10/07 @ 16:25

  • mingster #40 4 years ago

    They are not called 'achievements' for nothing.

    Anyone who obtains them from stuggling through mediocre/awful games deserves them wholeheartedly.

    It just shows that having goals or something to aim for improves the value of poor games.

  • GamesConnoisseur #41 4 years ago

    I did hand on heart rent Superman and even worse, Pimp my Car, just for the potential to increase my gamerpoints! But as you would see from my gamercard I did not bother with them. Returned those next day.

    Firstly, yes the drive to increase your score is there, just look at any game with the leaderboard, best lap time and so on. Secondly, you have to actually enjoy the game to make it worthwhile, I did not with those two!

    Basically the whole point of having game is that it should be enjoyable and not a chore or wholly about frustrations.

    Miiiguel is entitled to do as he see fit, but as any people with Gamercard know, our history with X360 games is displayed there for any to see! Warts and all.

  • miiiguel #42 4 years ago

    I can also add that where I live there's no option to rent games, so when I spend 60Eur in a game, I find it welcome to have any way to improve its value (I won't put in the garbage bin, nor sell it for 5 Eur., so I can just play it). Is it Achievements ? Fair enough, I'll try to get them. That said, and mixing that info with my own personality, and leads to a short amount of games and a high completion ratio - 53 Games; 92% completion, says XBox Users Group.

    But, take a look at my Gamercard, I think there are mostly good and above average games. Yet again, "Surf's Up" for instance had "above average" critics when it came out, but now, as ppl only remembers "it's a kids game" it became known "as utter shite".
    And there are Achievements very, very challenging and great to Achieve (e.g.: Burnout ones; CoD2 Vet; 100% at Blue Dragon..., Crackdown Orbs...; 100 online wins at PES6...; great fun).

    And then there's that stupid "Two for One"...!, I hate you Spartan Laser! I think I wont go above 985 @ H3..., too much time already..., patience is almost lost.

    multiple-edits: english worsens with the approach of the big match later on... (Roma vs SCP)
    Edited by 8 at 23/10/07 @ 18:10

  • BigJonno #43 4 years ago

    I was hoping this was going to be at least half-way decent, I was looking for something good to play with the little'un.

  • MasterControlProgram #44 4 years ago

    Spider-Man: Friend or Foe
    Review: Foe

    This tag line had me laugh for 60 whole seconds, granted. Whoever created it deserves an applause.

  • J.C #45 4 years ago

    Saw some kids playing this in GAME the other day, they were fighting over the controller lol.
    Edited by 1 at 23/10/07 @ 21:51

  • SomaticSense #46 4 years ago

    A 3/10?!?

    How much did the publishers pay you to dole out that ludicrously generous score?

    "Graphics look decent in the screenshots.

    ... And that's about it.     "

    What? ARE YOU BLIND????

  • Nillsens #47 4 years ago

    Pig-Der-Spi

  • smelly #48 4 years ago

    "Ah Next Level Games, the guys who have managed beyond all reason to provide a sensible working environment for their staff. Good to hear, shame the games don't necessarily live up to the same standard."


    Erm, they made the critically acclaimed mario strikers...

  • Zuiyo #49 4 years ago

    Thank you Eurogamer for a slice of truth.

  • Steroyd #50 4 years ago

    I'll never understand Achievements, they don't do anything, I'd be much more appreciative if they were like Resistances' skill points where they actually unlock something in the game rather than just a number to flaunt on the web.

  • miiiguel #51 4 years ago

    I'll never understand Church goers too..., but hey..., if JC rocks their boat I don't judge.
    Let me keep my Achievements...

    You can't compara the platform-wide Achievements to a method used in a single, forgettable game. Sony is coming with Entitlements...
    By having Achivements it doesn't mean you don't have "unlockables". Halo for instance, finish it on Lgendary, you get a nice helmet, and a cool 150g's pin to put on your "virtual coat". I like that, sue me.

    And, the "don't do anything" is a thin argument (well a bit of a Marxist thought, to be honest) as ludic activities "don't do anything" you know ? I "do something" when I work, when I play, I do my best to "do nothing".
    Edited by 4 at 24/10/07 @ 10:32

  • jlaakso #52 4 years ago

    I didn't think it was quite that bad. Not good certainly, but I can see a young fan having fun with this. We played through a couple of levels with a friend without any pains, only wondering about the bland enemies and environments. The combat _looks fun_, while being extremely simple. So it sort of feels good to be a superhero. I still probably won't recommend it.

    What I don't get is bitching about not being punished for dying in the game. LEGO Star Wars had the same approach, nobody minded. This is obviously the same game, albeit without the former's charm and wit.

  • miiiguel #53 4 years ago

    I haven't played Star Wars, and I don't think that serves as an excuse to something, IMO, dumb. Death should bring some penalty. And I'm enjoying FoF, it's amusing. As I said it strongly reminds me of 50's/60's comics.

    Still, the games makes fun of itself, and its "easyness", I still find it very odd why the reviewer didn't mention it.
    "Don't you loose you excitment with all this winning ?" - Sandman
    "Not really, we're Super-Heroes after all" - Spiderman
    Edited by 1 at 24/10/07 @ 12:15

  • Derblington #54 4 years ago

    This is a lot like LEGO Star Wars (though they are better) but for Spider-man. It's very simple and entertaining, imo. The death penalty thing doesn't bother me as I just don't die (not bragging, it really is easy) but I do understand where you're coming from.

    I've enjoyed upgrading the web-shooters and seeing what the moves do and I'm now working through upgrading all the other characters. I think you do have to like Spider-man (not the movies) to like the game though, in much the same way that if Star Wars isn't your thing I doubt you'd spend time with LSW.

  • iggypopbarker #55 4 years ago

    do the spider-pig brigade realise that in the early 80s Marvel published a fairly long-running parody comic called Peter Porker The Spectacular Spider Ham? it was shit, of course

  • [menace] #56 4 years ago

    I'll be getting this for my son I think.. sounds like a nice simple game that he'll enjoy without any frustration..

  • [menace] #57 4 years ago

    Got it today and we completed a few levels together.. It looks fine for a PS2 game, and controls are fine too. 3/10 seems very harsh, not that I care about scores really, except some people might pass on it just because of the low score..