Spawn has been around for some time now and besides its ultra-cool figure line, has gotten the short end of the stick when it has strayed away from the comics. You've had a fair anime cartoon, a bad CG nightmare feature film, and some of the worst video games known to man. Interest in Spawn has always been pretty strong, and the insert into the Soul Calibur game for the Xbox made for curious minds. Can Spawn be made into a good video game. He has the charisma, powers, enemies, and story that would make for a kick ass game, but somehow along the line developers miss the boat. Namco, with the help of Point of View hope to change all that, but like the rest, hope is all we have.

You play as the hell bound hero through over 20 grueling missions. Grueling because there is nothing besides the name and license appeal that puts this game above average status. So-so visuals, a fair sound track, and poor controls make this game a rental for Spawn fans, and a collectors piece for the fanatics out there.

At first glance you make think this is a Devil May Cry mod with Spawn skins, but alas it's just another poorly made clone with little originality in its design. Character models seem very first generation with weak textures and jumpy animations. Spawn seems to stick out more than he does mesh with the backdrops which makes the game just seem quite rushed in visuals. The cut scenes are fair and move the story along nicely, but there are the obvious separation between real time and the cut scenes. The best visuals come from the brilliant design of the enemies, which are thanks only to the Todd'ster himself. Throw in a clumsy camera, and you have yourself a mediocre looking title at best. This title barely shows the Namco touch and is one of the few disappointments coming from this team.

Audio boasts better touches than its visual counter part. Superb voice acting moves the great storyline and is one of the things that will make any non-fan become one instantly. The in game audio is also nice, with a great use of 5.1 surround sound in both the ambience and action sequences. The music is a gritty metal soundtrack with even a track done by the master of macabre Marilyn Manson. It's this presentation that keeps the game from crawling at a snail's pace.

Game play is boiled down to the over use of the hack and slash line. Button mashers rejoice, there is another title for you to pounce on! For the rest of us who have played games like Devil May Cry, Chaos Legion, and Castlevania, you will know this little game play tale after the first few minutes. The problem is that it just doesn't feel as smooth as the aforementioned titles. Camera issues that hamper jumping levels, backed by ho hum attacks and specials just make Spawn feel like another beat'em up. Sure, Spawns traits are utilized here, including his chain attacks, Agony Axe, and a slew of kick ass weapons, but even his arsenal can't keep interest levels high for very long. The attacks seem bland and the combo attacks are just too limited for any real wowing effect. Topped off by some shoddy A.I. that will give lesser challenges the more you level up yourself. In the end, there is nothing new here.

Spawn and its 23 missions will supply ample entertainment for a few hours, especially if you're a fan. There are multiple difficulty settings, but the story remains the same throughout. For fans you can unlock a ton of bonuses like artwork, documentaries, and more that will suffice your appetite, but for non fans of the McFarlane's line, you'll only romp through this one once for kicks...punches, axe shots, and shot gun blasts.

All in all Spawn is the best video game version of the character license developed, but honestly that isn't saying a whole heck of a lot. It seems more if Namco took the idea of a popular franchise and ran with it with another, more familiar franchise in its place. It's this unoriginality that hurts the game most. Spawn fans deserve more, and till this day, have not gotten a fair shake. Maybe one day, someone will know what to do with the series, but that day is not today.